Andre Jebbinson, Staff Reporter

Dwight Richards mixes his performance with singing and playing his trumpet. With old favourite, 'Amazing Grace', the Musical Bliss concert at Covenant Moravian Church took on a different feeling. - Colin Hamilton/Freelance Photographer

The show dubbed an 'Evening Of Musical Bliss' had a decent line-up that could rile up any crowd.

That seemed the intention of the organisers when they booked a few gospel reggae artistes at a concert, which took place at the Covenant Moravian Church on Molynes Road. The concert featured stars such as Prodigal Son, Omari, and Kerron Ennis, among others.

These artistes are known to possess the ability to work a crowd, so at first it seemed as if the patrons were waiting for the right moment to erupt blissfully. But it turns out the audience was just a stubborn congregation.

Despite various pleas from the artistes for crowd participation, the small gathering just sat there.

Perhaps the brightest moment of the night came when Lubert Levy and his brood made it difficult for anyone to stay put. Oshin Levy was the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission's Junior Gospel Song winner in 2004 and she also delivered again on Saturday. She probably caught everyone off guard with just how powerful a voice she had in her tiny frame.

Get your praise on

A more forceful Prodigal would not have the audience sit while he ended the show. He invited them to the front of the stage to get their praise on, and they obliged. Prodigal sang his controversial Bongo Town but very few people were around to hear it as by this time the already minute gathering had dwindled significantly.

Omari preceded Prodigal but he received the same sit and stare welcome that the others before him got.

Judy Mowatt, who fell sick on the day of the concert, was replaced by the youthful and charismatic Kerron Ennis. Again, she delivered but if one were to judge by the reactions of the crowd, the verdict would have been otherwise.

Dwight Richards also managed to pull off a rare moment when he, too, obviously reached the souls of a few. Richards performed, while alternating voice and trumpet, songs like God Is Truly Amazing, Do Lord Remember and Amazing Grace. His performance was nothing shy of solemn. Craig C, Shepherd and fresh-faced Murphy were some of the other familiar gospel singers to grace the stage.

Jimmy Tucker, Maxine Panther, Claude Edwards, Yvonne Miller and the UWI Steel Band also made an appearance.