MetaFilter posts tagged with gospel

A Disturbing Sound.

timsteil — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:11:57 -0800

If you ever wanted to hear James Brown give the full sermon, There’s this.

She took us there.

flapjax at midnite — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 04:43:44 -0800

When Staple Singers hits like I’ll Take You There and If You’re Ready (Come Go With Me) came on the radio, it was easy to get lost in Mavis Staples’ raspy, soulful lead vocals. But if you listened closer, a key element in the Chicago gospel-soul group’s warmly distinctive sound was the deft soprano harmony of Mavis’ sister Cleotha Staples, who died on Feb. 21 at age 78 in Chicago. RIP Cleotha Staples.

make you wanna go to church!

flapjax at midnite — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 22:54:39 -0800

Here's some raw, homespun, electric guitar gospel from a 1950s Checker label release by the Reverend Utah Smith: Two Wings. Gospel just doesn't come any grittier and more spontaneous than that served up by the Rev Utah Smith and his joyous, hand clapping choir! Here's more: Take a Trip Glory to Jesus, I'm Free Photos and information on Rev Utah Smith here at the Houndblog.

kickass Jesus music, y'all

flapjax at midnite — Sat, 19 May 2012 19:14:54 -0800

The Rev. Charlie Jackson of Louisiana (1932–2006) was a purveyor of some of the rawest, grittiest blues music about Jesus that you've ever heard. In a TV variety show appearance on his one and only concert tour of Europe, the Reverend maintained a warm and friendly manner through a somewhat condescending interview, and went on to perform Wrapped Up, Tangled Up in Jesus with some backing vocal help from the legendary El Dorados.

Aretha Franklin's "Amazing Grace"

Trurl — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 22:00:29 -0800

On January 13 and 14, 1972, Aretha Franklin sang during services at the Reverend James Cleveland's New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. The audio recordings released as Amazing Grace remain the largest-selling gospel album in history. However, of the 20 hours of 16mm film footage by Sydney Pollack - intended as a concert movie for tandem release - only a few snippets have ever been seen. (previously: 1, 2)

No fate; no fate but what we make. My Father told her this.

cortex — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 12:26:23 -0800

The Bible & Terminator 2: Heteroglossic discourse and poetic authority.

She sounded like Saturday night on a Sunday morning.

OmieWise — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 05:40:42 -0800

"She sounded like Saturday night on a Sunday morning. Patsy on Jesus. Elvis without the pelvis." is how the liner notes for The Glory Road, the Numero Group's 2005 reissue of Fern Jones' classic album Singing a Happy Song start. When her album was recorded, the session musicians had just played Elvis's 1958 sessions. Later, Jimmie Davis and Johnny Cash both covered one of Fern's songs (I Was There When It Happened(YT)). Much of the information on the web, including this brief piece from The Oxford American about Fern, these images from her revival days, and other history comes from the website maintained by her daughter. Fern's daughter is interviewed about her mother here (mp3), with musical clips included. NPR reviewed the reissue in 2005 when it came out. Youtube clips: You Ain't Got Nothin' Strange Things Are Happening [There's another video of this version of Fern's cover of this classic Sister Rosetta Tharpe song with a montage of Betty Page photos. Strange things, indeed.] I Was There When It Happened

You shall Hear things, Wonderful to tell

Rhaomi — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 11:35:18 -0800

A decade on, the Coen brothers' woefully underrated O Brother, Where Art Thou? [alt] is remembered for a lot of things: its sun-drenched, sepia-rich cinematography (a pioneer of digital color grading), its whimsical humor, fluid vernacular, and many subtle references to Homer's Odyssey. But one part of its legacy truly stands out: the music. Assembled by T-Bone Burnett, the soundtrack is a cornucopia of American folk music, exhibiting everything from cheery ballads and angelic hymns to wistful blues and chain-gang anthems. Woven into the plot of the film through radio and live performances, the songs lent the story a heartfelt, homespun feel that echoed its cultural heritage, a paean and uchronia of the Old South. Though the multiplatinum album was recently reissued, the movie's medley is best heard via famed documentarian D. A. Pennebaker's Down from the Mountain, an extraordinary yet intimate concert film focused on a night of live music by the soundtrack's stars (among them Gillian Welch, Emmylou Harris, Chris Thomas King, bluegrass legend Dr. Ralph Stanley) and wryly hosted by John Hartford, an accomplished fiddler, riverboat captain, and raconteur whose struggle with terminal cancer made this his last major performance. The film is free in its entirety on Hulu and YouTube -- click inside for individual clips, song links, and breakdowns of the set list's fascinating history. 1 | "Po' Lazarus" (lyrics) by James Carter and the Prisoners

