Contents Contents …………………………………………………………………….1 Introduction ………………………………………

Home , By and By, Horace Clarence Boyer, Peace in the Valley, Someday Somewhere

Contents Contents …………………………………………………………………….1 Introduction ………………………………………...... 2 1. The development of spirituals and gospel songs ……………………....4 1.1. Spirituals………………………………………………………………..4 1.2. Gospel music………………………………………………...... 7 1.3. Pioneering gospel composers and performers………………...... 10 Notes……………………………………………………………………….12 2. The biography of Thomas Andrew Dorsey ...... 13 2.1. 1899-1920……………………………………………………………..13 2.2. 1920-1930……………………………………………………………..15 2.3. 1930s…………………………………………………………………..16 2.4. 1940-1993……………………………………………………………..18 Notes……………………………………………………………………….20 3. Lyrics …………………………………………………………...... 21 4. Analysis and comments to songs ……………………………...... 30 4.1. Introduction……………………………………………………………30 4.2. Analysis……………………………………………………………….30 4.3. Conclusion…………………………………………………………….47 Notes……………………………………………………………………….54 5. Dorsey’s contributions to the development of gospel music …...... 55 5.1. Dorsey’s influence on gospel music…………………………………..55 5.2. Dorsey as a gospel song writer………………………………………..56 5.3. Dorsey’s impact on choral singing……………………………………57 5.4. The National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses……………58 5.5. The structure of NCGCC……………………………………………...59 5.6. Significant gospel songbooks…………………………………………59 Notes……………………………………………………………………….61 6. Gospel music in the secular world …………………………………….62 6.1. Recording, radio, television…………………………………………...62 6.2. The Gospel Music Association………………………………………..63 6. 3. The Grammy Awards for gospel music and Dorsey’s songs……...... 64 Notes……………………………………………………………………….64 Conclusion ………………………………………………………………...65 Bibliography and discography …………………………………………...67

Introduction

I chose the work of Thomas Andrew Dorsey as a topic of my thesis because I enjoy singing gospel music. The aim of my thesis is to explore the features of his compositional style of his lyrics and their development. I will also describe Dorsey’s position in the field of gospel music. Gospel music has been popular since its establishment in the 1930s when Thomas Andrew Dorsey and his associates founded the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses promoting gospel music in Chicago as well as across the USA. Gospel music developed from the spirituals of the blacks and white Protestant hymns. These two musical influences blended, and from the late 1920s on the genre was enriched by the blues of Thomas Andrew Dorsey that gave gospel music its distinguished sound. Acclaimed as the “father of the gospel music”, Thomas Andrew Dorsey (1899-1993) was an imposing figure that helped to spread gospel music movement from Chicago throughout the USA. His music provided a spiritual uplifting for the blacks from the time of the Great Depression, but it gained its reputation among the white listeners as well because of its emotive sound. Thomas Andrew Dorsey started his musical career as a blues pianist and songwriter. After his conversion to Christianity in 1921 he started to write gospel songs and in 1932 when his wife and son died he gave up performing the blues and devoted his musical gifts to sacred music. He was not only a prolific composer of several hundreds of songs, but also a coach, an organiser of gospel music events and a choir director in Pilgrim Baptist Church in Chicago. In the first chapter of my thesis I describe the development of spiritual and gospel songs because these genres are closely connected. The second chapter is devoted entirely to the life of Thomas Andrew Dorsey and his musical development. The primary source of this chapter is the book The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church by Michael W. Harris, Dorsey’s biographer. Harris included in his publication a number of excerpts from the interviews with Dorsey, his relatives and associates. He focused on Dorsey’s life until 2 his early thirties, the time when the gospel music movement started to spread. The third chapter contains 21 lyrics that I either recorded from available media or found in print. In the fourth chapter I provide the analysis of the songs with focusing on their themes, origin, structure and outstanding language features. The fifth chapter focuses on Dorsey’s formative influence on gospel music featuring his activity in the gospel choir movement. The last chapter deals with gospel in the secular contexts, for this genre moved outside the church after World War II due to its growing popularity.

1. The development of spirituals and gospel songs

Introduction

In this chapter I will describe the origin, form and importance of the spirituals, in the following parts I will focus on the rise and form of gospel music and its pioneering composers and performers.

1.1. Spirituals

“Spirituals record the struggle of a people to survive, but like no other histories, they also have the power to touch the souls and stir the emotions of the people who sing and hear them. “ (1) The terms “spiritual” and “spiritual song” may seem to have the same meaning because they both are used in connection with the development of spiritual. Dena J. Epstein in Encyclopaedia of Southern Culture suggests the following definition: “The term spiritual song was widely used in English and American hymnals and tune books during and th after the 18 century, but spiritual was not found in print before the Civil War. Descriptions of the songs that came to be known by that name appeared at least 20 years earlier, and Afro-American religious singing recognized as distinct from white psalms and hymns was described as early as 1819.” (2) Spirituals reflect the life and culture of the blacks after their arrival in America. The first slaves were shipped to America by Dutch traders in 1629. In a short time the economy of the South became strongly dependent on slavery, as the plantation owners exploited the slave labour for their profit from growing cotton. The origin of spirituals is connected with conversion of the Africans to Christianity. While in the seventeenth century only a few Africans were converted, in the next century special religious meetings were held which were attended by the whites and blacks alike. These gatherings developed as the reaction on the need of people living on the frontier where established churches had no impact. People in rural areas of the South desired a faith which would give them comfort and hope in their poor conditions. Religious 4 movement that partly met their needs is called the Great Awakening or the Great Revival. It took part in several waves and “gave rise to a complex of religious musical forms (hymn, camp meeting song, spiritual, and shout)”. (3) The development of the spiritual was strongly influenced by the th Kentucky Revival in the early 19 century. The blacks and whites took part in camp meetings led by Presbyterian and Methodist preachers. There they worshipped God together by songs which were highly emotional. Thus the church became the place where the traditions of European origin blended with aspects of African culture, which I will describe later. The songs that were sung at camp meetings were considered to be an essential part of the worship. It is believed that “the songs that blacks performed in these contexts gave rise to the African American spiritual.” (4) Since the attendees of the meetings were mostly illiterate, there was a need for songs which were easy to learn and remember. A number of new camp meeting songs appeared which were called “spiritual songs” (later referred to as “folk” spirituals) as distinguished from hymns and psalms”. (5) The usage of choruses, refrains and repeated lines became a common practice within these songs. There were two major types of sacred songs which corresponded to the needs of the participants of the meetings: the call-and-response style of singing and songs with repetitive chorus. The call-and-response style is actually a “dialogue” between the leading singer and the congregation which learned the response on the spot. The blacks were attracted by this singing technique because they used it in Africa too. This was confirmed by those who travelled to Africa in the seventeenth century. Songs with repetitive chorus were led by the song leaders too, the congregation joined in the chorus. Another common practice of singing and arranging sacred songs was adding “choruses and refrains to the official hymns so that the people could join in with singing” (6), because the congregation was dependent on the melodies that were already known. Among these were the hymns of Isaac Watts, whose hymnbooks were shipped to America in the eighteenth century. Other European authors of the hymns were Charles Wesley and

5 John Newton. There were also a number of folk and popular tunes coming from Europe that were given religious texts in narrative form following the pattern of strophic poems. Several aspects typical of African culture influenced the singing of th sacred songs at the camp meetings in the early 19 century. Firstly, they made use of vocal embellishments and a strong rasping voice. Secondly, they enriched the spiritual by the rhythmical elements: body movement including stamping, hand-clapping, clattering and other percussive effects which strongly emphasised rhythm in music. They did so because they were focused on music much more than their white counterparts, who emphasised the lyrics. Cusic states in The Cambridge Companion to Blues and Gospel Music : “Musically, then, the spirituals, because born from slavery, became separate from the southern folksongs primarily because of the differences in the black and white cultures and the particular aptitude of African Americans for rhythms.” (7) The contribution of African-Americans to the rhythmical part of the sacred songs is explained by their inability to repeat the songs they heard correctly and insufficient knowledge of vocabulary. This meant that they sang the songs with different lyrics in their dialect which influenced also the rhythm of the songs. The development of texts of sacred songs at camp meetings was influenced by the whites and blacks alike. As I mentioned above, there were a number of hymns taken over from European authors. Their texts were inspired by the Bible, but expressed also personal attitude towards God. The blacks emphasised in the songs their desire for freedom and escape from slavery, because they identified with the Old Testament story of Exodus. Similar to the people of Israel, they believed that they would reach the Promised Land and one day would be free. When they sang about heaven, they often meant life in liberty. Later on, spirituals gave advice about how to escape; they served as a secret code for those who wanted to escape to the northern states, because the slavery was abolished earlier there. It is not clear when the term spiritual was first used in print referring to the religious folksongs of the blacks. As Southern refers: “it is not known precisely when the term spiritual was first used in print to apply to the religious folksongs of the blacks. Obviously, the term pointed back to the

6 three species of hymnody early set up in the history of Protestantism- psalms, hymns, and spirituals…” (8) The first comprehensive collection of black spirituals was published in 1867 named Slave Songs of the United States. It was edited by missionaries William Allen, Charles Ware and Lucy McKim Garrison and contained both lyrics and music of the spirituals. They used the term “spiritual” freely, without a clear definition, which indicates that this term was widely known by the 1860s. David Warren Steel in Encyclopedia of Southern Culture confirms the occurrence of the black spiritual: “After the Civil War, the black spiritual emerged, essentially the same as the revival spiritual, despite differences in the date and circumstances of its notation. Indeed, the prevalence of call-and-response forms in Afro-American music and the presence of blacks at early camp meetings suggest that mutual influences may have played a role in the spiritual song traditions of both races.” (9) (In Steel’s article the term revival spiritual song refers to the camp meeting songs.) In 1844 B. F. White and E. J. King compiled The Sacred Harp , a th tunebook of revival spiritual songs that contained the 18 century texts of hymns by English authors, mostly by Isaac Watts (1674-1748). According to Harry Eskew, it is “a product of the American singing school movement th which flourished in New England in the late 18 century and spread to the th rural South and Midwest in the early 19 century.” (10) th In 1865 the slavery was abolished by the 13 Amendment to the Constitution. The African-Americans kept their religious traditions and established independent black churches alongside already existing white churches. This division helped the development of the black music. In the 1870s the spirituals found their way on the concert stages thanks to the Jubilee Singers of Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. It was a small choir of black students who travelled to sing spirituals in northern cities intending to raise money for their school, which was opened in 1866 to make education accessible for African Americans. The Fisk Jubilee Singers made spirituals popular not only on stages in America, but also in Europe.

