Classic Black Gospel Quartets

Subject: Classic Black Gospel Quartets
From: wysiwyg
Date: 28 Jan 04 - 03:13 PM

This thread will be part of the African American Spirituals project at Mudcat.

1. What time period do you think is included, and what are its characteristics?

2. Who are/were your favorite quartets?

3. Are you doing this style now, and if so, in what setting? How have you adapted it to fit your situation?

Please be brief, as we get this conversation underway. I'll also be adding links to additional resources, and I invite you to do the same.

~Susan

Subject: Robt Turner/Silver Hearts Online Concert Details
From: wysiwyg
Date: 28 Jan 04 - 04:06 PM

Here's a concert featuring a group that says it's doing "classic" style, now.

CLICK HERE to hear Robert Turner and the Silver Heart Gospel Singers in an online concert from the Kennedy Center's Millenium Stage.

IMO this is an example of the BRIDGE between the classic quartets and the phase that followed-- MUCH more accompaniment than the early classic quartets. Here we have a keyboard, bass, and drumset, and I can hear but not see a horn section (synth?). Turner sings lead and there are four ladies backing up on harmony, taking the place of the response in the call-response form typified in spirituals (they also take a few turns on lead). This also is that style where at some point, many of the songs take off into spontaneous, Spirited singing expanding the song into a "message." Testifyin'!

I prefer the quieter style of the earlier quartets, myself, but there are some good songs in here and one can choose one's own style.

Here's Turner's group's take on the genre:
African American gospel music grew out of the African American folk spirituals of the early 19th century "invisible churches" of pre-emancipation black communities. Gospel songs were often composed but included rearrangements of spirituals and hymns. Gospel's sacred adaptation of secular black music was controversial in the beginning. With the addition of rhythmic intensity usually found in dance music to the Sunday morning worship service, one patriarch of the holiness church is said to have said, "The devil should not be allowed to keep all this good rhythm" (Southern 456). With growing acceptance, gospel soon came into full being in northern cities as African Americans migrated north in search of greater economic opportunities.

By the 1940s, gospel had captured the attention of national recording companies and gained a wide enough audience to support a radio program on WLIB in New York. Gospel performers traveled the revival and church-concert circuit, and crossed-over into secular settings. Gospel earned its place as an important American musical genre by the 1960s and 70s.

African American gospel has grown in popularity since its beginnings in the 1920s and has changed over the years, incorporating elements of be-bop, rhythm and blues, and pop music. But the Silver Hearts have "stuck to the basics," doing traditional gospel, 1960s-style, accompanied by keyboard, keeping a foundation in Jesus and the theme of hard times, "*music," as Turner says, "your mother or grandmother could relate to."

... "The way gospel used to be," Turner says, "it really didn't pay; it was a sacrifice-music." And over the years, there has been pressure to change. "*to be accepted you got to have the hot records out," and traditional gospel, the kind of music the Silver Hearts do, although still accepted today by many gospel music lovers, it does not tend to elicit big recording contracts. While Turner enjoys contemporary gospel music, he says that some of the music "overpowers the words." "How can you enjoy a good gospel song from an artist if you can't hear what the artist is singing?" But according to Turner, the move towards contemporary gospel is perhaps a good thing for the musical genre. "Who knows? When I started off in 1960, there could have been somebody from 1930 that was saying my music was contemporary. I'm sure it was, 'cause it was new! You can make your music new, but keep the meaning. Don't lose the meaning."

Songs included (times approximate):
(In the concert, titles were not announced, so these are my best stab at making a searchable record.)

00:15 Old Time Religion
03:50 Remarks about style, introducing the group, and acknowledgements
05:35 I Wanna Be More Like Jesus
10:30 (One Day God's) Love Lifted Me
16:00 I Love to Praise Him (I love to praise His Name)
20:40 A Friend Is Someone on Whom You Can Depend (I choose Jesus)/NO Not One. (This seems to be a medley of a song I don't know, with a version of "No Not One.")