Context: This plodding chain-gang chorus opens the film -- and suggests the whole story is an elaborate jailyard song in itself. Background: Despite the name, James Carter and the Prisoners isn't your traditional band -- it's the informal title of an actual 1950s Mississippi chain gang featuring Carter and a number of other anonymous convicts. Encountered by traveling ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax, their worker chant was recorded and entered into his vast field collection (much of which is now available online). Four decades later, Carter was tracked down and paid $20,000 by the Coens for the use of his music in the movie. The song itself is a traditional fable about a larger-than-life prisoner. Mudcat.org explains: Lazarus was a worker on a levy camp, in the days when "you worked from can to can't and maybe they paid you and maybe they didn't." One evening at the mess hall he got tired of finding "meat in his greens" (worms in his salad). Then he did something for which [he] must be feeling really pissed off and had to really have some balls. He "walked the table". He stood up on the mess table and stomped everyone's plates with his muddy boots. Knowing he'd face a minimum of a whippiong for his deed, and with revolvers in either hand, he went straight for the pay window, took the money and ran. Our story (the song) begins with the high sherrif telling the deputy to go get "Po' Laz'us". In concert: The five singers of the Fairfield Four used a slightly more lighthearted take on the song to open the concert. Other versions: The Bright Light Quartet's harmonious rendition, also from Lomax's collection

2 | "Big Rock Candy Mountain" (lyrics) by Harry McClintock

Context: Everett, Pete, and Delmar make a break for it during the opening credits. Background: While the cleaned-up version by Burl Ives is more famous, Harry "Haywire Mac" McClintock originally penned the song as an off-color riff on a hobo's idea of paradise, a Cockaigne-esque land of plenty where alcohol ran like water. In concert: Emcee John Hartford led a fiddle-based version.

3 | "You Are My Sunshine" (lyrics) by Norman Blake

Context: The official radio campaign song of Governor Menelaus "Pass the Biscuits" Pappy O'Daniel. Background: Adapting it from the Ukrainian folk song "Up There On the Mountain," original singer Jimmie Davis later used the tune as his own campaign song when he ran for governor of Louisiana (on a horse named Sunshine). It's now one of the state's official songs. Other versions: Too many to count, but Wikipedia lists many of them.

4 | "Down to the River to Pray" (lyrics) by Alison Krauss

Context: An argument is interrupted by a white-robed baptismal procession. Background: This traditional hymn was possibly written by slaves back in the 1800s before it wound its way to Appalachia. Choralnet.org goes into more detail. In concert: Alison Krauss performed the song with the backing of a full gospel chorus. Other versions: A peppy version by Laila Biala on piano.

5 | "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" (lyrics) by Dan Tyminski

Context: The popular off-the-cuff single that wins the Soggy Bottom Boys their freedom. Background: The most conventional hit of the album has its roots in a "Farewell Song" recorded by blind Kentucky folk singer Dick Burnett in 1913, though it almost certainly predates him. Dr. Ralph Stanley discussed the song and his attempts to revive it in this 2009 Diane Rehm interview, where he speculates it may be two or three hundred years old. (Fun fact: the accompaniment in the film, Tommy Johnson, was a direct reference to the real-life blues virtuoso of the same name, who likewise claimed to have sold his soul to the devil in exchange for musical talent.) There were several variations on this piece throughout the movie, including two different instrumental interpretations. Video of the original singers. In concert: The lyrical version was notably absent, but the late John Hartford performed a haunting wordless solo of his fiddle interpretation, one of his last before cancer rendered him incapable of handling his beloved instrument. Other versions: Again, many, but some of the most notable: Bob Dylan (his first national TV appearance) - Roscoe Holcomb - Jerry Garcia (via the Pizza Tapes) - Ralph Stanley

6 | "Hard Time Killing Floor Blues" (lyrics) by Chris Thomas King

Context: Bluesman Tommy plays a melancholy dirge at a pensive campfire. Background: Adapted from the keening original by Skip James, it reflects on the hard times faced by the nation's poor in the depths of the Great Depression. Other versions: Another, more ethereal take on the song by James (bio and lyrics in description).