7 The value of the black spirituals is indisputable - they strengthened the hope of slaves and gave them the opportunity to express their identity and sense of community. They were also a medium through which they expressed their desire for escape and protest against their difficult conditions.

1.2. Gospel music

To define the term gospel music , it is necessary to say that in the broader sense it refers to any kind of religious music, whereas in the less broad sense the term signifies a style of music in which religious texts are provided with music combining the features of the popular music. In the 1890s it was the blues and ragtime. My concern will be to describe the black gospel music. According to Grove Music Dictionary gospel music is “A large body of American religious songs with texts that reflect aspects of the personal religious experience of Protestant evangelical groups, both white and black”. (11) Kip Lornell in Encyclopedia of Southern Culture defines the black th gospel music as a genre that is “rooted in the religious songs of the late 19 century urban revival, in shape-note songs, spirituals, blues, and ragtime.” (12) The development of gospel is closely connected with migration to the northern cities, where the people came to find new opportunities after the Civil War. The most important collection of this city revival period is the collection Gospel Hymns and Sacred Tunes by Ira D. Sankey and Plilip P. Bliss. It was published in New York and Cincinnati in 1875. This compilation “dominated the market and defined the gospel song in the nineteenth century.” (13) Compositions in this collection were typical for their sentimentality and optimism. In comparison with older hymns they were richer in rhythm and contained features of popular songs. The important source of gospel music is the blues, a secular musical style whose roots are in black folk music tradition. It originated in the South in the Mississippi Delta in the 1890s, reflecting the ordinary life of the

8 southerners and their feelings. The blues is based on musical interaction; it treats the accompanying instrument (the piano, the harmonica or the guitar) as the second voice. The blues contains so called blue notes enriching the harmony that originally do not belong to the scalar system. The influence of the blues on gospel was very strong when this genre was established. As Southern describes the musical similarity between the blues and gospel music: “Observers perceived that this expressive church music was essentially the sacred counterpart of the blues, frequently the sacred text being the only distinguishing element. The call-and-response, rhythmic vitality, musical density, predilection for duple meters, improvisation, and “bent note” scale were all present. The harmonic patterns of the music were chiefly diatonic-that is, based on tonic, dominant, and subdominant chords as in the blues-but the scalar “bent tones” changed some of the chords to borrowed dominant and diminished seventh chords.” (14) th In the 19 century gospel songs were sung a capella , which means that they were sung without instrumental accompaniment, because instruments were not available or prohibited, so the only accompaniment possible was handclapping and foot tapping. Later they were accompanied by the same instruments that are present in secular music – the piano, organ, guitar, bass and drums. During the 1930s gospel became a distinguished musical style thanks to the compositions of Charles Albert Tindley and Thomas Andrew Dorsey, who is considered the “father of gospel music”. From the 1930s he cooperated with great singers Mahalia Jackson and Sallie Martin to help promote gospel music. They established the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses in 1932, an organisation that still exists today to train gospel musicians. Gospel also started to be broadcast by radio stations and many recordings were made. However, the boom of recording was interrupted by the Great Depression. As the popularity of gospel was still increasing in the 1950s, this genre stopped to be church-oriented and started to be sung in secular settings too. There were a large number of quartets and interprets that performed and recorded gospel over the country, such as the Soul Stirrers and the Golden Gate Quartet. Gospel had an effect on the singers of secular

9 music, such as Ray Charles and Elvis Presley who borrowed from it. Due to marketing and musical taste of its fans, gospel became more sophisticated, but retained its characteristic emotional sound. In the 1970s James Cleveland launched the era of mass choirs. He and a few other performers continued in the traditional style of the gospel, while the majority of gospel performers combined gospel with popular music. Gospel was divided into two partly overlapping streams – traditional and contemporary gospel. th Throughout the 20 century new musical aspects were incorporated in gospel, making it more sophisticated and up-to-date. However, gospel remains a popular genre nowadays because of its stirring emotional character. It is still “a celebration of the Christian experience of salvation and hope”. (15)

1.3. Pioneering gospel composers and performers

At the beginning of the 20th century, African-American composers started to publish their music. The first of the pioneering composers was Charles Albert Tindley (1851- 1933), whose songs influenced the new African American gospel music. He himself was a slave in Maryland. In 1875 he moved to Philadelphia, New York, where he became a Methodist minister. He made use of his compositions in his ministry. In his compositions he blended the Protestant hymn structure with the choral refrains of the spiritual. His lyrics came from the personal experience, which is a typical feature of all gospel songs. Among his most famous compositions belong songs “I’ll Overcome” (altered as “We Shall Overcome”), “Stand by Me”, “Leave It There”, “Some Day” and “We’ll Understand It Better By and By”.

Lucie Eddie Campbell from Memphis, Tennessee (1885-1963) was the first woman whose contribution to the development of the gospel music won her recognition. She participated in the activities of the National

10 Baptist Convention, the largest Black organisation in the world. Mahalia Jackson sang her “In the Upper Room with Jesus.”

William Herbert Brewster (1897-1987) started to compose in the 1930’s. He was also a minister who had his own choir, the Brewster Singers. He claimed that his poetic lyrics are “sermons set to music” (16). He used the preaching ballad form in verses that was followed by the chorus in the call-and–response tradition, which contributed to the transformation of the classical gospel song genre. His songs “Move On Up a Little Higher” and “Surely God Is Able” were recording successes.

Thomas Andrew Dorsey (1899-1993) was a blues pianist who settled in Chicago, Illinois. He was formerly involved mainly in secular music, but from the 1930s he devoted his compositional talents only to gospel. As he is considered the “father of gospel music” and is by far the most important figure of this genre, I will focus on his contribution to the development of gospel in the following chapter.

Sallie Martin (1895- 1988) toured with T. A. Dorsey as a song demonstrator. She also found a gospel-music publishing company called the Martin and Morris Music Publishing Co. with Kenneth Morris (1917-1988), a jazz pianist and gospel composer whose songs were successful during the 1940s and 1950s, especially his “Just a Closer Walk with Thee.”

Roberta Martin (1907-1969) cooperated with Dorsey too. She created a composition style combining male and female voices which resulted in a rich harmonic sound supported by the sound of the piano accompaniment. She also founded her own publishing house, the Roberta Martin Studios and had her own ensemble, the Roberta Martin Singers.

Mahalia Jackson (1912-1972) is considered the superstar of gospel music of the 1950s. She worked extensively with Thomas A. Dorsey from 1929. Many gospel songs are famous because of her contralto voice quality. She devoted her vocal talents wholly to singing gospel. She was strongly influenced by blues and Bessie Smith.

Notes

1. Reagon, B. Johnson. In: Wade in the Water. Volume I. African American Spirituals: The Concert Tradition . Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40072, 1994. 2. Wilson, CH. Reagan. Encyclopedia of Southern Culture. p. 1032 3. Nicholls, David. The Cambridge History of American Music. p. 127 4. ibid, p. 128 5. ibid, p. 128 6. Southern, Eileen. The Music of Black Americans. p. 85 7. Moore, Alan. The Cambridge Companion to Blues and Gospel Music . p. 50 8. Southern, Eileen. The Music of Black Americans. p.168 9. Wilson, CH. Reagan. Encyclopedia of Southern Culture. p.1081 10. ibid, p. 1030 11. Eskew, Harry. Downey, C. James. Boyer, C. Horace. “Gospel Music”. Grove Music Online . Oxford University Press 2006. 20.1.2006. 12. Wilson, CH. Reagan. Encyclopedia of Southern Culture. p. 1012 13. Nicholls, David. The Cambridge History of American Music. p. 155 14. Southern, Eileen. The Music of Black Americans . p. 449 15. Reagon, B. Johnson, Williams-Jones, P., Brevard, L. Pertillar. In: “Introduction”. Wade in the Water. Volume III. African American Gospel: The Pioneering Composers. Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40074, 1994. 16. ibid

2. The biography of Thomas Andrew Dorsey

Thomas Andrew Dorsey (1899-1993) was one of the most th important African-American gospel composers of the 20 century. His life was depicted in the book by Michael W. Harris The Rise of Gospel Blues which was the primary source of this chapter. The author focused mainly on the life of Dorsey up to his early 30s. I looked for other information about the following details of Dorsey’s life on the internet and in the books about gospel music.

2.1. 1899-1920

Thomas Andrew Dorsey was born on July 1, 1899 in Villa Rica, Georgia to Etta Plant Spencer and Thomas Madison Dorsey. His father was an itinerant protestant preacher, a graduate of Atlanta Baptist College. The financial difficulties of the family forced him to work as a sharecropper and teach in elementary schools for 3 months each year. Thomas Andrew Dorsey experienced pleasant times when he accompanied his father on his travels and attended the school where his father worked. These were his most vivid memories of Villa Rica. According to Michael W. Harris, Dorsey’s biographer, it was an important formative period of Dorsey’s life:

..the style as well as the fact of his father’s ministry was one of the major factors in the formation of Dorsey’s religious values. The passion for fame, a flair for the dramatic, and a yearning for devoutness-all to become traits of Dorsey’s character-were there for the young Dorsey to observe and absorb as he moved between the world of the Reverend Mr. Dorsey and that of Thomas, the share cropper. (1)

Dorsey’s mother Etta influenced him from two reasons. Firstly, she set an example of day-to-day faith which Dorsey admired and gave him spiritual training. Secondly, she was responsible for his early musical development, because she was an organist at church and loved singing. Since the organ was the first musical instrument available for Dorsey, he was enchanted by its sound and attempted to learn to play it in early

13 childhood. Besides Etta there were other people in the family who influenced Dorsey’s musical growth. Dorsey’s uncle Phil Plant was a wandering musician performing country blues in Georgia, and the other was Corrie M. Hindsman, Etta’s brother-in-law, whose musical education included piano and composition. He was musically active in the Mt. Prospect Baptist Church which the Dorseys attended while staying in Villa Rica.

