Willa Dorsey. Rev. Claude Jeter. Tommy Ellison. Elmo Franklin. Paul Arnold. Rev. Lawrence Roberts. Margaret “Babe” Allison. Mr. Ira Tucker. Irma Gwynn. Michael Cook. Charles Ashley Craig. Robert Wooten. Junious Norfleet. Hulah Gene Dunklin Hurley.
And so on.
What goes through my mind when I see these names is the saying, “When an old person dies, a library burns to the ground.” All these gospel music legends, gone.
Every year carries a number, and with every passing year, the number gets larger. I don’t want to sound alarmist, but who knows how many of the legends who are alive today will be with us in five years? I hope that the answer to this question is, “all of them,” but let’s face it: that’s not likely.
It’s time we capture the voices, stories, and remembrances of these deserving men and women. I propose a nationwide oral history project that chronicles the stories of the gospel artists who paved the way, and a place of storage where future generations of gospel music enthusiasts, historians, and family members can access the interviews – digitally. This project will simultaneously honor and respect the forefathers and mothers of gospel music while ensuring that their joys, sorrows, struggles, achievements, and artistry is collected, stored, and available in perpetuity.
We need to do this now. The longer we wait, the longer the list of lost chances. The legends are, each and every one of them, national treasures with vessels of knowledge from which each of us can learn, and be better people for the learning.
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Written by : Bob Marovich
Bob Marovich is a gospel music historian, author, and radio host. Founder of Journal of Gospel Music blog (formally The Black Gospel Blog) and producer of the Gospel Memories Radio Show.
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I agree! I’m just getting into my gospel history (age 19), and I LOVE the sound from the olden days.. I’d love to know more about each of our gospel greats.. and Im sure the next generation will too.]
US popular music has its roots in blues and gospel. The blues is heavily documented, researched in every format possible, while the other leg US popular music is walking on is crippled, just hanging there. As a non US-citizen with a high interest in black gospel music I completely agree with your proposal to preserve as much as possible of this major part of US culture.
I’ll do my bit at justmovingon.info and I won’t mind assisting others who do whatever they can in order to keep this beautiful musical tradition alive.
Visions, Cies — thank you for your support of this idea. Cies, you hit the nail on the head: blues, jazz, country, rock, soul, get far more coverage than gospel, and yet each genre owes some debt to the gospel singers! And Visions, yes, generations hence need to hear these stories!
Let’s do it!
I like your spirit, Gospelgal!
I just came across this post while searching for something. I know for myself that this is so true. I talked with Eugene Smith right before he died. After our conversation, I realized that wanted to ask him more questions, but he died before I could make a 2nd phone call to him. Another library, gone.
I’d love to organize a mass oral history of African American gospel music singers yet living. The project is daunting, but with the right funding, I think it can be pulled off!