"Old School Gospel" (slower, simpler, emph. on expressive singing not instruments)
26:30 Pass Me Not O Gentle Savior (with piano only till the end)
30:50 I Will Trust in the Lord (sounds like based on a spiritual, and very bluesy)
34:53 (I'm Gonna) Hold Out (Just a Little While Longer) (everything gonna work out fine) This may be distantly related to "The Gospel Plow," AKA "Keep Your Hand on the Plow," "Hold On").
40:08 Everytime I Think About (There is a God Somewhere)
47:30 What Kind of Man Is This (o, o, o, it must be the Lord)

52:55 Jesus I Love You (don't you know that I love you so)

NOTE: There is a lot of brief testifying as each song is introduced (and/or at the end of songs). I've tried to indicate starting times where the SONG actually starts.

Subject: Blind Boys of AL online concert & songlist
From: wysiwyg
Date: 28 Jan 04 - 05:12 PM

Of course, if you know this music, you know that many classic "quartets" have five or more singers in them. Still-- it's known as the "quartet sound" internationally, so we're stuck with calling it that too! :~)

For a group focused even more on the singing, and more "classic" quartet harmonizing, see and hear the Blind Boys of Alabama HERE in an online concert from the Kennedy Center's Millenium Stage. Some songs a capella, othjers lightly accompanied by drums and electric guitars.

Times approximate; songs included:

00:50 God Said It, I Believe It
07:10 Walk in Jerusalem, Just Like John (I want to be ready)
11:22 My Lord, What a Morning (mourning)
15:40 Across the Bridge-- They announce it as a country-western song from Jim Reeves.
21:22 Somebody's Gone That Was Here Last Year-- a contemporary piece.
26:00 Lord, Please Remember Me (Do Lord)
29:40 I'm Getting Better All the Time
34:50 Remarks about the announcer's father, a pastor, alcohol, and other stuff.   
37:00 Remarks about the Blind Boys and a new CD.
38:50 You'll Never Walk Alone
43:03 Look Where You Brought Me From (can I get a witness) goes to 57:35 with a tour thru the crowd and a protracted bangup finish
57:40 Amazing Grace

There's another finale-piece, I think, but I can't make it out.

~Susan

Subject: RE: Classic Black Gospel Quartets
From: GUEST,reggie miles
Date: 28 Jan 04 - 09:06 PM

There's a song called the "Hallelujah Boogie" that I've been on the prowl for. I've inquired here and elsewhere trying to locate a copy, but, alas, with no success. IMO it represents the very peak of the classic gospel quartet sound after it had adopted the devil's boogie- woogie rhythms. There may actually be five voices singing, I'm not sure, as it's been a long time since I've heard a copy of this song. The tempo is fast paced and the harmonies combine flawlessly to reproduce, without instrumentation, a very bouncy boogie-woogie. The message is there as well, but the lyrics are an absolute hoot. I would love to locate a copy of this one. I would be singing this song today if I could only find a copy to assimilate. I suppose it would make the search easier if I could remember the name of the group. I didn't think it was going to be such a chore to locate this song since it had so many fine musical attributes, but the gospel music industry being what it is, perhaps the traditionalist attitudes of the period thought the mixture of secular boogie-woogie rhythms and playful, though still gospel lyrics were crossing too far over the line to support. Sad, because this one song embodies so many wonderful elements and as such is the perfect example of a distinct and unique change from that classic quartet form.

One of my favorite classic gospel quartets has to be The Golden Gate Quartet.

Subject: RE: Classic Black Gospel Quartets
From: wysiwyg
Date: 28 Jan 04 - 09:11 PM

I may have that.... lemme look around.

~S~

Subject: RE: Classic Black Gospel Quartets
From: wysiwyg
Date: 28 Jan 04 - 10:13 PM

No H Boogie.... GOSPEL Boogie, I have that one...