In 1908 the Dorseys left rural Villa Rica and moved to Atlanta, where they faced serious financial hardships. As a consequence, they lost the social status they enjoyed in Villa Rica. Etta was forced to work as a domestic servant and Thomas Madison worked there as a labourer. Young Thomas himself struggled to put up with new conditions; he had difficulties in adjusting to the new school system in Atlanta, which caused him to be demoted. His identity crisis was intensified by the social ostracism he experienced from children at the Carrie Steele Orphanage School.

By the age of twelve he developed an inferiority complex and had dropped out of school. However, his aspiration to music was stronger than his circumstances. As he commented with resilience, “These things never discouraged me or quenched my spirit. Being poor, shabbily dressed, homely looking did not stop me. I had hope, faith, courage, aspiration and most of all determination to accomplish something in my life…I resolved to make a mark for myself.” (2)

In Atlanta Dorsey attended performances at the Eighty-One or Ninety-One Theater on Decatur Street in the downtown of the black community. They provided films and vaudeville shows. At the Eighty-One Theater he saw famous enchanting singers Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey with whom he later performed. He desired to be a pianist and devoted his time to practising and associating with musicians. He played at the parties and in Atlanta’s red-light district, which earned him the nickname “Barrel House Tom”. His desire to grow in the knowledge of music and notation motivated him to seek further formal training, but in the end he learned the notation by himself. By the age of sixteen he became a distinguished blues pianist within the black community in Atlanta.

14 In 1916 Dorsey left Atlanta and settled in Chicago, where he sought an escape from racism and the opportunity to earn money. The main reason for his migration, however, was his desire to grow in his musical career. He worked in various service jobs on the railroad and joined the community of musicians. Soon he succeeded as a blues pianist at the parties. Because of his soft performing style which was needed to avoid the attention of the police, he became known as the “whispering piano player”. As he recalled:

I made good playing the Buffet Flats, because I had the kind of touch, beat and volume the landladies wanted. I was a soft smooth player and I sang softly with my playing, so I got more work and was better paid than the loud banging type pianist….I was on the landladies’ payroll. His kind of playing late at might would call the law or attract the police and the place might be raided. The best pay the loud banging pianist could get was a few dime tips. I was called the “whispering piano player . (3)

2.2. 1920-1930

To improve his musical skills and social status within the community of musicians, he enrolled in the Chicago School of Composition and Arranging. Although by 1920 he had developed his compositional skills and achieved a reputation, he suffered from frustration which together with his hectic way of life brought about his first nervous breakdown. During his convalescence he wrote his first sacred song “If I Don’t Get There” that was inspired by his experience from the National Baptist Convention in 1921 where he was captured by the singing of Reverend A. W. Nix. This experience motivated him to compose sacred songs and devote his talent to God. The song “If I Don’t Get There” was registered at the U.S. Copyright Office in 1922. At that time he was working for a short time as a director of music at New Hope Baptist Church on Chicago’s south Side. Because of money he left this position and joined Will Walker’s “The Whispering Syncopators” that played in clubs, dances and theatres. Since Chicago was at that time the second centre of the recording industry, Dorsey managed to gain certain prominence as a blues composer and pianist.

In 1924 Dorsey directed and accompanied Ma Rainey’s famous ensemble called Wild Cats Jazz Band performing blues tunes. Ma Rainey

15 was known for her moaning style of singing that was popular among the southerners.

In 1925 Dorsey married Nettie Harper who accompanied him at the tours with the band, working as Rainey’s wardrobe mistress. However, the peaceful period of their marriage was interrupted by Dorsey’s second sudden breakdown in 1926 that lasted two years. Dorsey suffered from a deep depression and considered committing suicide. The encounter with Bishop H. H. Haley was a turning point in the crisis. Consequentially, Dorsey sought help in faith and decided to use his talent for writing gospel.

However, Dorsey’s commitment to writing gospel music did not prove to be strong enough. Lured by money, in 1928 he joined a guitarist Hudson Whitaker known by his recording name Tampa Red and recorded blues again under the name Georgia Tom. Their music had suggestive character that they called “hokum”. That is why they gave themselves the name the Famous Hokum Boys. “It’s Tight Like That” was the song that brought them both money and fame. In the period between 1928 and 1932 Dorsey made over sixty recordings, either as a soloist or together with Tampa Red. (4)

At this period Dorsey recorded the blues successfully with several other ensembles and musicians that he accompanied including the Black Hill Billies and the Hokum Jug Band. He entirely gave up recording the blues in 1932 when his wife died in childbirth to their son Thomas Andrew Jr. who died soon afterwards. Dorsey sought consolation in faith and from that point in his life he focused entirely on writing and promoting gospel music.

2.3. 1930s

Dorsey’s attempts to incorporate gospel music in the protestant service met with resistance among church leaders, because they considered his musical style inappropriate due to his blues background. Firstly, the blues was despised in the church because it was connected with secular settings. Secondly, their attitude was rooted mainly in the idea that the Afro- American Christians should assimilate to Anglo-American culture and avoid

16 singing sacred songs based on the blues, because such songs were highly emotional and raised unwelcome excitement within the Christian service. As Harris explains:

The old-line minister would have been as uncomfortable with the bluesman in the bluesman’s habitat as he was intimidated by the bluesman when he performed in the old-line worship. He seemed to avoid the bluesman’s presence out of not only a fear of his cry but also a disdain for his ways . (5)

Dorsey, on the contrary, emphasised the expression of feelings in both gospel and the blues:

If a woman has lost a man, a man has lost a woman, his feeling reacts to the blues; he feels like expressing it. The same thing acts for a gospel song. Now you’re not singing blues; you’re singing gospel, good news song, singing about the Creator, but it’s the same feeling, a grasping of the heart . (6)

Dorsey visited churches both in and out of Chicago in order to spread his music and sell printed versions of his songs. As the ministers hindered him from performing his music during the service, he did so when the service ended. His attempts to sell the printed versions of his songs were unsuccessful until 1930 when Dorsey experienced a great success with his song “If You See My Savior” that was sung at the National Baptist Convention. There he sold 4000 copies of his songs.

Although the era of the 1930s was marked by the Great Depression, it was Dorsey’s most prolific period. The gospel songs that he and his counterparts wrote started to be called “dorseys” and he himself earned a title the “father of gospel music”.

In 1931, Dorsey together with Theodore Frye, an urban evangelist formed the first gospel chorus at the Ebenezer Baptist Church that sang compositions in gospel music style. As the fame of the choir spread quickly, they received invitations to sing both in and out of Chicago. Later Dorsey became a director of the choir at the Pilgrim Baptist Church, the second gospel choir that lasted until the 1970s.

In 1932 Dorsey, Frye and Sallie Martin founded the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses at the Pilgrim Baptist Church in

17 Chicago, an association promoting gospel that from the late 1930s until the middle 1950s sent out people to organise choruses. Dorsey was a president of this institution until 1983. The National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses still holds annual meetings and organises workshops.

In the same year Dorsey established the Dorsey House of Music, an independent publishing company that sold the music of black gospel composers.

Dorsey cooperated with several great female singers whom he helped in their career, including Mahalia Jackson, Sallie Martin, Roberta Martin, Clara Ward and Theodore Frye. Dorsey met Jackson for the first time in 1928, where she came from her native New Orleans. He recognised her talent and later became her coach because he enjoyed her emotive southern style of singing. They sang together in the Pilgrim Baptist Church and went on the tour in the late 1930s and during the 1940s.

Form the early 1930s until mid-1940s Dorsey toured with the singers he trained across the USA organising a series of gospel concerts “Evenings with Dorsey”. These events introduced Dorsey’s music to the public, because he not only performed his music, but also sold copies of his songs very cheaply.

2.4. 1940-1993

I found only scarce information about Dorsey’s life between the years 1940 and 1993. This lack of sources may be caused by overlooking Dorsey’s importance for gospel music in the second half of his life, because the new generation of musicians was on the rise.

In 1940 Dorsey married Kathryn Moseley with whom he had two children.

Dorsey and his co-workers in Chicago, mainly Sallie Martin and Mahalia Jackson had an impact on the development of gospel music after 1945 when the golden era of this genre started and continued until 1960. At 18 that time Dorsey devoted his time to composing, giving lectures and administrative duties connected with gospel music. Until the late 1970s he was occupied with the position of the music director at the Pilgrim Baptist Church and an assistant pastor.

From the late 1970s Dorsey’s importance started to be recognised again. He was given several awards: in 1979 he was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, the first Afro-American to achieve this recognition.

In 1983 he appeared in a documentary film about the history of gospel music called Say Amen, Somebody that was produced by George T. Nierenberg. Dorsey performed his “Precious Lord” in this film.

In 1992 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award for his contribution to the gospel music.

At the last decade of his life Dorsey suffered from Alzheimer’s disease whose complications forced him to retire. He died in Chicago on January 23, 1993.

