Like a rushing, mighty wind, CeCe Winans roared into Stockton’s Bob Hope Theatre on April 17, just ahead of the release of her anointed new More Than This album. The appearance was toward the end of her highly successful Goodness Tour, which wrapped up on May 3 in Tampa.
If you wonder why I’m a little late in writing about the show in Stockton, to borrow from CeCe’s “Alabaster Box,” you weren’t there. If you had been, you’d understand. It’s certainly not a good place to be for a writer, but I’ve been close to speechless about that show for over a month now.
For those who missed the opportunity to experience CeCe live, fret not, for it’s not the first time you’ve missed a blessing. And you’ve still got time, as something tells me that Winans will be leading worship services like that one until she draws her last breath on this earth. To borrow from one of the recent proclamations of one of her siblings, CeCe Winans was born for this.
Winans’ voice has lost none of the power or fervor of her youth, when she put the “gospel” in BeBe & CeCe back in the day, earning her the first of 15 Grammy awards, the most of any other female gospel artist. I’m not in the habit of offering advice to legends, but if I were her, I’d clear some extra room on her shelf for the awards that the new album is sure to bring her way. Highlights include “Lord And Friend,” “Too Late To Lose,” “Refiner,” “Come Jesus Come,” and the title track, a show-stopping and potentially soul-saving duet with Todd Dulaney.
It came as no surprise that More Than This debuted at the #1 position on both Billboard’s Top Gospel Album and Top Contemporary Christian Album charts, where her three year old Believe For It album still resides.
I won’t harp on her dynamic live performances, but suffice it to say that CeCe’s live ministry is a wonder in which believers revel. To the non-believer, I will say this: before you listen to the new More Than This, let alone attend one of Winans’ shows, please be rooted and grounded in whatever you believe. If you’re not, CeCe might change your ever-loving mind.
She’s that persuasive and that powerful, as a vocalist and a disciple of Christ, believing in the gospel and in every word that she so powerfully sings. If you’re not sure of yourself, CeCe will shake your disbelief, just as she, her background singers, and her band shook the rafters of the Bob Hope Theatre.
By the time CeCe got to “In A Little While,” which closed the show and closes the new album, I was just about looking for Jesus to crack the sky right then. It’s a rouser that’s reminiscent of Lionel Richie’s “All Night Long,” albeit describing an altogether different type of party. I’m waiting for the remix, and long for the days when I could listen to it on a 12 inch.
And, yeah, she’s as beautiful up close and personal as she is up on stage:
To echo another of the new album’s bangers, “That’s My King,” who we talking about?
CeCe Winans!
CeCe Winans’ new More Than This is available everywhere.
Connect with freelance writer Michael P Coleman at MichaelPColeman.com.
