Essential Gospel – Classic Recordings: No. 130

“Heavenly Father”
Crescent City Gospel Singers
Arcadia 109
1956

Available on New Orleans Gospel Quartets: 1947-1956 (504 Music) and on Quartet Collection, Volume 10 (Pewburner 572)

From the opening bars of the song – a passionate supplication sung by lead singer Charles Taylor and bathed in studio echo – to the intensely recited prayer – this is an aural treat for gospel quartet and vocal group fans alike.

Mind you, it’s not Edna McGriff’s 1951 song of the same title and bears no resemblance to the Patterson Singers’ “Heavenly Father” from 1962, but it has the same plaintive, doo-woppy feel of both recordings. Here, the bass drum pulses with dramatic tension, while Bessie Taylor’s piano tinkles melodically in the background. The harmonies are tightly woven and wash over the music like lapping waves.

Especially haunting in the wake of Hurricane Katrina’s devastation to the Crescent City are these lines in Taylor’s prophetic prayer during the song’s bridge: “We pray, Father, that you will guide us and protect us as we travel in this dangerous and rugged life, Father.” In fact, “haunting” is probably the best adjective to describe this record, the New Orleans quartet’s only known waxing.

Records like this reaffirm my belief that as far as black music is concerned, 1956 was a magical year.