Although it is known that Dorsey was a prolific composer, the sources differ in giving information about the exact number of his songs. According to Eillen Southern Dorsey “wrote nearly a thousand songs and published more than half of them”. (7) Harris, on the contrary, mentions that Dorsey published but not necessarily composed more than 400 songs. (8) According to Kip Lornell who published an article in Encyclopedia of Southern Culture while Dorsey was still alive, Dorsey composed roughly 500 songs. (9)

The reasons for these discrepancies may come from the fact that Dorsey composed a large number of the blues songs before 1932 but did not publish all of them. That is why it is difficult to figure out the exact number of his songs.

In his gospel compositions Dorsey followed the style of Charles A. Tindley enriched by blues melodies that he provided with the texts based on

19 his personal experience with God. His most famous gospel songs are “Take My Hand, Precious Lord” that Jackson sang at the funeral of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., “Peace in the Valley” that was popularised by Elvis Presley, “If You See My Savior” and many others. According to Reagon his songs “created a bridge of cultural sound in Chicago churches that struggled with the expanding presence of African Americans moving in from the South who found little to comfort them in the more staid liturgies of the churches of the urban congregations.” (10)

Notes

1. Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues. The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. p.18 2. ibid, p. 30 3. ibid, p. 52 4. ibid, p.149 5. ibid, p. 193 6. ibid, p.97 7. Southern, E. The Music of Black Americans. p. 453 8. Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues. The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. xix 9. Wilson, CH. Reagan. Encyclopedia of Southern Culture. p. 1054 10. Reagon, B. Johnson, Williams-Jones, P., Brevard, L. Pertillar. In: “Introduction”. Wade in the Water. Volume III. African American Gospel: The Pioneering Composers. Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40074, 1994.

3. Lyrics

Introduction

Dorsey is an American gospel composer whose work is not widely known in the Czech Republic. He composed several hundreds of gospel songs, but it was difficult to find their lyrics. I had to search for Dorsey’s lyrics in various sources including books, CDs and the Internet. I found in print only 16 songs from which 8 are mere excerpts. Some lyrics were in the CDs Wade in the Water and a few were included in the book by Michael W. Harris The Rise of Gospel Blues . I also listened CDs by Mahalia Jackson and then wrote 5 lyrics down. I also included several excerpts of songs that are in The Rise of Gospel Blues and searched on the Internet, which did not prove to be very helpful. The songs that I was working with are from the period of the early 1920s until the 1950s. Since I did not have all necessary information about when exactly some of the songs were composed, I ordered the songs alphabetically. I included the year when the songs were composed, registered, published or copyrighted for which I use the symbol©. (The date of the copyright in some cases significantly differed from the year when the songs were composed.)

When I’d given all my strength, and had no more to give, The doctor said I’d surely die, the Master let me live, Not for good that I had done, but mercy heard my plea, And lifted me from my despair and now He’s part of me.

Chorus: God is good to me, God is good to me, God is good to me, He is the same to you. God is good to me, his blessings I can see, And on Him I depend, And trust Him as a friend, When trouble starts to brew, he sees me safely through God is good to me, He’s the same to you.

21 He’ll know Me Over Yonder (excerpt) composed in 1930

There’s a Savior that will know me, For the work that I have done, When I reach that golden city….

Chorus: Yes He’ll know me, yes He’ll know me, When I cross the great divide…

How well do I remember how Jesus brought me through. I prayed and walked the floor a night or two. I said, “Lord, take and use me; that’s all I can do.” And I gave my heart to Jesus, how about you?

When shadows overtake me and trouble starts to brew, And when I’ve done the best that I can do, My best friends talk about me; sometime my kinfolks, too. But I take it all to Jesus, how about you?

When I press my dying pillow and I know my life is through, And there’s no more that earthly friends can do, When my sight begins to fail me and my fingernails turn blue, Then He’ll take me home to glory, how about you?

Over there I’ll meet my mother and see my father too, And we’ll talk about the things we used to do. And then someone will ask me, “How did you make it through?” I came through tribulations, how about you?

Chorus: How about you, how about you? I hope my Savior is your Savior, too. I said, “Lord, take and use me; that’s all that I can do.” And I gave my heart to Jesus, how about you?

Dear friends and kindreds have gone from this world, To dwell in that city so fair, Hard trials and troubles no longer they share, They’ll be disappointed if I don’t get there.

Chorus: If I don’t get there, if I don’t get there, They’ll be disappointed in despair, Dear father and mother, sweet sister and brother, They’ll be disappointed if I don’t get there

I was standing by the bedside of a neighbor Who was about to Jordan’s swelling tides And I asked if him if he would do me a favor Kindly take this message to the other side.

Chorus: If you see my Saviour, tell Him that you saw me When you saw me, I was on my way When you reach that golden city, think about me Oh, don’t forget to tell the Saviour what I said.

Though you have to make this journey on without me That’s a debt sooner or later must be paid You may see some old friend who may ask about me Tell them that I’m coming home someday.

If We Never Needed the Lord Before (full version) composed in 1943

Chorus: If we never needed the Lord before [We sure do need Him now] repeat 3times

We need Him in the morning We need Him at the night time We need Him at the noonday We need Him when the Sun is shining bright We need Him when we’re burdened We need Him when we’re sad We need Him when we’re happy To make our hearts feel well.

I’m Goin’ To Live the Life I Sing About in My Song (full version) composed in 1941

Chorus: I’m going to live the life I sing about in my song I’m going to stand for the right, always shun the wrong If I’m in a crowd, if I’m alone Walking down the street or in my home I’ve got to live the life I sing about in my song I’m goin’ to live the life I sing about in my song

Every day and everywhere On the busy thoroughfare Folks may watch me, some may spot me Say I’m foolish But I don’t care I can’t go to church and shout day Sunday Go out and get drunk and raise sand all day Monday I’ve got to live the life I sing about in my song

Give me a heart of love, teach me to pray I’m just a sinner saved by grace, I’ll serve Thee more and more, work day by day I’m just a sinner saved by grace, Take Thy spirit not from me, keep me free from pain, If I stumble, if I fall, let me rise again Now when my end is near, show me Thy face I’m just a sinner saved by grace.

It’s a Highway to Heaven (full version) composed in the 1940s Chorus: It’s a highway to Heaven, oh, none can walk up there But the pure in heart. It’s a highway to Heaven I am walking up the King’s highway. [repeat twice]

If you’re not walking, start while I’m talking Walking up the King’s highway. There’s joy in knowing, with Him I’m going As I’m walking up the King’s highway. [repeat chorus]

It Don’t Cost Very Much (full version) recorded in 1958

Smile when you’re happy Or smile when you’re sad Truly pleasing when mistreated Be forgiven when you may

Be forgiven Someone abuses you Over the good Lord looks for such Near out is there Smile on your face It don’t cost very much

Chorus: It don’t cost very much Or to please by a gentle touch To give a glass of water to a pilgrim in need as such You may not be an angel And you may not go to church But the good you do Will come on back to you And it don’t cost very much

When I am lonesome and my heart is feeling sad, He moves all my burdens and it makes my soul feel glad.

E’vry time you send a message, He will answer your pray’r, Keep the way clear before you, His blessings you will share

It was in my childhood, ‘twas many years ago With the spirit of the Saviour I was filled Oh, in an old revival meeting, the memories linger still Oh, in that little wooden church on the hill.

Oh, there were no fine-dressed people Talking about just plain folk everywhere With those plain old-fashioned ruffles, frocks and frills But the people, yes, would be shouting “Praise God,“ I can hear them still In that little wooden church on the hill.

Every Sunday morning, we had our family prayer In that old country wagon, yes, we would fill! Oh, we would start out on our journey Going over rocks and reels To that little wooden church on the hill

Oh, you could hear the people singing Sometimes a half a mile away Yes, and your heart would begin to beat Yes, a sudden thrill Yes, it would start your, your body moving And you just couldn’t, just couldn’t keep still In that little wooden church on the hill.

Oh, you could hear the old-fashioned preacher When he gave out that meter hymn Many charged with the Holy Ghost would fill Yes! And the people would be shouting “Praise God,“ I can hear them still, In that little wooden church…mmmm… church on the hill.

It’s my desire to do some good thing ev’ry day, It’s my desire to help the fallen by the way It’s my desire to bring back those who’ve gone astray It’s my desire to be like the Lord.

It’s my desire to bring some wand’rer to the fold It’s my desire to shelter someone from the cold It’s my desire to do His will as I am told It’s my desire to be like the Lord.

It’s my desire to teach some sinner how to pray It’s my desire to help some trav’ler find the way It’s my desire to lift up Jesus ev’ry day It’s my desire to be like the Lord.

It’s my desire to see His face when life is done It’s my desire to meet the Father and the Son It’s my desire to hear him say “My child well done,” It’s my desire to be like the Lord.

I am tired and weary, but I must go along Till the Lord comes to call me away. Where the morning is bright and the Lamb is the light, And the night, night is as fair as the day.

Chorus: There will be peace in the valley for me someday. There will be peace in the valley for me, oh, Lord I pray There’ll be no sadness, no sorrow, no trouble I’ll see There will be peace in the valley for me.

Well, the bear will be gentle, and wolf will be tame And the lion will lay down by the lamb And the beasts from the wild will be led by a lit’le child I’ll be changed, changed from this creature that I am.

There the flow'rs will be blooming, the grass will be green And the skies will be clear and serene The sun ever shines, giving one endless beam And the clouds there will ever be seen

No headaches or heartaches or misunderstands No confusion or trouble won't be No frowns to defile, just a big endless smile There'll be peace and contentment for me.

Precious Lord, take my hand, Lead me on, let me stand, I am tired, I am weak, I am worn; Through the storm, through the night, Lead me on to the light Take my hand, precious Lord, Lead me home.

When my way grows drear, Precious Lord, linger near, When my life is almost gone, Hear my cry, hear my call, Hold my hand lest I fall Take my hand, precious Lord, Lead me home.

When the darkness appears And the night draws near, And the day is past and gone, At the river I stand, Guide my feet, hold my hand. Take my hand, precious Lord, Lead me home.

