(February 9, 2018 at 5:05 pm)Whateverist Wrote: Almost anything by Mavis Staples.




And Patty Griffin isn't too bad for a white girl.

An older version of Never Grow Old. The Speer Family was well recognized in Southern Gospel spanning all the way back to the 1920s. This version goes back to the 1960s before "Dad" Speer's death...





This other more recent group do this one without any musical instruments...

(February 9, 2018 at 1:44 pm)Rev. Rye Wrote: ... but we have a 3-video per post limit.

As far as Gospel goes, at least three too many.

(February 9, 2018 at 2:04 pm)vulcanlogician Wrote: If you pass up rocking to gospel music because you're an atheist, you're missing out.

Personally, it's because it's shit.

Worse, it's boring shit.

The truly mind boggling thing is that Dr. King embraced a religion that advocates slavery.

(February 9, 2018 at 9:04 pm)Cyberman Wrote:

(February 9, 2018 at 2:04 pm)vulcanlogician Wrote: If you pass up rocking to gospel music because you're an atheist, you're missing out.

Personally, it's because it's shit.

Worse, it's boring shit.

Gotta disagree with you there, man. Maybe gospel just isn't your thing... maybe you just haven't heard some of the really good, old, blues-influenced stuff.

It's Marmite 'music'; you either loathe it or jizz over it. Feeding me more just in case I haven't tasted it properly isn't going to make me suddenly switch. Sorry.

(For the record, I actually adore Marmite. I just can't stand Gospel.)

That's the funny thing about gospel music: it comes in a large variety of forms. The hymns traditionally sung in churches are soporific, the contemporary Christian music is usually a bland imitation of the secular music world. Meanwhile, there's a bunch of other forms, including the heavily blues-based forms I posted earlier, and their descendants/cousins in the gospel scene. And here's another form, even more unusual: Sacred Harp music. 





The first time I heard it was on the Harry Smith Anthology, with two tracks from an 1928 version of the Alabama Sacred Harp Singers.  The first time I heard the tracks, I assumed it must be the token contribution of the American Indian to this six-LP boxed set chronicling America's folk music. Indecipherable choirs singing in what appeared to be a pentatonic scale, but it turns out it's actually an old English tradition that ended up flourishing in the South. It's a bit Bach-like, if only for the fugues ubiquitous in the hymnal it was named after, but easily accessible to the common man (well, at least more easily accessible than Art of the Fugue was, anyway.)

Then again, this may be even less accessible to others than most of the other forms.

I thought this was going to be a thread about someone literally douching. I'm disappointed.

-Teresa

The closest to a religious song I enjoy is the devil went down to Georgia.

(February 9, 2018 at 2:04 pm)vulcanlogician Wrote:

(February 9, 2018 at 1:45 pm)Minimalist Wrote: You can sing a song about dog shit but it remains dog shit.

But if it's a good song, it doesn't matter what it's ultimately about. It remains a good song. Aretha Franklin's "Climbing Higher Mountains" is one of my favorite tunes ever. Everything that woman touches becomes gold. Plus that, to me, the song merely uses religious symbolism to talk about real-life things. In this case, difficulties and tribulations--something everybody has, regardless of their religion. A lyrical song is just a poem put to music. Any one poem can be interpreted in a number of ways.

If you pass up rocking to gospel music because you're an atheist, you're missing out.

I'll admit in my subjective opinion there are a few good gospels songs out there.

BUT - according to the OP, this was a government (city) event and religion does not belong in government-sponsored events. I find it hard to believe that MLK cannot be adequately honored without people singing songs about their god.

My kid learned about MLK at her public school and somehow they managed to effectively teach about MLK without injecting god into the discussion. It's simple, really. Keep religion in your church and don't shove it down anybody else's throat.

-Teresa