Feed Your Ears

[Luigi]

Bob Ferguson wrote "On the Wings of a Dove" in 1958. Ferlin Husky recorded & released it in 1960. It spent 12 weeks at Number 1 on the country charts, and also crossed over to the pop charts where it attained #12. Sing along, or clap along, as you see fit.

 

[Luigi]

I can find very little information about Gloria Bailey other than the fact that she was born and raised in Louisville and died in 2021. This song, "When He Calls Me" in interesting for a couple of reasons. Her voice is not a typical Gospel Music voice; the music is so simple as to be almost a folk song; the instrumentation is almost country; and she has a very interesting accent - when I first heard her, I thought she might be from Jamaica or somewhere in the Caribbean. 

 

[Luigi]

The Blind Boys of Alabama sing "Ain't Nobody's Fault But Mine." 

 

[Luigi]

My cousin died last night; this one's for him. It's the Bahamian spiritual "I Bid You Goodnight," often referred to as "Lay Down, My Dear Brother." You might know The Grateful Dead's version, but I prefer Aaron Neville's gentler and more heartfelt rendition (with his brothers, of course!). Interesting side note - this album and all the songs on it were produced by Linda Ronstadt. 

 

[Luigi]

Mississippi John Hurt is best known for singing the blues, but he also sang Gospel. This is "I Shall Not Be Moved." It was adopted by the folk movement and became an anthem for people like Pete Seeger, but it actually originated in Gospel, based on the very first psalm. 

 

[Luigi]

Moe Bandy was a popular country singer in the 80s and 90s. Some of his songs were pretty wild. But this is a Gospel number called "Many Mansions." It relates the Biblical concept to homelessness, which has not really improved since this was released (1989). 

 

[Luigi]

Josh White (1914-1969) was a guitarist, singer, actor, and civil rights activist. He had an interesting life; you should look him up in Wikipedia and read about him. Here he sings the traditional spiritual "Paul and Silas Bound in Jail." Keep in mind that a lot of spirituals were put together by and for illiterate people - the Word would be read to them, preaching explained it more or less, and the song would help them remember the Biblical story and its meaning. Plus, everybody likes music! 

 

[Luigi]

I really like the original Carter Family, in spite of the primitive recording equipment and the rather tinny sound it produced. They were one of the most prominent transitional groups from folk music to the Country Music Bidness. This is "Fifty Miles of Elbow Room" with Sarah Carter singing lead. It's a vision of the heavenly Jerusalem. When trains were invented, Gospel singers incorporated them into Gospel songs; by the same token, when planes were invented, Gospel singers incorporated them into Gospel songs. And Sarah Carter became an airplane pilot rather late in life, after she had quit the Country Music Bidness. 

 

[Luigi]

Patty Loveless is Loretta Lynn's cousin, and Patty had her own very successful career in Country music. Like Loretta Lynn, Loveless is from the hills of Kentucky. Here she sings the traditional hymn "Daniel Prayed," a la bluegrass, with Ricky Skaggs. While our non-Catholic brothers and sisters don't have the rich tradition of the Communion of Saints or the Lives of the Saints, they nonetheless do look to Biblical figures as models of Christian living. On a side note, I love how Skaggs handles the rowdy fan, after the first verse. 

 

[Luigi]

I just figured out that I didn't post a song yesterday. I picked one, wrote a little intro, and posted the link, but I never hit Submit Reply. Oh, well. 

"All My Tears" was written by Julie Miller. I first heard it sung by Emmylou Harris. But this recording is by Selah, featuring Kim Hill. My cousin was buried today - this one's for The Captain. 

 

 

[Luigi]

The Hillbilly Thomists sing "Keep Your Lamps Trimmed." There are a lot of variations on this song out there - it's a common theme in the repertoire of spirituals. But I think the Thomists must have come up with some of their own verses based on various Bible verses. Which is fine. The only accompaniment is a guitar, and that's just in the intro and between the verses; for all practical purposes, the song is sung a cappella. I also like the final chorus and outro, which they sing as a round. 