7 | "Keep On the Sunny Side" (lyrics) by The Whites

Context: The official campaign song of reform candidate Homer Stokes. Background + lyrics

8 | "I'll Fly Away" (lyrics) by

Context: A montage of light-hearted scenes from the middle of the film. Background: Ironically this gospel hymn was adapted from a line in a secular tune musing about jailbreaking from prison life. Other versions: Lots, including Johnny Cash (with a great singalong version from his TV show) and Gillian Welch/David Rawlings. One version by the Kossoy Sisters was used in the movie in place of the soundtrack version; it's included on the reissue.

9 | "Didn't Leave Nobody But the Baby" (lyrics) by Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, and Gillian Welch

Context: A trio of sirens seduces the group by a cold creek. Background: This eerie tune was said to be based on a combination of an old lullaby with the steady cadence of a prison work song (compare with the rhythm of "Po' Lazarus." In concert: The three original singers reprised the song together on stage.

10 | "In the Highways" (lyrics) by the Peasall Sisters

Context: The song performed by the Little Warvey Gals at the Stokes rally. In concert: Reprised by the three sisters.

11 | "I Am Weary, Let Me Rest" (lyrics) by the Cox Family

Context: A brief act at the Stokes rally. Background: Dating back to 1864, the tune was modified somewhat by the Coxes for their in-film cameo. In concert: Introduced with good humor by Hartford. Other versions: Jade Turner live

12 | "O Death" (lyrics) by Dr. Ralph Stanley

Context: The chilling KKK rally scene (similar to the infiltration of the witch's castle in The Wizard of Oz). Background + lyrics In concert: Bluegrass legend Stanley gives a striking solo performance shrouded in shadow. Other versions: Jen Titus

13 | "In the Jailhouse Now" (lyrics) by Tim Blake Nelson

Context: A holdover song done to buy time during the ending concert. Background: A somewhat silly yodeling vaudeville piece with a busy history.

14 | "Indian War Whoop" by John Hartford

Context: The celebratory ditty aired while hauling George Nelson to his execution. Background: An instrumental piece by Hoyt Ming with myriad variations; Old Weird America (a blog about Harry Smith's seminal Anthology of American Folk Music) goes into all the details complete with videos and links. In concert: John Hartford and his fiddle have some fun at Gillian Welch's expense. Other versions: An older recording from Smith's anthology, an exuberant take from Dr. Scantlin's Red Hot Peppers, plus some YouTube demonstration.

15 | "Lonesome Valley" (lyrics) by the Fairfield Four

Context: Echoing the movie's intro, a group of workmen sing an execution song in unison as the boys pray for their lives. Background: The earliest known date for this is David Miller's 1927 record, though it's probably much older. Other versions: A jazzy cover by the "Million Dollar Quartet" -- Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins. Another uptempo version by Mississippi John Hurt, plus Woody Guthrie, Arlo Guthrie/Pete Seeger, and Bruce Springsteen.

16 | "Angel Band" (lyrics) by the Stanley Brothers

Context: Bridges the epilogue and end credits. In concert: This uplifting song closed out the concert in a mass singalong featuring all the stage's stars. Other versions: Several, but the most unexpected is likely the Monkees.

Other original music featured in the documentary:

"Wild Bill Jones" - Alison Krauss and Union Station "Blue and Lonesome" - Alison Krauss and Union Station "Green Pastures" - Emmylou Harris and Gillian Welch "John Law Burned Down the Liquor Store" - Chris Thomas King and Colin Linden "Will There Be Any Stars In My Crown?" - The Cox Family "Dear Someone" by Gillian Welch, David Rawlings, and John Hartford (my favorite) "I Want to Sing That Rock and Roll" - Gillian Welch and David Rawlings "Shove That Hog's Foot Further In the Bed" - John Hartford

Want more? The reissued deluxe edition soundtrack contains a second disc with 14 songs from the film never released on the original album.