Right now, Right now Let the Savior bless your soul right now. Don’t put off till tomorrow What you can do today, Let the Savior bless your soul right now.

Someday (excerpt) © 1929 Chorus: Someday somewhere in a city so fair, Far away from these burdens and cares There’ll be peace, there’ll be joy There’ll be riches I’ll share When I reach that city over there

Chorus: I am building my treasures in heaven, Where the trials of this life never come. I will find peace and joy there forever, When my life’s work on earth here is done.

Trusting in my Jesus Trusting in my Jesus Find my journey easy Just trusting in my Jesus

Night in my slumber I can hear his tender voice He speaks words of kindness and it makes my soul rejoice.

Walk Over God’s Heaven (full version) recorded in 1954

I’ve got a robe, you’ve got a robe And all God’s children got a robe, oh Lord And when we get to heaven We’re gonna put on our robe We’re gonna shout, yes, shout: All over God’s heaven, heaven

I’ve got shoes, you’ve got shoes And all God’s children got shoes, my Lord And when we get to heaven We’re gonna put on our shoes We’re gonna walk, yes, walk All over God’s heaven, heaven, heaven, heaven Everybody talkin’ about heaven ain’t going there Everybody talkin’ about heaven ain’t going there We’re gonna walk all over God’s heaven, heaven.

I’ve got a crown, and you’ve got a crown And all God’s children have a crown, my Lord And when we get to heaven We’re gonna put on our crown We’re gonna shout, shout: All over God’s heaven, heaven, heaven, heaven Everybody talkin’ about heaven ain’t going there Everybody talkin’ about heaven ain’t going there We’re gonna shout We’re gonna walk All over God’s heaven, heaven

What Could I Do (full version) recorded in 1947

Chorus: [: What could I do:] If it wasn’t for your word [: What could I say:] What could I see? How could I feel? What could I do Lord, if it wasn’t for the Lord

He’s my bread, he’s my water He’s my life My every being, Yes, and Jesus comforts me whatever, gets me free

He’s my rock, my mighty tower He’s my strength and my only love

He’s my mother, father He’s my sister, my brother too, oh, Lord Jesus supports me when I don’t know what to do When light goes out My power gets thin And I tremble back Just a fretting What could I do?

4. Analysis and comments to songs

4. 1. Introduction

In this chapter I analyze the lyrics from the previous chapter and focus on their interesting language features and themes. I also include the background information about the origin of some of the songs if this information was available to me. I decided to order the songs alphabetically, because the chronological order was too difficult to do due to a lack of information about the exact data when some of the songs were composed. They are mostly from a span of 30 years, the period between the 1920s and 1950s.

4. 2. Analysis “God Is Good to Me”

This song from 1943 opens with the refrain depicting the goodness of God manifested in Dorsey’s life. Although the main emphasis is on the self, “God is good to me”, the text addresses the listener: “He is the same to you”, which serves as an assurance. Dorsey speaks about the personal relationship with God who is presented here as a caring friend who helps him to overcome all hardships in life. In the stanza “When I’d given all my strength, and had no more to give, The doctor said I’d surely die, the Master let me live, Not for good that I had done, but mercy heard my plea, And lifted me from my despair and now He’s part of me” Dorsey refers to the time when he suffered from health problems and depression: I knew not where to turn. It was a sad thing to me; it was hard to bear. Those were desperate years. I wanted comfort my wife, yet I could only take it from her. My distress made my illness and mental confusion worse. Our money was soon gone. We had no income and no one to look to for help. I went from doctor to doctor; they could not find anything wrong with me. I spent two weeks in the Cook County hospital; they could not find anything wrong. Then I went to a private hospital in Gary, Indiana, and they did not do me any good….I…was a pitiful sight to look upon- weighing only 117 pounds and looking like a skeleton….[Nettie] took a job in a laundry where she spent her days working for one whole year to support us. When she came home in the evenings, she nursed me. All of her care was to no avail, as I did not seem to improve. The show had gotten

30 another piano player and had left on a tour of the Southwest. I was perplexed, sick, disturbed and a bundle of confusion. (1)

In the third line Dorsey used the reverse word order, the fronted object (“his blessings I can see”). He did so for the emphasis of the pharase “his blessings”. The type of verse is AABC and ABCDEB.

“He’ll Know Me Over Yonder”

The song was composed in 1930. It expresses Dorsey’s assurance of his salvation and the afterlife in heaven, for which he uses the archaism “yonder” in the title. The expression “When I cross the great divide” signifies the process of coming to heaven. The lyrics of “He’ll Know Me Over Yonder” correspond to the biblical passage from the Bible, Matthew10:32: “So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.” The excerpt is too short for analyzing the verse pattern.

“How About You?”

Dorsey registered “How About You” in 1941, but Harris states that he composed this song before the year 1932 when his wife and son died, roughly at the time when he wrote “If You See My Savior”. (2) It is known that at this point of Dorsey’s life he was recovering from the second nervous breakdown. In this song Dorsey turns his attention to the past events that made him decide to commit to God. He expresses this decision by the statement “I gave my heart to Jesus” that is followed by the rhetoric question “how about you?” Throughout the song he views God as the only constant help. He expresses this attitude towards God by the usage of tenses: the opening

31 stanza is in the past tense, the second depicts the present and the other two stanzas turn to the future. In the second stanza Dorsey speaks about problems as the inevitable part of life, he compares them to “shadows” that overtake him. He uses the archaism from American English “kinfolks” that refers to his family. In the third stanza Dorsey includes the theme of death (“When I press my dying pillow”) which is not the final point of the Christians, but a mere step to heaven, which Dorsey calls “home” (He’ll take me home to glory). The people are referred to as “the earthly friends”, a literary expression. The fourth stanza opens with “over there”, which symbolizes heaven where Dorsey will meet his family. The language of this stanza is enriched by the formal word “tribulations”. Dorsey closes all stanzas by the rhetoric question the “how about you?” which appears also at the beginning of the chorus. All the verses end with the vowel “u” that is combined with various consonants.

“If I Don’t Get There”

“If I Don’t Get There” is Dorsey’s first published gospel song that 1 appeared in the songbook Gospel Pearls . He composed it in the early 1920s after he overcame his first nervous breakdown. He was inspired by the stirring performance of Rev. W. M. Nix who sang the hymn “I Do, Don’t You?” composed by Edwin O. Excell in 1907 at the National Baptist Convention in 1921. Dorsey visited it because his uncle Joshua persuaded him. It was an important moment in Dorsey’s life, because at that time Dorsey was occupied by playing the blues and was religiously passive. However, when Dorsey heard rev. W. M. Nix, he decided to compose the sacred music:

My inner-being was thrilled. My soul was a deluge of divine rapture, my emotions were aroused, my heart was inspired to become a great singer and worker in the Kingdom of the Lord-and

1 The second edidtion of the songbook Gospel Pearls was published in 1921. 32 impress people just as this great singer did that Sunday morning. (3)

I include the lyrics of “I Do, Don’t You?” for the comparison with Dorsey’s “If I Don’t Get There”:

I know a great Savior I do, don’t you? And I live by his favour I do, don’t you? I want Him to bless me, to own and confess me, Completely possess me I do, don’t you? (4)

Dorsey commented on the language and the content of the song: The whole text was good news, good news for him, for he was expressing himself, what he did. Gospel is good news and you sing that; you’re singing good news to the people and they were susceptible. The thing that sold the song was the personal pronoun I; Nix made it [the song] popular at the Convention. (5)

The use of the pronoun ‘I’ makes the lyrics more personal, which is a typical feature of gospel music. Nix’s performance was based on improvisation; because he did not strictly keep the lyrics and embellished the melody:

These turns and trills, he [Nix] and a few others brought that into church music. Hymn singers, they couldn’t put this stuff in it. What he did, I wouldn’t call blues, but it had a touch of the blue note there. Now that’s the turn and the feeling that really made the gospel singers. (6)

Nix’s use of the pronoun ‘I’ and improvisation are important features that appear in gospel music. That is why we may conclude that Nix’s performance had a formative effect on Dorsey’s composing. The main topic of “If I Don’t Get There” is salvation, for which Dorsey uses the word “there”. It may refer both to salvation and heaven, which in the second verse Dorsey calls “city so fair”. In the stanza Dorsey uses an archaic expression “kindred” referring to the family and a literary expression “dwell”. The third line of the stanza has a reverse word order and contains the alliteration (“Hard trials and troubles no longer they share”). The phrase “if I don’t get there” is in the stanza as well as in the chorus. In chorus Dorsey made use of the inner rhyme (“Dear father and mother, sweet sister and brother”). This line also contains adjectives “dear”

33 and “sweet” that enrich the language. Another example of the adjective is in the stanza in the third line (“Hard trials”). The purpose of the using of adjectives is to express the emotions, which is a typical feature of gospel music. The verses rhyme according to the pattern ABCC and AABA.

“If You See My Savior” (“I Was Standing by the Bedside of a Neighbor”)

This song is Dorsey’s reaction on the death of his friend at the time when Dorsey was recovering from his second breakdown. “If You See My Savior” was registered in 1929, in 1930 it became widely popular at the National Baptist Convention and in March 1932 Dorsey recorded it together with “How About You”. Dorsey recalls the death of his friend as following:

I was very much saddened by his death and I couldn’t understand! I had been sick for over a year and this young man was sick for just one day and then he died. My mind went back to what the minister told me when my sister-in-law took me to church. His words thundered in my ears again: “Have more faith; the Lord has a great work for you to do; you will not die, you will attract attention of the world and grow strong.” So from that day I took on new faith, consecrated myself fully to God and grew stronger and stronger physically, mentally and spiritually. (7)

The song expresses the Christian hope of the life after the death. The first stanza opens by parting with a dying friend who is going to “Jordan’s swelling tides”, that signifies heaven. As the lyrics are based on personal experience, Dorsey uses the pronoun “I”. In the chorus Dorsey turns to the listener, who is the same person as the dying friend. “Golden city” is a metaphor for heaven which is the destination of his friend as well as Dorsey’s. In the second line of the second stanza Dorsey used the fronted adverbs (“That’s a debt sooner or later must be paid”). The stanza finishes with the phrase “I’m coming home” that refers to heaven. Alliteration appears in the first line of the chorus: “If you see my Savior, tell Him that you saw me” and in the second stanza: “You may see some old friend who may ask about me” that is also a parallel construction.