 

[Luigi]

When Johnny Cash died, it had a profound impact on his daughter Rosanne Cash. Her mother and stepmother had died within the previous eighteen months, too. Being a songwriter and singer, she wrote and sang about it. One of her songs is called "Crossing to Jerusalem." It's not a Gospel song in the traditional sense, but it has Gospel themes in it. It's really sort of a 'life review,' the 'life' being that of a Southern professional musician from a family of professional musicians who's on the road frequently ("the towns through tiny windows, the rooms that look the same," "look how the curtain rises, it courses through our blood"). But the song counts as Gospel at least from my perspective if only for the line "We'll be crossing to Jerusalem with nothing but our love." 

 

[Luigi]

"If Serving God Is Wrong, I Don't Want to Be Right" was originally a secular song. In its original form, "If Loving You is Wrong, I Don't Want to Be Right," it's about an adulterous love affair. A lot of people recorded it, but Luther Ingram had a hit with it in 1972. Somewhere along the way, Gospel singers converted the lyrics to a Christian message. To me, it's another example of Gospel singers taking current events (trains, telephones, airplanes, wars) and using them to proclaim the Gospel message. Here are Willie Neal Johnson and the Gospel Keynotes with their 1989 recording. 

 

[Luigi]

On January 8th, I posted "Something That the World Didn't Give Me" by the bluegrass group The Marshall Family. Today's song is basically the same message but delivered by Sister Shirley Caesar in a completely different style. She preaches a little bit between verses and choruses, too. And since today's Gospel reading includes "I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy might be complete," I thought it appropriate to post this song, even if it overlaps with the January 8th post. It would be a fun exercise to listen to one and then the other for the sake of comparison - the Marshall Family is on page 5, third from the bottom. 

 

[Luigi]

In the Country tradition and in the Gospel tradition, "Mama" gets a lot of respect. A mother's prayers are thought to be more effective, according to the folk tradition And Mother's Day is coming up. So I figure to post a Gospel song about mothers - or grandmothers - every day this week, but keep in mind that everyone is welcome to post their own songs, too! 

This is George Jones, known as The Possum, singing "When Mama Sang, the Angels Stopped to Listen." It was written by Danny Walls and Bob Warren. This is pure Old School Country, nothing very unique or special about it, just a good example of that special place that Mama holds in Country & Gospel music. 

 

[Luigi]

"Hold Fast to the Right" was written in 1906 by James D. Vaughn; the Carter Family (including June's mother, Maybelle Addington Carter) recorded it in 1938; Johnny & June Carter Cash recorded it in 2004, when both of them were old, for a Carter Family tribute album; their son, John Carter Cash produced the album. The song is a mother's advice to her son as he is about to leave the family home and go out into the world. 

 

[Luigi]

I know I've posted several other recordings by Sister Shirley Caesar, but I just think she's one of the best Gospel singers in the nation. This is "Loose That Man." It involves "an old mother," meaning 'a church mother,' not necessarily the mother of the man referenced. What impresses me about this song, and also about "Satan, We're Gonna Tear Your Kingdom Down" (page 6 of this thread, 4th song down), is that these women feel fully confident to confront the devil directly, and tell him what to do, too! That takes some real faith. She sets the context at the beginning and then starts singing. 

 

[Luigi]

The Hag (Merle Haggard) wrote and sings "Mama's Prayers" in which he narrates examples of being saved from dangerous situations, which he attributes to his mother's prayers. He did do time in San Quentin, so these examples are probably true. 

 

[Luigi]

Wikipedia says: "If I Could Hear My Mother Pray Again" (1922) is a popular gospel song written by John Whitfield "Whit" Vaughan (1879–1945), as a tribute to his own mother, Clara Beady Burgess-Vaughan. The words are based on a text by James Rowe, an English settler living in Georgia during the early twentieth century. A 1934 recording of the song by Thomas A. Dorsey was selected in 2007 by the United States' National Recording Preservation Board for preservation in the National Recording Registry. 

 

[Luigi]

"I Remember Mama" is one of Shirley Caesar's signature songs. Shirley was the youngest of twelve children and lost her father at a young age; her mother raised the children largely on her own. My mother had basically the same experience - 13 children and their father died when the oldest was 19 and the baby was 5 months old, so I have some vicarious insight into that part of the story. At the beginning of the video, the woman standing next to Shirley is her sister Ann, and the other adults in the later shots are her real brothers and sisters. Shirley sings about her mother and about her own conversion experience as a child. 

 

Edited May 12, 2024 by Luigi