Must Tell Metafilter

furiousxgeorge — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 17:33:01 -0800

Gospel singer Herman Cain's album "Sunday Morning" is now available online. In the fifteen years since the album was originally released the singer and baptist preacher has also found success in the business world, broadcasting, and politics.

popular (folk) song

flapjax at midnite — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 21:08:16 -0800

Satan your kingdom must come down. Ye Olde YouTubes are full to bursting with various renditions of this song, many of which are by performers far more well known than most of the ones I've included in this post. I've basically just gone with my favorites here, as a few of the big stars doing it seem to be sorta phoning it in, or offering up fairly limp versions. Here's one more for the road, though, a simple and satisfying banjo and guitar instrumental by Jami Blakely, accompanied visually by a bit of very curious old animation.

Somebody Bigger Than You And I

hermitosis — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 08:09:50 -0800

American gospel singer Marion Williams (wiki) performs for a Dutch television special, recorded in Utrecht, November 1962:
"Somebody Bigger Than You And I"
"Mean Old World"
"Take Me To The Water"
"It Is Well With My Soul"
"I Believe" The special also includes performances by: Alex Bradford (wiki) "Glory Hallelujah" "Close To Thee" "Lord, You've Been So Good To Me" "It's A Highway To Heaven" Madeline Bell (wiki) "Just To Know I've Made It In" Princess Stewart "I'm Tired, Lord" Kitty Parham "Looking To Jesus"

Hard Luck Guy

BitterOldPunk — Tue, 31 May 2011 14:40:59 -0800

Say, you wanna hear a sad song? Eddie Hinton was a guitar player, vocalist, and songwriter from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Co-writer of one of the tenderest, sexiest hits of the late 60s, Dusty Springfield's Breakfast in Bed, Hinton was a key member of the world-famous Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section from 1967 to 1971 (turning down an invitation from Duane Allman to be a member of the Allman Brothers Band) who worked as a studio musician on albums by Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Percy Sledge, the Staples Singers, and Toots Hibbert, but his early success was sidetracked by mental problems, booze, and drugs. His brilliant (if unfortunately titled) solo debut, Very Extremely Dangerous, was released on Capricorn Records in 1978, months before the label went bankrupt. Crushed, Hinton kept plugging away, recording an album with Jimmy Johnson in 1982. But the album went unreleased and that blow, along with the stress of a divorce, sent Hinton into a tailspin. He ended up homeless and estranged from his family. He was on a bus stop bench in front of the Salvation Army in Decatur, Alabama when he was recognized by John D. Wkyker, a Decatur native who recognized Hinton from their days in the University of Alabama drum and bugle corps. Himself a veteran of the music business, Wyker helped Hinton get back on his feet, and the two started a music publishing company. New music, along with the unreleased Jimmy Johnson tracks, became the album Letters From Mississippi, and soon Hinton was performing again, both to small rooms in the US and to larger and more enthusiastic European crowds. That success landed Hinton a contract for two more albums, Cry and Moan and Very Blue Highway. Though Hinton's demons never left him, he was able to reconcile with his family. Hinton died of a heart attack in 1995 at his mother's home in Birmingham. Said Jerry Wexler of Hinton in the liner notes of the posthumously released Hard Luck Guy: "He remains unique, a white boy who truly sang and played in the spirit of the great black soul artists he venerated. With Eddie it wasn't imitation; it was totally created, with a fire and fury that was as real as Otis Redding's and Wilson Pickett's." His music, an intoxicating mix of soul, gospel, country, and rock, is undergoing something of a revival, thanks to the efforts of the band Drive-By Truckers. They've recorded several of Hinton's songs, including Where's Eddie and Everybody Needs Love (this performance includes original Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section member David Hood, father of Patterson). Eddie Hinton's albums Letters from Mississippi and Very Extremely Dangerous are available for your listening pleasure at Grooveshark. And here's Eddie playing guitar on Toots Hibbert's Freedom Train. And if you find yourself rather depressed by Hinton's tragic story, listen to Eddie shout, scat, scream, and holler through Shout Bamalama and leave with a smile on your face and your ass in motion.

'These children don’t recognize the flags of their home countries, but they can all sing "Jesus Loves Me."'

zarq — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 12:08:21 -0800

The Evangelical Adoption Crusade "The adoption industry is on a steep decline after years of ethical problems and tightening regulations around the world." In the last two years evangelical advocacy for adoption has skyrocketed. Why? In Reclaiming Adoption, [Dan] Cruver bluntly declares, "The ultimate purpose of human adoption by Christians, therefore, is not to give orphans parents, as important as that is. It is to place them in a Christian home that they might be positioned to receive the gospel.”

