Handel's Messiah: A Soulful Celebration
In 1991, Warren was asked to arrange and produce a bold reinterpretation of the 1741 oratorio Messiah by George Frideric Handel. The assignment was to enlist various artists to record new arrangements of pieces from Messiah, incorporating multiple genres of historically African-American music.
The result was Handel's Messiah: A Soulful Celebration, featuring a literal "who's who" of recording artists performing pieces arranged in various styles, including spirituals, blues, ragtime, big-band, jazz fusion, rhythm and blues, gospel, and hip-hop. Although Warren had been asked to produce the entire project, the projected release date did not allow for that. As such, Warren produced and arranged seven of the 16 tracks and delegated the remaining production duties to other producers.
The album was released to critical acclaim in 1992 on the Warner Alliance label. Executive produced by Norman Miller, Gail Hamilton, and Mervyn Warren, the artist roster included Dwayne Adell, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, Patti Austin, The Boys Choir of Harlem, Tevin Campbell, The Clark Sisters, Daryl Coley, Commissioned, Andraé Crouch, Sandra Crouch, Clifton Davis, Cedric Dent, Charles S. Dutton, Mike E., Janice Chandler Eteme, Kim Fields, Larnelle Harris, Edwin Hawkins, Tramaine Hawkins, Howard Hewett, Joe Hogue, Linda Hopkins, Al Jarreau, Quincy Jones, Bernie K., Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, Leaders of the New School, Lizz Lee, Dawnn Lewis, Babbie Mason, Johnny Mathis, Marilyn McCoo, Stephanie Mills, Jeffrey Osborne, David Pack, Phylicia Rashad, Dianne Reeves, The Richard Smallwood Singers, Joe Sample, Sounds of Blackness, Take 6, Darryl Tookes, Mervyn Warren, Thomas Whitfield, Vanessa Williams, Chris Willis, Stevie Wonder, and Yellowjackets.
Handel's Messiah: A Soulful Celebration received the 1992 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Soul Gospel Album (Warren's 5th Grammy Award), as well as the 1992 Dove Award for Contemporary Gospel Album of the Year. In 1993, the various artists on the project were collectively nominated for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Gospel Artist.
A music video was filmed for "Hallelujah!," incorporating footage from the rehearsal and recording session. In the video, both Warren and Quincy Jones are seen conducting the all-star choir. "Hallelujah!" was recorded and filmed at Henson Recording Studios (formerly A&M Studios) -- where the original "We Are The World" was recorded and where, nearly 20 years later, Jones would produce and Warren (and others) would co-produce "We Are The World 25 for Haiti."
Despite quiet criticism from purists who believe classical music should never be reinterpreted (such as Wynton Marsalis, who declined to be a part of the project), Handel's Messiah: A Soulful Celebration has been officially and publicly recognized by Handel House, the official George F. Handel museum in London, England.
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