34 The lines create rhymes according to the pattern ABAC.

“If We Never Needed the Lord Before”

This song was recorded in 1943. It expresses the constant need of God’s presence. As the dominant features of the song are rhythm and repetitions of the phrases, the verses do not make use of rhymes. In comparison with the previous songs that focus on the “I” (the singer) and “you” (the listener), in this song Dorsey uses extensively the pronoun “we” to emphasise that everybody needs God. Since Dorsey wrote these lyrics in ‘free verse’, the lines do not create rhymes. ‘Free verse’ was influenced by the biblical line that is characteristic for the reoccurrence of the same phrases to make the lines more memorable, mostly in the psalms. (8) We may assume that Dorsey was directly influenced by the biblical line because he heard the psalms in the church.

“I’m Goin’ to Live the Life I Sing About in My Song”

In this balladic song Dorsey openly expresses his decision to live his life in accordance with his faith in all circumstances. He refuses to be hypocritical: “I can’t go to church and shout all day Sunday, Go out and get drunk and raise sand all day Monday”. In this song Dorsey makes use of parallel constructions appearing in the first two lines of the chorus “I’m going to live the life I sing about in my song I’m going to stand for the right, always shun the wrong”, in the third line “If I’m in a crowd, if I’m alone”, and in the third line of the stanza: “Folks may watch me, some may spot me”. The lines create rhymes in the chorus in the pattern AABCD that is extended in the stanza as AABCDEE.

35 “I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace”

This song has a form of a prayer in which Dorsey asks for the loving heart and confesses that he is “just a sinner saved by grace” which repeats twice within the stanza. The author promises to serve God “day by day” and asks for God’s presence in his life. The phrase “I’m just a sinner saved by grace” occurs in the stanza three times, which is not typical for Dorsey, because he usually repeats the phrase only at the end of the refrain or the stanza. Dorsey uses archaic pronouns used in religious contexts “Thee” and “Thy” referring to God. The language is enriched by the alliteration appearing in the repeating verse “I’m just a sinner saved by grace” and the repetition in the third line (“more and more, work day by day”). The fifth line where Dorsey asks God “Take Thy spirit not from me” has the reversed word order and is similar to the verse from The Bible, Psalm 51:11: “take not thy holy Spirit from me”. If we look at the context of this biblical verse, we can see that Dorsey may have been directly influenced by this psalm: Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence, and take not thy holy Spirit from me. (Psalm 51: 11-12)

In the sixth line there are parallel constructions “If I stumble, if I fall”. The purpose of using both the parallel constructions and repetitions of phrases within this song is to emphasise the meaning and ifluence the emotions of the listeners. These phrases are typical for oral literature. The lines create rhymes according to the pattern ABABCCBB.

“It’s a Highway to Heaven”

This popular rhythmical song from the 1940s serves as an invitation for non-believers to live with God. While the chorus is the personal testimony, the stanza presumes a listener that is invited to follow God on

36 “the King’s highway”. This phrase appears repeatedly both in chorus and stanza. Dorsey uses the expression “the pure in heart” that occurs in the Bible, Mathew 5:8: "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." As the rhythm is the most dominant feature supporting the unity of the song, the verses create rhymes only in the stanza that contains also two examples of the inner rhymes (“If you’re not walking, start while I’m talking” and “There’s joy in knowing, with Him I’m going”). Both examples follow the same rhythmical and melodic pattern.

“It Don’t Cost Very Much”

This optimistic song deals with two aspects of Christianity: forgiveness and practical help to those who need it. In the third line of the first stanza Dorsey uses irony “Truly pleasing when mistreated” emphasizing that forgiving can be a difficult process. The grammatical deviation appearing in the title and within the song “it don’t cost” substitutes “it doesn’t cost”. This form is commonly used in African American English, but in general English it is not considered grammatically correct. As Lisa J. Green explains, “Speakers of mainstream English identify the AAE [African American English] uses as being different from general English, and they label them as ungrammatical use of English that make African Americans Sound unintelligent.” (9) The verses rhyme in the second part of the stanza according to the pattern ABCDC, and in the chorus according to AAABACCB.

“Jesus, My Comforter “

In this song Dorsey presents God as the caring and faithful companion that comforts and helps him in difficulties. In the last line Dorsey uses the reversed word order, so the last word “share” creates a rhyme with the word “pray’r”. Dorsey uses the word “lonesome” that is preferably used in American English (in British English the expression “lonely” is used). The lines create rhymes according to the pattern AA and ABCA.

37 “Little Wooden Church on a Hill”

In these lyrics Dorsey gives us a sentimental account of his childhood that was closely connected with attending the church. The song opens with Dorsey’s personal experience with God: “It was in my childhood, ‘twas many years ago With the spirit of the Saviour I was filled”

As Reagon states, “The lyrics, a nostalgic remembrance of old-time revival meetings, provide the perfect vehicle for his personal testimony of conversion.” (10) In the following stanzas Dorsey focuses on the spiritual life and singing of the blacks. His language is descriptive due to the high number of adjectives: “old revival meeting”, “little wooden church”, “fine-dressed people”, “plain folk”, “old-fashioned ruffles”, “Sunday morning”, “family prayer”, “old country wagon”, “old-fashioned preacher”, “meter hymn”, “Holy ghost”. Dorsey uses enriching language devices such as alliteration (“the spirit of the Savior”, “frocks and frills”, “rocks and reels”) and archaisms “‘twas” and “frills”. Formally, the song consists of five separate stanzas differing in the number of lines mostly in the pattern ABCD that is followed by lines creating random verse patterns. Each stanza closes with the final phrase “in that little wooden church on the hill” that always creates a rhyme with another line in the stanza.

“My Desire” This meditative song expresses Dorsey’s wish to live a good, unselfish life that will influence the others and bring glory to God. Dorsey uses common religious language without any archaic expressions. He addresses God as “the Father” and “the Son” in the fourth stanza. The structure of the song is based on the usage of the parallel construction starting with “It’s my desire” that appears in each line within the whole song.

38 There are several examples of alliteration within the song. In the first stanza there is “It’s my desire to bring back those who’ve gone astray” and “It’s my desire to be like the Lord” repeating at the end of each stanza. In the third stanza there is “It’s my desire to teach some sinner how to pray” and in the final stanza there is “It’s my desire to hear him say “My child well done””. The lines create rhymes according to the pattern AAAA in each stanza.

“Peace in the Valley”

Dorsey dedicated “Peace in the Valley” to Mahalia Jackson. However, she never sang it. The stimulus for writing this famous song was Dorsey’s journey across the USA before the WW2. As Dorsey recalls this event:

It was just before Hitler sent his war chariots into Western Europe in the late thirties. I was on a train going through southern Indiana on the way to Cincinnati, and the country seemed to be upset about this coming war that he was about to bring on. I passed through a valley on the train. Horses, cows, sheep, they were all grazing and together in this little valley. Kind of a little brook was running through the valley, and up the hill there I could see where the water was falling from. Everything seemed so peaceful with all the animals down there grazing together. It made me wonder what’s the matter with humanity? What’s the matter with mankind? Why couldn’t man live in peace like the animals down there? So out of that came ‘Peace In The Valley’. (11)

In this song Dorsey depicts peace in heaven that he was looking forward to. In the first stanza he states that he is “tired and weary”. The expression “weary” is used in literary context and provides here the repetition of the meaning of the word “tired”. The first stanza contains two examples of alliteration: “till the Lord comes to call me away”, “the Lamb is the light”, one example of simile “night is as fair as the day” and one example of repetition “night, night”. The line in the chorus “There’ll be no sadness, no sorrow, no trouble” contains the alliteration and parallel constructions. The other stanzas contain further examples of alliteration and repetition : In the second and third line of the second stanza there is “the lion

39 will lay down by the lamb” and “the beasts from the wild will be led by a lit’le child”, in the third stanza there is “the grass will be green“, “the skies will be clear and serene“and “The sun ever shines“. The fourth stanza contains one example of alliteration: “No headaches or heartaches“. In the first, second and fourth stanza in the third line there are examples of the inner rhyme: “Where the morning is bright and the Lamb is the light”, “And the beasts from the wild will be led by a lit’le child” and “No frowns to defile, just a big endless smile“. The second stanza freely paraphrases the biblical passage from Isaiah 11, 6-10 speaking about the life in harmony in heaven: “The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall feed; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The sucking child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder’s den. They shall not hurt of destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” In the last stanza Dorsey uses the informal expression “headache” and the formal expression “defile”. The lines create rhymes according to the pattern ABCB, AABB, ABCD and AABA. “Peace in the Valley” is one of the most recognised Dorsey’s songs because of its variety of language means that include repetitions, alliterations, parallel constructions and inner rhymes. These enriching elements making the song impressive may have caused Elvis Presley to include “Peace in the Valley” in his repertoire, making it subsequently famous.

“Precious Lord”

“Precious Lord”, a widely known gospel song that was translated into more than 50 languages, was composed in 1932 as a reaction on the death of Dorsey’s wife and son. As Dorsey recalls:

40 Back in 1932 I was 32 years old and a fairly new husband. My wife, Nettie, and I were living in a little apartment on Chicago's Southside. One hot August afternoon I had to go to St. Louis, where I was to be the soloist at a large revival meeting. I didn't want to go. Nettie was in the last month of pregnancy with our first child. But a lot of people were expecting me in St. Louis. I kissed Nettie good-bye, clattered downstairs to our Model A, and in a fresh Lake Michigan breeze, chugged out of Chicago on Route 66.

