Weirdly enough, while Contemporary Christian songs have always given me the heebie-Jeebus, I don’t seem to harbor similar reservations for Gospel House tracks. Match a great beat to a big-voiced diva (or two) praising the man upstairs for seeing her through, and I’ll follow her right along to church, waving my hands in the air.

The Absolute featuring Suzanne Palmer served as my gateway to the Gospel House genre. DJ Mark Picchiotti was the mastermind of this mid-’90s Chicago-based outfit signed to the Tribal America label, with Craig J. Snider providing writing and production assistance. Of course, what immediately converted me to a true believer was the vocalist, Suzanne Palmer, the start of a love affair that continues to this very day.

The daughter of a jazz pianist, Suzanne Palmer was born on the South Side, where she says she was affectionately known as “the white girl, third in from the left.” Palmer started performing professionally at 16, and toured Europe with the Victory Singers, a Chicago-based gospel choir. In 1995, Palmer met up with Picchiotti, who had her in to cut some demos. Out of those sessions, two tracks were born, “There Will Come A Day” and “I Believe,” both credited to The Absolute featuring Suzanne Palmer.

This past April, Picchiotti resurrected “I Believe” on his Blueplate Records label, issuing a whole slew of new mixes. The most praiseworthy of these updates comes from another Chicago DJ, the legendary Ralphi Rosario, whose harder-edged Club Mix is less bouncy than the original, but manages to move the spirit on an entirely new plane:

Through her work with The Absolute, Palmer was introduced to DJ/producer Peter Rauhofer, recording several tracks for his Club 69 project. Her career as a dance-diva career really took off from there, with several top 10 club hits to her credit. In a March update on her website, Palmer said she’s collaborating with Picchiotti on a new track. I can’t wait for them to take me to church all over again.

Purchase The Absolute featuring Suzanne Palmer – “I Believe” (Ralphi Rosario Club Vocal) via iTunes, Perfect Beat.