Portraits of Faith Press Release

With the release of its eleventh recording, Portraits of Faith, The Journeymen Quartet paints a portrait of Southern Gospel music, stirring the soul to envision the magnificent beauty of heaven. This collection, which includes new tunes such as "He's Doing It Once Again," "The Trial Of My Faith," and "Hold On," is sure to touch the heart of every listener.

To celebrate their sixteenth year of singing praises unto the Lord, the members of The Journeymen Quartet set their sights to create their most personal project to date.  With the help of the Grammy Award-winning producer Otis Forrest, this release opens the window to each of their souls.  Through each of the ten selections included on this labor of love, each member professes his deep faith for Jehovah and further dedicates his life to serving the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

"Never has a recording become a labor of love any more than Portraits of Faith," says Journeymen lead singer Stacey Murphy.  "Through the song selection process, recording the music tracks, the vocals, and the finishing touches, the hand of God has been evident throughout.  We are so humbled…and yet we are extremely excited!  God is at work in our group through this project. We believe that the people will agree when they hear it."

When speaking about the way this project came together, producer Otis Forrest agreed that this one was special.  "It was just God," said Otis.  "That's the way it is when He moves in and takes control.  We can't take the credit for things that could only have been done by Him."

The intent of this recording is that, through the blessed lyrics of this music, each and every listener will be inspired to live his or her life filled with nothing but faithfulness to God.  There are times in each of our daily lives when we must endure trials and temptations.  During these trials of our faith, the Lord will be with us all the way.  If we "Hold Fast To The Right," we will "...Move On Up To Glory."

As you enjoy The Journeymen Quartet's Portraits of Faith, may you be blessed, strengthened, and encouraged to paint your very own "portrait of faith."

"The Trial Of My Faith" (Rodney Griffin)

"This is a great tune to kick off the project.  The writer, Rodney Griffin, is undoubtedly one of today's finest gospel songwriters.  This is the third brand new song of Rodney's we have recorded recently.  The song has one of those tunes in the chorus that you just can't forget.  You'll find yourself humming it as you go through the day.  But even more than the tune, the thing that sets Rodney's songs apart seems to be the comfortable lyric in the verses.  It seems like one friend has just sat down to talk casually, but from the heart, with another.  Mike and Dean really did a great job taking those lyrics and making them their own."

"When I Move" (Buford Abner)

"This is the first single from Portraits of Faith.  When looking for songs for the album, this one just seemed to 'feel right.'  It's got an easy, traditional quartet style that fits our group like a glove.  We love to sing styles that make us stretch and grow musically, but this traditional sound really defines us as a group.  I think the people can sense that as soon as we start singing songs like 'When I Move.'"

"Hold Fast To The Right" (Westley Willett, John Darin Rowsey)

"'The Right'….now there is something the world doesn't understand.  That fact that there is right and there is wrong; there is truth and there is falsehood.  Today, society seems to try to paint everything in the world as shades of grey.  Nothing is black and white.  That is really off-base as far as we are concerned.  There is Truth in the world and there is Right.  Even as we live in the midst of people and situations that are painted as 'grey,' we need to stand for the right. We have to stand for the truth.  We want to 'hold fast' to the Lord and live as He has called us.  Westley Willett and John Darin Rowsey wrote a great song when they wrote this one."

"Come On Home" (Savana Foust)

"This song combines an easy country feel with faith-filled lyrics.  Savana Foust wrote this song several years ago and many quartet fans may remember it.  We just loved the lyrics and it fit Michael so well that we decided we would record it as well."

"I'm Gonna Move On Up To Glory" (Kenny Bishop)

"What a fun song this is to sing!  It's a great upbeat track that is heavy on the bluegrass instrumentation with banjo, mandolin, and fiddle, combined with gospel quartet bass and lead singer lines.  The combination makes this a favorite at our concerts.  Our friends don't know if its bluegrass gospel or southern gospel, they just like it!  And we do too."

"Hold On" (John Darin Rowsey, Pamela Hall)

"This is another new song that John Darin Rowsey co-wrote and sent to us.  The song is pure encouragement for the Christian from start to finish, with a catchy, singable tune.  It may very well be a follow up single to 'When I Move.'"

"He's Doing It Once Again" (McCray Dove)

"All of us can think back to times in our lives where we were particularly vulnerable while struggling in life.  This song speaks from a heart in the very midst of that sort of situation.  There are people who come to a gospel concert that are hurting.  We want them to realize that they aren't alone in their trials.  All of us struggle at times.  However, we don't want our message to end there.  The song shares that the Lord is faithful.  'He just reaches down, picks me up and helps me stand.'  The song speaks both from personal experiences of the past and our faith in Him for the future.  This one will really minister."

"My Lord's Been With Me All The Way" (Phil Cross, Tony Jarman)

"This song was a real departure from the norm for us, but we are so glad we recorded it!  As soon as the band tracks start, you can feel the 'drive' that this song maintains from start to finish.  When we selected the song, we knew it would stretch us a bit musically, but the lyrics were just too strong to pass up.  It doesn't matter where we are today, soaring with the eagles, or struggling to keep our head above water; the Lord is with us.  What a great message of encouragement for today!"

"The Only King" (Phil Cross, Carolyn Cross)

"This is definitely the most powerful song on the project.  Its lyrics alone make it a great song.  But those powerful lyrics were enhanced even more by the orchestration and production.  Otis Forrest, our long-time producer, simply outdid himself on this one."

"When I Thank Him" (Albert E. Brumley)

"This has to be one of the most personal songs we've ever sung.  The song was written by Albert E. Brumley and has been around for some time, however, we were introduced to the song just recently.  This is the only song from Portraits of Faith which we had been singing live prior to the recording.  When we were looking for a song that really fit Dave, there was just nothing else that compared to 'When I Thank Him.'  Dave did such a great job recording this wonderful song.  The warmth and honesty conveyed through his verses just reaches out and captures the listener.  See if you don't agree."