However, outside the city, I discovered that in my anxiety at leaving, I had forgotten my music case. I wheeled around and headed back. I found Nettie sleeping peacefully. I hesitated by her bed; something was strongly telling me to stay. But eager to get on my way, and not wanting to disturb Nettie, I shrugged off the feeling and quietly slipped out of the room with my music.

The next night, in the steaming St. Louis heat, the crowd called on me to sing again and again. When I finally sat down, a messenger boy ran up with a Western Union telegram. I ripped open the envelope. Pasted on the yellow sheet were the words: YOUR WIFE JUST DIED. People were happily singing and clapping around me, but I could hardly keep from crying out. I rushed to a phone and called home. All I could hear on the other end was "Nettie is dead. Nettie is dead."

When I got back, I learned that Nettie had given birth to a boy. I swung between grief and joy. Yet that night, the baby died. I buried Nettie and our little boy together, in the same casket. Then I fell apart. For days I closeted myself. I felt that God had done me an injustice... I didn't want to serve Him any more or write gospel songs. I just wanted to go back to that jazz world I once knew so well.

But then, as I hunched alone in that dark apartment those first sad days, I thought back to the afternoon I went to St. Louis. Something kept telling me to stay with Nettie. Was that something God? Oh, if I had paid more attention to Him that day, I would have stayed and been with Nettie when she died. From that moment on I vowed to listen more closely to Him.

But still I was lost in grief. Everyone was kind to me, especially a friend, Professor Frye, who seemed to know what I needed. On the following Saturday evening he took me up to Malone's Poro College, a neighborhood music school. It was quiet; the late evening sun crept through the curtained windows.

I sat down at the piano, and my hands began to browse over the keys. Something happened to me then. I felt at peace. I felt as though I could reach out and touch God. I found myself playing a melody. The notes fell one by one into my head. They just seemed to fall into place:

Precious Lord, take my hand, lead me on, let me stand! I am tired, I am weak, I am worn, Through the storm, through the night lead me on to the light, Take my hand, precious Lord, Lead me home.

The Lord gave me these words and melody. He also healed my spirit. I learned that when we are in our deepest grief, when we feel farthest from God, this is when He is closest, and when we are most open to His restoring power. And so I go on living for God willingly and 41 joyfully, until that day comes when He will take me and gently lead me home. (12)

It is known that Dorsey’s inspiration for melody of his “Precious Lord” was a hymn by George N. Allen “Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone?” composed in 1852. The lyrics of “Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone?” were written by Thomas Shepherd (1665-1739):

Must Jesus bear the cross alone, and all the world go free? No: there’s a cross for ev’ry one, And there’s a cross for me, (13)

Dorsey further remembers the heaviness of the moment: “…take my hand.” I needed somebody there to hold me up. I just couldn’t. [That’s] why I went down there to get away from everybody, just [Frye] and I.” (14) In The Rise of Gospel Blues Harris cites other story concerning the beginning phrase of the song: I played [it] for [Frye]: “What’d you think about it” “It’s all right, sounds good.” I went over it again. He said, “No man, no. Call Him ‘precious Lord.’ Don’t call him ‘blessed Lord’; call him ‘precious Lord.’” “Why, why? He is a blessing.” “Call Him ‘precious Lord.’” And that thing like something hit me and went over me, see. I said, “That does sound better! That’s it.” And that hooked right in there. The words dropped just like drops of water…from the crevice of a rock. [I sat] right there and I wrote out half of the song…part of the song right then and there. I finished the other in the next day or two. (15)

“Precious Lord” is written in a form of prayer. It is divided into three stanzas that are closed with the repeating lines “Take my hand, precious Lord, Lead me home” serving as a refrain. Dorsey opens it with the salutation, and then asks God for his guidance and help. The word “home” in the refrain symbolises heaven, which is his goal. The structure of the text is varied by the repeating of the first line in the first stanza (“Precious Lord, take my hand”) that appears also at the end of each stanza, where Dorsey reversed the order of the words. Graeme M. Boone states in The Cambridge Companion to Blues and Gospel Music that “the word-reversal of this refrain line in relation to the poem’s opening line

42 (“Precious Lord, take my hand”) creates a lovely sense of recall and earnestness, as do further recurrences of “precious Lord” in later stanzas.” (16) In the first stanza the lyrics are enriched by the repetition of words for the emphasis: “I am tired, I am weak, I am worn”, “through the storm, through the night” and “lead me on” in the second and fifth line. In the second stanza the repetition appears in the fourth line: “hear my cry, hear my call”. There are several examples of alliteration in the first stanza: “lead me on, let me stand” and “lead me on to the light”. In the second stanza there are other examples: “when my way grows drear”, and “hold my hand” that also appears in the third stanza together with “and the night draws near”. In the second stanza the literary words “drear” and “lest” appear enriching the lexical variety. In the third stanza Dorsey used the repetition of the meaning: “and the day is past and gone”. He probably borrowed it from an older source, an evening hymn “The day is past and gone” from 1792 by John Leland, (1754-1841) a Baptist minister in Virginia and Massachusetts: (17)

The day is past and gone, The evening shades appear; O may we all remember well The night of death draws near.

We lay our garments by, Upon our beds to rest; So death shall soon disrobe us all Of what is here possessed.

Lord, keep us safe this night, Secure from all our fears; May angels guard us while we sleep, Till morning light appears. (18)

The lines of all stanzas of Dorsey’s “Precious Lord” create rhymes according to the pattern AABCCDE. The language of the song is characteristic for its sincerity and sonorority. It was perhaps these two aspects that impressed the listeners and contributed to the fame of this gospel song that is still sung.

43 “Right now”

In this excerpt Dorsey emphasises the benefits of salvation. He speaks in the second person, which means that he presumes a listener to be present. The chorus contains examples of repetition: “Right now, Right now” in the first line. The second line “Let the Savior bless your soul right now” contains alliteration and corresponds to the last line. The lines create rhymes according to the pattern AABCA due to the repeating word “now”.

“Someday”

In “Someday” Dorsey dreams of the perfect peace in heaven. He wrote this song after he overcame the loss of his wife and son, so its atmosphere is more relaxed. In The Rise of Gospel Blues Dorsey recalls the day when he was composing it: It was a beautiful morning as I sat by the open window writing the words to my song “Someday Somewhere.” The new spring breeze seemed to speak and sing with such beauty of expression and the sun shown with such unusual brightness, that I could almost see the buds bursting and the twigs growing on the trees. (19)

The first line “Someday somewhere in a city so fair” contains the alliteration. Dorsey calls heaven in this excerpt “a city so fair” and “that city over there”. The expression “a city so fair” has the reverse word order that contributes to the richness of Dorsey’s poetic language. The word “fair” is today widely used, but in Dorsey’s song it means “pleasant”. Here it is an archaism used in poetic language. In the phrase “burdens and cares” Dorsey makes use of the repetition of the meaning. The word “cares” is another example of the poetic word in this excerpt. Dorsey uses also parallelisms: “There’ll be peace, there’ll be joy There’ll be riches”. The lines create rhymes according to the pattern ABCAA.

44 “Treasures in Heaven”

In this song Dorsey again depicts heaven as the place where he can expect life in perfect peace and harmony “forever”. Dorsey says that he is “building my treasures in heaven”, which corresponds to the passage from the Bible, Matthew, 6:19-21:

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasure in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

The lines create rhymes according to the pattern ABCB.

“Trusting in my Jesus”

In this song Dorsey expresses his trust in Jesus whose character he described by the adjectives “kind” and “tender” that evoke positive and uplifting feelings. Dorsey enriched the language of these lyrics by the poetic expression “slumber”. In the first part the lines create rhymes due to the repetition of the word “Jesus” according to the pattern AABA and in the second according to AA.

“Walk Over God’s Heaven”

The inspiration for Dorsey’s “Walk Over God’s Heaven” was the spiritual “I Got Shoes” whose text is below. The spiritual “I Got Shoes” served originally as the protest against the slavery and its hierarchy. To understand the lyrics, it is necessary to consider that the slaves did not own shoes, robes, crowns and even harps that are mentioned in the lyrics of the spiritual. However, Dorsey’s version includes only “a robe”, “shoes” and “a crown”. As the lyrics of Dorsey’s version are very similar to the spiritual, it is probable that he only arranged the music, adapted some lines of the lyrics and omitted some stanzas. This song is a claim that the slaves, calling themselves “God’s children”, have a right to go to heaven and be free from the slavery. The

45 lyrics speak also about “ Everybody talkin’ ‘bout Heav’n ain’t goin’ there“, which concerns the slave owner who is not going to heaven because of his hypocritical attitude towards the slaves: he goes to the church, but he treats the slaves with cruelty. (20)

I got shoes I got shoes, you got shoes, All God’s children got shoes. When I get to Heav’n gonna put on my shoes, Gonna walk all over God’s Heav’n, Heav’n, Heav’n, Everybody talkin’ ‘bout Heav’n ain’t goin’ there, Heav’n, Heav’n, Heav’n. Gonna walk all over God’s Heav’n.

I got a robe . . . Gonna shout all over God’s Heav’n.

I got a harp . . . Gonna play all over God’s Heav’n.

I got wings . . . Gonna fly all over God’s Heav’n.

Etc. (21)

The song contains the auxiliary verbs “gonna” and the negative form “ain’t” that are widely used in African American English. In the first stanza of Dorsey’s gospel song the lines create rhymes due to the repetition of the words according to the pattern ABCADC. This pattern is extended in the following stanzas.

“What Could I Do” In this song Dorsey confesses that it is impossible to live without God. He asks himself questions about his existence without God and points out who and what God is for him. He uses a number of metaphors to describe this: “bread”, “water”, “life”, “my every being” in the first stanza, “rock”, “mighty tower”, “strength”, “only love” in the second and “mother”, “father”, “sister” and “brother” in the third. The lines of these lyrics create rhymes only occasionally.

