In the 12th edition of Music Lifts (2023), weโre uplifted by pastor and gospel singer Smokie Norful performing, โUm Good.โ
โIf I never see the ruins / Of that city they call ancient Rome / Iโm not worried because I can still say / God, I know that you been good.โ Welcome to Music Lifts ๐ถ ๐, a column that seeks to highlight songs that encourage, inspire, and uplift the spirit; songs that exude fortitude, positivity, and resolve, even in the face of adversity.ย Featured songs arenโt genre-specific; songs may or may not be faith-based. The goal is for these songs to make you feel better โ be LIFTED to new heights!ย So, for the 12th edition of Music Lifts ๐ถ ๐ (2023), we highlight ๐ต โUm Goodโ as performed by ๐ Smokie Norful.
โIf I never own a mansion / Way out on the hills / If Iย never see riches / Lord, Iโll serve you still.โ ๐ฟ Life Changing.ย That is the title of the 2006 album by pastor and gospel singer, ๐ Smokie Norful.ย One of the best, most moving, and most uplifting songs from Life Changing is ๐ต โUm Goodโ.ย What makes โUm Goodโ so good is the messaging, the vocals, the spiritedness, and the production.ย Honestly, everything about โUm Goodโ is um good, with God being primary!
Essentially, what the ๐ Grammy-winner ministers to us is, despite what happens in his life, whether its attainment of material things, or the loss of everything, he will still praise God (โIn the midst of my despair / I can still say, Lord, you been goodโ). On this utterly sublime ๐ผ โ Percy Bady– penned gem,ย thereโs great balance.ย This is a gospel record, but the R&B cues and sensibilities made it sound incredibly fresh in the aughts โ and still marvelous in the 2020s for that matter.ย Smokie sings with incredible authenticity, truly selling this message of never giving up on God despite the circumstances.ย There are no more high-flying moments than the chorus, where Smokie is backed by a truly anointed choir, while he riffs and ad-libs along the main melody.ย His faith sounds unshakable!
โYou been good
Good, um good
So as long as I live Iโll tell the world, God is good
Good, um good
Iโm so glad to say right now
God is good.โ
๐ Smokie Norful โข ๐ฟ Life Changing โข ๐ท Motown Gospel โข ๐ 2006
Smokie Norful, โUm Goodโ: Music Lifts ๐ถ ๐ No. 12 (2023) [๐ท: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Motown Gospel; cottonbro studio, Itzel Sandoval, Neeraj Nagdeve via Pexels]