"I've Been Thrown Out of Some of the Best Churches in America."

magstheaxe — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 20:17:03 -0800

He began his musical career as Georgia Tom, playing barrelhouse piano in one of Al Capone’s Chicago speakeasies... He led Gertrude "Ma" Rainey's Tub Jug Washboard Band, recorded "Tight Like That" with Hudson "Tampa Red" Whittaker, and wrote more than four hundred rhythm and blues and jazz songs, including "Riverside Blues" (recorded by King Oliver), and "I Just Want A Daddy To Call My Own" (recorded by Monette Moore). He accompanied many famous blues performers, including Scrapper Blackwell, Big Bill Broonzy, Frankie Jaxson, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Memphis Minnie, Bertha "Chippie" Hill, Papa Charlie Jackson, and Victoria Spivey. Then his wife and child died. Georgia Tom had a nervous breakdown, and when he emerged from it he was Thomas A. Dorsey, now considered the father of gospel music. Dorsey, while embracing the Lord, never gave up his hold on the blues. Instead, he fused the two, applying inspirational lyrics to the melodic and rhythmic ideas that powered his secular hits. It wasn't a conscious decision, and it scandalized many God-fearing Baptists at the time. But as Dorsey told blues scholar Anthony Heilbut: "When a thing becomes a part of you, you don't know when it's gonna manifest itself. And it's not your business to know." By marrying the spiritual uplift of church-schooled lyrics to the physical energy of blues-fired music, Dorsey was able to reach his audience in ways that even the greatest preachers couldn't. Through the efforts of Dorsey and singer Sallie Martin, gospel choruses began flourishing throughout South Side churches in Chicago. Dorsey founded his own gospel choir, and formed the first black gospel publishing company, the Thomas A. Dorsey Gospel Songs Music Publishing Company, to profit from the sale of sheet music. Dorsey also partnered with Martin in founding the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses. He continued to write music, and wrote some of gospel's most unforgettable songs, including "Peace In the Valley" (which later became a hit for Elvis Presley). Most notably, Dorsey nurtured the career of gospel's first international star, the incredible Mahalia Jackson, whom he had met in 1929. The pair sang together at Pilgrim Baptist Church (where Dorsey was Music Director), and Dorsey went on the road with her beginning in the late 1930s and through the War years. Later Jackson would sing his song "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" at the funeral of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The scope of his life's work is, frankly, almost dizzying. Seemingly determined to surpass his efforts in secular music, Dorsey had over four hundred gospel songs published and composed hundreds more--Heilbut says that by a conservative estimate, Dorsey wrote one out of four modern gospel standards. Along with Sallie Martin and the legendary Willie Mae Ford Smith, Dorsey's music was celebrated in the 1983 documentary "Say Amen, Somebody", where Dorsey appeared appeared, broken hips and all, waxing eloquently about his dual lives in the blues and the gospel. "When I realized how hard some folks were fighting the gospel idea, I was determined to carry the banner." Dorsey once said. "I borrowed five dollars and sent out 500 copies of my song, 'If You See My Savior,' to churches throughout the country....It was three years before I got a single order. I felt like going back to the blues." In the end, the message was heard, and Dorsey was the first African-American elected to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Gospel Music Association’s Living Hall of Fame. He capped it all of with a Trustees Award from the Grammys in 1992, the year before his death. Dorsey's influence was enormous. Wrote the L. A. Times on his passing, "It would hardly be an exaggeration to say that gospel music would not exist as we know it today were it not for Thomas A. Dorsey. And if that's not good cause for a hallelujah, it's hard to imagine what would be."