~S~

Subject: Arch. Radio: Fairfield Four, link & songlist
From: wysiwyg
Date: 02 Feb 04 - 10:57 AM

Hear The Fairfield Four on the October 23, 1999 "A Prairie Home Companion." Find the archived show HERE.

The Fairfield Four began as a vocal trio that first performed in Nashville's Fairfield Baptist Church in 1921. The trio became a quartet in 1925, sang at other churches and social gatherings for nearly a decade, and then made its radio debut on WSIX in 1937. In July 1942, the group entered a contest sponsored by the Colonial Coffee Company and won an appearance on WLAC Radio in Nashville. They proved so popular that they soon had their own nationally syndicated radio show, which was heard every morning, five days a week for the next ten years. In addition to the radio show, the group toured extensively before launching their commercial recording career in 1946 with several sessions for the Bullet Record Company. Since then, the group has amassed more than 100 titles. Although they went into semi-retirement in the late '60s, they got back together in 1980 for a quartet reunion in Birmingham, Alabama. They electrified the audience with an authentic gospel sound that had all but disappeared in the intervening years. In 1989, the group was named a national treasure when the NEA honored the Fairfield Four with a National Heritage Fellowship. They continue to tour and record, as their schedules allow, and have appeared at Carnegie Hall, toured across Europe and the U.S., and opened for Lyle Lovett and others. Their most recent recording, I Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray (Warner Bros. Records), includes performances by Elvis Costello and Pam Tillis, as well as a scripture recitation by Garrison Keillor. Now made up of six singers, the Fairfield Four are still dedicated to the heritage of jubilee gospel singing. Performing tonight are: James Hill, Isaac Freeman, Wilson Waters, Robert Hamlett, Joseph Rice, and Nate Best.



Doc Watson is on this show as well.

Songs Included (times approximate):

47:28 Intro Fairfield Four
48:26 I Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray
52:42 Help for the Needy
54:39 GK Intro Members
56:06 Four And Twenty Elders

~Susan

Subject: RE: Classic Black Gospel Quartets
From: wysiwyg
Date: 03 Feb 04 - 12:49 PM

Jerry Rasmussen, you are not alone:

Gloryland Quartet Radio

This is the 1st all quartet Netcast program in the history of the Internet. Gloryland Quartet radio features black quartet gospel music from the years of 1893-2003. Monthly you are treated to one hour in the best of quartet gospel singing and the historical perspective of quartet music historian and enthusiast Minister Donnie Addison. Minister Addison shares the latest hits along with vintage recordings from his vast collection. A new broadcast and play list will be available every month for your listening pleasure.

This is a non-profit service offered to quartet fans. If you would like to hear audio on Gloryland Gospel you must first have the Real Audio player installed on your system (Version 8.0 or earlier). Please feel free to e-mail [e-mail] with any song requests.

Lots of other info there too.

~Susan

Subject: RE: Classic Black Gospel Quartets
From: Margret RoadKnight
Date: 03 Feb 04 - 09:23 PM

Faves:
Swan Silvertones
&
Pilgrim Travelers
(worth reading Tony Heilbut's wonderful book "The Gospel Sound" for info on genre, personnel, etc)

Subject: RE: Classic Black Gospel Quartets
From: wysiwyg
Date: 15 Feb 04 - 06:13 PM

CLICK HERE to find archived live performances by the Blind Boys of Alabama and The Fairfield Four.

The audio streams, but the videos download.

~Susan

Subject: RE: Classic Black Gospel Quartets
From: wysiwyg
Date: 28 Mar 04 - 12:07 PM

CLICK HERE to arrive at the Sinner's Crossroads, where there are vast archives of sound (with playlists) featuring well-known and only-locally-known geniuses of the quartet sound. And more...

~Susan

Subject: RE: Classic Black Gospel Quartets
From: wysiwyg
Date: 17 Apr 05 - 05:56 PM

refresh