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VETERAN GOSPEL SINGER TO HAVE LUNG SURGERY IN JAN.: Gabriel Hardeman, who wrote hits for Stephanie’s Mills and Mikki Howard’s seeks prayers.

(December 22, 2008)

Gospel singer/songwriter Gabriel S. Hardeman is best-known for co-writing Stephanie Mills’ “I Feel Good All Over,” which was a #1 R&B smash for three weeks in 1987, and also for penning Mikki Howard’s #2 1990 R&B hit “Love Under New Management,” which was originally a Gospel song (recorded later on by Kurt Carr). Now, Hardeman is in the fight for his life.

Hardeman is scheduled to have a single-lung transplant on January 12, 2009 at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia. The College Park, GA native lived in Philadelphia for most of his adult life until he and his wife Annette returned to Georgia in 2003 to care for his aging parents. He’s moving back to Philly to take advantage of the city’s superior medical facilities.

“It’s one of the best hospitals for lung transplants,” he says. “No hospital in the Atlanta area could measure up to my situation.”

“I was diagnosed with interstitial fibrosis in May 2000,” says Hardeman. “One year before the ‘To the Chief Musician’ project was released. It is an idiopathic illness meaning the exact cause cannot be determined. It was probably caused by environmental factors. I will be put on the waiting list around January 12th. My condition is top priority so there won’t be an extensive wait. I’ve been on and off of oxygen for about three years now. I just praise God that I’ve been able to pastor and sing a little but I won’t complain.”

Hardeman is a respected pastor at the Bellview Circuit AME Churches outside of Atlanta, GA. He wrote and performed on the dramatic ballad “Joy” and the funky track “Rock My Soul” from the Philadelphia-based Sharon Baptist Church Choir’s forthcoming “Sing Unto the Lord A New Song” CD that will be released in January 2009.

The Gabriel Hardeman Delegation’s self-titled 1979 Savoy Records LP featured the radio hit “Feels Like Fire.” Aside from writing songs for Gospel acts such as Edwin Hawkins and the Wilmington-Chester Mass Choir, Hardeman’s recorded his own albums for the Messiah and Birthright labels before making a comeback with the Stellar Award nominated “To the Chief Musician” CD in 2001.

“My situation has been getting worse since 2000 when I was I was diagnosed,” he explains. “I want to let my supporters and the music industry know that I solicit their prayers. If its God’s will, I will be back stronger than ever and after I pull through this one, the Devil’s gonna’ catch all hell.”

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