Eli "Paperboy" Reed and Harlem Gospel Travelers have been working together for close to a decade, starting when the younger Travelers were students of Reed’s foundation in Harlem. Reed’s soulful style may have inspired the Travelers at first, but now, in this winner-take-all matchup, audiences will find out if the students can beat the teacher at his own game. Reed’s combination of powerful soulful vocals, heart-stopping falsetto and strong pop sensibility as a songwriter merge in perfect harmony with the Harlem Gospel Travelers, who draw deeply on the gospel quartet tradition of the ’50s and ’60s, but with a distinctly modern edge.
The Travelers are young guns and still on their way up, coming off their critically acclaimed, award-winning album Look Up!. Reed, with eight albums under his belt, most recently the funky Merle Haggard tribute, Down Every Road is the elder statesman here.