He Touched Me

puny human — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 13:06:42 -0800

He Touched Me: The Gospel Music of Elvis Presley -- Where other documentaries have focused on the early rock-and-roll of the Sun years, the Memphis Mafia, or the fat, drugged Elvis of the Las Vegas era, this documentary focusses on a side of Elvis many people may not be familiar with, and does a convincing job showing that it was early Southern gospel groups (both black and white) which were his true love and the main musical influence throughout his life. Filled with wonderful archival footage and revealing, and rather tender interviews from his band and his backup singers. (Part One) 1::2::3::4::5::6::7::8::9::10::11::12 (Part Two) 1::2::3::4::5::6::7::8::9::10::11 And here is a clip of Elvis singing the Battle Hymn of the Republic section from his American Trilogy, used to good effect in the Bazooka & Jetpack Scene from the movie Kick Ass. [This post dedicated to "The King" of Metafilter music, the mighty mighty flapjax at midnight]

back in the day...

flapjax at midnite — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 18:26:18 -0800

Blues Houseparty is a fun, entertaining and highly recommended 57 minute documentary that takes us into a Virginia houseparty of 1989, where the assembled Piedmont blues and gospel musicians and their friends pick guitars, sing, dance and engagingly reminisce on the houseparties of old. Amidst hearty laughs, barbecue and general good times, the guests recount personal memories of fun and rowdiness, corn liquor, 500-pound hogs, the devil's music and the Lord's music. There's a whole lot of cultural history on display here, a slice of black American life that is all but gone now. The mood is infectious, to say the least, and the music just keeps getting better and better throughout the film. The next best thing to being there!

"Mahalia used to kid me. She'd say, 'Girl, you need to go sing by yourself.' "

magstheaxe — Sat, 16 Oct 2010 22:10:31 -0800

Albertina Walker, the reigning Queen of Gospel, has died at 81. Albertina Walker was born in Chicago on Aug. 28, 1929, and was one of nine children. As a child, Walker had been a standout singer at West Point Baptist Church in Chicago. There, she was inspired by entertainers such as professor Thomas A. Dorsey and Mahalia Jackson, who became Walker's friend and mentor. She went on to join the Pete Williams Singers and the Robert Anderson Singers. At the age of twenty Walker founded The Caravans, and was instrumental in launching the careers of Bessie Griffin, Shirley Caesar, Dorothy Norwood, Inez Andrews, Delores Washington, and her good friend James Cleveland. After a stellar career with the Caravans, Walker went on to phenomenal success as a solo artist, recording over sixty albums. She won a Grammy in 1995 for the Best Traditional Gospel Album (Songs of The Church - Live in Memphis), earned ten Grammy Award nominations, had five gold records, and was inducted in 2001 into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee. She made a cameo appearance in the 1992 movie "Leap of Faith," starring Steve Martin, and reportedly brought the cast to tears with her singing. And in 1994, the city of Chicago honored Ms. Walker by naming a street after her: Albertina Walker and the Caravans Drive. Reflecting on her craft, Ms. Walker said she most admired the healing quality of her music. "If you're feeling bad and somebody sings a gospel song, you automatically forget your problems," she told the Chicago Sun-Times. "Everything about the Lord is sweet," she said. "I don't know how I would have managed if I didn't have a song to sing." A Short History of Albertina Walker Pres. Obama on Walker's passing Some of Albertina Walker's most famous songs: I Know the Lord Will Make A Way Tell Him Want You Want Mary, Don't You Weep (The Caravans) Lord, Keep Me Day By Day

"You don't believe in God? Really?" Then I took out my pistol, and shot him.

ersatz — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 06:01:31 -0800

The trick is to give without looking to receive - to give of yourself to your family, your friends, your community, and the world community with love. The King of Rock and Soul Solomon Burke, Archbishop of the House of God For All People and member of the Hall of Fame died on a plane (2) after arriving in Amsterdam. Solomon's most beloved song was arguably Everybody needs somebody to love, which was covered by the Rolling Stones, Wilson Pickett and, of course, The Blues Brothers. He had another brush with the filming industry when his song Cry to me was used in the film Dirty Dancing. Solomon received a Grammy for 2002's Don't give up on me, which included compositions by the likes of Van Morrison, Tom Waits, Brian Wilson, Elvis Costello and Bob Dylan. Solomon collaborated recently in the studio with Emmylou Harris and Dolly Parton for his 2006 album Nashville. Burke leaves behind 21 children (14 daughters and 7 sons), 90 grandchildren and a wealth of singles with Atlantic records, like Got to get you off my mind and Just out of reach (of my two open arms).

