It's been a good year since anyone's posted anything from the many-minded Michelle Shocked, so I thought I'd fill that void with a few tracks from her 2007 album ToHeavenURide, a gospel set recorded live at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in 2003. Shocked is backed by a small choir from Los Angeles churches and a bumpin gospel band. "Strange Things Happening Everyday" is Shocked's cover and tribute to fellow rockin church lady Sister Rosetta Tharpe (you can check out Rosetta on the accompanying video).I love the moment on the album where Shocked talks about the performance as a fulfillment of a ten-year vison, giving credit to the vision of Craig Ferguson who invited the performers to the festival. "Do I look like a gospel singer?" she says emphatically, "Do I look like a gospel singer?" And of course the answer is no. But that's the beauty of music. It's not about the color of your skin or the texture of your hair, it's about what's in your soul and in your chops.