Get Ready

Personnel: Dominique Jones, D'jeniele' Hooten, Tommy Sims, Akil Thompson (guitar); DeWitt Jones III, Aaron Lindsey, Nathan Hooten, Jason Webb (keyboards); Marvin Sims, Judah Jones, Dan Needham (drums); Javier Solís (percussion).
Audio Mixer: Tommy Sims.
Photographer: Micah Kandros.
Get Ready is the debut album by the gospel group forever JONES, "a family band" consisting of parents Dewitt Jones III and Kim Jones, plus their five children, D'Jeniele' Hooten, Dominique' Jones, Dewitt Jones IV, Judah Jones, and Mya Jones. The generational structure of the act is apparent in the ten original songs produced by Tommy Sims (who also plays guitar and bass). The parents, who co-wrote six of them, are clearly recalling their old, well-worn Earth, Wind & Fire and Gladys Knight & the Pips LPs, the former in such songs as the lead-off track, "This Is the Day" and the title song, the latter in the closing number, "You Can Do Anything." Meanwhile, their older daughters D'Jeniele' and particularly Dominique' probably have a heavy complement of Beyoncé on their iPods, if songs such as "Heaven" and "Adoration (So Amazing)" (both co-written by Sims) are any indication. And the group knows its way around a traditional gospel praise song, as demonstrated on "Bless the Lord." Sims mixes the tracks with the bass and percussion loud, the better to give the music a strong rhythmic sense. Just as the performers represent different generations, they should appeal to a wide swath of the gospel audience. ~ William Ruhlmann