Over in the Gloryland

timsteil — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 10:52:45 -0800

Lewis Marshall "Grandpa" Jones was one heck of a banjo player and storyteller best known for his role on Hee Haw. Those Delmore Boys? Lord can they sang,sang,sang. Merle? Hell he invented a whole new way to pick. Want to learn how? Drawn together by their love of traditional gospel music, they became country music's first supergroup. The Brown's Ferry Four. Their complete recordings.

DO YOU SEE THE LIGHT?!!!!

timsteil — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 12:50:42 -0800

Given it is Sunday, feel free to get your Jesus on with The Mighty Clouds of Joy. Somebody say Amen .

Patmos on my mind

chaff — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 00:09:55 -0800

Who's that writing? [MLYT] In belated honor of Jean Baptiste Day, I give you several versions of a song about an interesting fellow: Blind Willie Johnson Son House Nick Cave Depeche Mode Gov't Mule + Dirty Dozen Brass Band White Stripes Freeport High School Concert Choir Phil Kline (nytimes article) Curtis Stigers & The Forest Rangers Beck John Mellencamp (last.fm preview only) Billy Childish Lee Roy Parnell (ilike preview only)

the amazing Washington Phillips, gospel singer

flapjax at midnite — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 08:25:35 -0800

Have you heard of Washington Phillips? He was possessed of a wonderful voice, and delivered his simple but gorgeous gospel tunes in an easy and utterly unprepossessing style. He accompanied himself not on guitar or piano, as might be expected, but rather on a chiming, delicately ethereal zither, lending a curiously timeless air to his recordings from the 1920s. An altogether unique performer, his music is a real treat for the soul: Take Your Burden To the Lord, What Are They Doing in Heaven Today, Denomination Blues, I Had a Good Father and Mother, Lift Him Up, Paul and Silas in Jail, Mother's Last Word To Her Son and Train Your Children. Exhuming the Legend of Washington Phillips

Gimme that old-time music

madamjujujive — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 10:42:42 -0800

Folk America: Excellent BBC 3-part documentary tracing folk music from the '20s to the folk revival of the '60s, encompassing the depression and the civil rights era. part 1: Birth of a Nation (59.21) part 2: This Land is Your Land (59:30) part 3: Blowin' in the Wind (58:49) Clips and commentary about or by the Carter Family, Jimmie Rodgers, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Charlie Poole, Fiddlin' John Carson, Dock Boggs, Mississippi John Hurt, Judy Collins, Steve Earle, Pete Seeger, Honeyboy Edwards, Slim Bryant, Leadbelly, Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Rambling Jack Elliot, Anna Lomax, Mary Travis, Tom Paxton, Roger McGuinn, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Robbie Robertson, Stephen Stills, Country Joe McDonald, Odetta, Tom Paxton and more. Featured music: part 1 part 2 part 3 More interviews, performances & outtakes from the series - alas, not available in my area.

I Was Born This Way

(Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 08:17:24 -0800

Fans know him as Tonéx. His eccentric style and vertiginous high notes helped make him one of the most acclaimed praise singers of the past decade, and, for a time, one of the most successful. ... This past September, the television host known as Lexi broadcast an interview [Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3] with Tonéx on the Word Network, a gospel channel, in which he made his clearest public statements about his sexual orientation. He is, within the church world, the first high-profile gospel singer in history to come out of the closet. Within hours, he started to realize what he had done. His relationship with the mainstream gospel industry was effectively over.

From a fascinating article in the most recent New Yorker [abstract only]. This podcast [freely accessible] with the author of the article, Kelefah Sanneh, delves into the rarely discussed "secret" in the black church that many gospel musicians have been and are gay. Sanneh touches on the stories of both James Cleveland, the creator of the modern gospel sound who died of AIDS in 1991, and one of his backup singers, Carl Bean, who became famous for the 70s disco hit "I Was Born This Way." One contemporary preacher and gospel singer that Sanneh discusses in relation to Tonéx is Donnie McClurkin, a man made infamous during the Obama campaign for railing against homosexuals in Southern Black churches. McClurkin has admitted to engaging in homosexual acts for 20 years but does not identify as gay and believes a strong Christian faith can deliver a person from the "sin" of homosexuality. He recently delivered a sermon directed at young black homosexuals in the church, specifically calling out Tonéx. [McClurkin sermon Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3]

Ambient

Artw — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 09:14:35 -0800

On gospel, Abba and the death of the record: an audience with Brian Eno