4. 3. Conclusion

The structure of Dorsey’s songs The majority of Dorsey’s songs consist of the stanza and the chorus. Except for this type of song he also wrote songs with refrains, reoccurring phrases that close the stanza (e.g. “Little Wooden Church on the Hill”, “It’s My Desire” and “Precious Lord”). As Harris states, the refrain of Dorsey’s compositions is the melodic peak of the song that “uses melodic drama to reinforce the homiletic climax of the text.” (22) Dorsey used this compositional technique because it corresponded to the rhetorical practice of the black preachers who usually emphasised the final part of their sermons. Harris states that Dorsey’s compositions “do follow the rhetorical structure of black preaching, that is, the ending must burst forth with oratorical flourish.” (23) The titles of the songs are usually the most frequent phrases appearing in the choruses, refrains, but also in the verses. The number of lines in the stanzas and choruses depend on the type of the song and the type of the verse pattern. If the lines create rhymes, there are usually four lines per stanza or chorus. It was difficult to trace the prevailing verse patterns in the lyrics, because most songs create original verse patterns. I divided them into five groups according to similarities: a. songs whose lines mostly do not create rhymes (their lyrics resemble ‘free verse’ based on the reoccurrence of certain phrases): “If We Never Needed the Lord Before”, “It’s a Highway to Heaven”, “Walk over God’s Heaven” and “What Could I Do” b. songs whose lines create irregular rhyme patterns: “It Don’t Cost very Much” c. songs whose lines follow at least partly a certain verse pattern: “God Is Good to Me”, “If You See My Savior”, “I’m Goin’ to Live the Life I Sing About in My Song”, “I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace”, “Little Wooden Church on a Hill”, “Peace in the Valley”, “Precious Lord”

47 d. songs with the same vowel at the end of each line: “How About You?” e. excerpts that are too short for analysing the verse pattern: “He’ll Know Me Over Yonder”, “Right Now”, “Someday”, “Treasures in Heaven”, “Trusting in my Jesus”

Lexicons

Dorsey used Standard English that he occasionally enriched by: a. archaisms and literary expressions (“He’ll Know Me over Yonder”, “How About You?”, “If I Don’t Get There”, and “I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace”, “Little Wooden Church on a Hill”, “Precious Lord”, “Trusting in My Jesus”) b. figurative expressions such as metaphors (“If You See My Savior”, “Peace in the Valley”, “What Could I Do?”) and irony (“It Don’t Cost Very Much) c. expressions from African American English (“It Don’t Cost very Much”, “Walk Over God’s Heaven”) d. a range of adjectives (“If I Don’t Get There”, “Little Wooden Church on the Hill”, Trusting in My Jesus”) The use of adjectives has a positive effect on the emotions of the listeners and creates uplifting atmosphere.

Dorsey used a variety of synonyms for addressing God, such as a. “He” or “Him”( “God Is Good to Me”, “He’ll Know Me over Yonder”, “If You See My Savior”, “If We Never Needed the Lord Before”) b. “Holy Ghost” (“Little Wooden Church on a Hill”) c. “Jesus” (“How About You?”, “Trusting in My Jesus”) d. “King” (“It’s a Highway to Heaven”) e. “Lord” (“How About You?”, “If We Never Needed the Lord Before”, “Peace in the Valley”, “Precious Lord”, “Walk over God’s Heaven” and “What Could I Do”)

48 f. “Master” (“God Is Good to Me”) g. “Savior” (“He’ll Know Me over Yonder”, “How About You?”, “If You See My Savior”, “Little Wooden Church on a Hill”, “Right Now”) h. “Thee” (“I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace”) i. “the Father” (“It’s My Desire) j. “the Son” (“It’s My Desire)

He used a wide range of synonyms for “heaven”, including a. “over yonder” (in “He’ll Know Me Over Yonder”) b. “home” (in “How About You?”, “If You See My Savior”, “Precious Lord”) c. “over there” (in “How About You?”) d. “there” (in “If I Don’t Get There”, “Walk Over God’s Heaven”) e. “Jordan’s swelling tides” (in “If You See My Savior”) f. “Golden city” (in “If You See My Savior”) g. “Valley” ( in “Peace in the Valley”) h. “a city so fair” (in “Someday”) i. “that city over there” (in “Someday”)

Syntax Dorsey’s lyrics occasionally contain contracted forms of verbs that are commonly used in African American English, such as “gonna”, “ain’t” (“Walk over God’s Heaven”) and the grammatical deviation “it don’t” (in “It Don’t cost Very Much”). The reversed word order appears in five of Dorsey’s lyrics that I worked with: “God Is Good to Me”, “If I Don’t Get There”, “If You See My Savior”, “I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace”, “Jesus, My Comforter” and “Little Wooden Church on a Hill”. The parallel constructions and repetitions appear in “If You See My Savior”, “If We Never Needed the Lord Before”, “I’m Going’ to Live the Life I Sing about in My Song”, “I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace”, “My Desire”, “Peace in the Valley”, “Precious Lord”, “Right Now” and “Walk Over God’s Heaven”.

49 The reversed word order as well as parallel constructions is used for expressing the emphasis and intensity of meaning. The rhetorical questions are only in the lyrics of “How About You?”. Their aim is to attract the attention of the listeners.

Phonology

There are a high number of contractions in Dorsey’s lyrics, mainly contracted forms of auxiliaries and nouns. The use of contractions is common in songs generally because of their influence on the rhythm. They are also widely used in African American English. Alliteration and inner rhyme are enriching aspects of Dorsey’s songs. Alliteration appears in “If I Don’t Get There”, “If You See My Savior”, “I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace”, “It’s My Desire”, “Little Wooden Church on a Hill”, “Peace in the Valley”, “Precious Lord”, “Right Now” and “Someday”. Inner rhyme occurs in “If I Don’t Get There”, “I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace” and “It’s a highway to Heaven”.

The influence of the Bible versus personal experience

The vast majority of Dorsey’s songs contain the pronoun “I”, which confirms that his lyrics are based on his personal experience and relationship with God. Some of Dorsey’s lyrics were inspired by the passages from the Bible, both the Old and the New Testament. The direct influence of the Bible on Dorsey’s lyrics is apparent in songs “I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace” and “Peace in the Valley” because in these lyrics Dorsey paraphrases the biblical passages and combines them with his thoughts. Other songs reflect the biblical truths that Dorsey believed such as salvation and eternal life in heaven (“He’ll Know Me over Yonder”, “It’s a Highway to Heaven”, “Treasures in Heaven”) and also principles that he followed (“I’m goin’ to Live the Life I Sing About in My Song”, “It Don’t Cost Very Much”). Some songs are written in the

50 form of prayer (“I’m Just a Sinner Saved by Grace” and “Precious Lord”) or confession (“What Could I Do”). All songs I analyzed refer to aspects of Christian belief. Dorsey, however, was strongly persuaded that personal experience was an important stimulus for composing his songs:

Something’s got to happen. That is the way many of my songs come. I either saw something or I heard something or somebody did something; something happened somewhere, had to happen to get the songs: gospel song or blues, anything else. Something got to happen before you get the idea. You can’t get up, try to write anything, I don’t care how many schools that a man has been to or a woman has been to, how many universities, or what not. You got to have enough in the thing that you are going to deliver to the public to grasp the thought, the heart, the feeling and the sense of the public that you are serving. Even the newspaper man has to see something to give a good report [in] the newspaper. (24)

Themes and situations appearing in Dorsey’s songs The themes and situations in Dorsey’s songs sometimes overlap. Mostly they speak about salvation and conversion (in “He’ll Know Me over Yonder”, “How About You?”, “If I Don’t Get There”, “If You See My Savior” “It’s a Highway to Heaven” “Right Now”). Dorsey’s songs also often describe heaven and afterlife (in “He’ll Know Me over Yonder”, “How About You?”, “If I Don’t Get There”, If You See My Savior”, “Peace in the Valley”, “Someday”, “Treasure in Heaven” and “Walk over God’s Heaven”).

The rest of the lyrics I worked with depicted or mentioned a. Dorsey’s memories on his childhood (“Little Wooden Church on a Hill”), b. God’s caring character and dependency on him (“God Is Good to Me”, “If We Never Needed the Lord Before”, “Jesus, My Comforter”, “What Could I Do”), c. purposeful life (“I’m Goin’ to Live the Life I Sing About in My Song” and “It Don’t Cost Very Much”) d. peace (“Peace in the Valley”) e. trust (“Trusting in My Jesus”)

51 f. asking for guidance and help (“Precious Lord”) g. desire (“It’s My Desire”) h. death (“How About You?”, “If You See My Savior”)

Emotionalism in Dorsey’s songs and its impact on the listeners Dorsey’s music is characteristic for its expressiveness that is apparent not only in his musical style based on the blues, but also in his lyrics. It is possible to trace a range of feelings in them: a. deepest sorrow ( “Precious Lord”), b. nostalgia (“Little Wooden Church on a Hill”) c. hope (“God Is Good to Me”, “He’ll Know Me Over Yonder”, “How About You?”, “If We Never Needed the Lord Before”, “Peace in the Valley”, “Someday”, “What Could I Do”) d. joy (“It’s a Highway to Heaven”, “Walk Over God’s Heaven”) Except for musical part that always interplays with the lyrics, adjectives and parallel constructions are other ways how Dorsey intensified the sentiment in his songs. “Precious Lord” is an outstanding example of the song that still moves the listeners today. Dorsey recalls its first performance and the reaction of the public: “The folk went wild. They went wild. They broke up the church. Folk were shouting everywhere…I don’t know what they were shouting for. I was the one who should be shouting…or sorry.” (25) Horace Clarence Boyer summarized Dorsey’s talent to uplift the listeners as following: “Dorsey was particularly skilled in writing songs that not only captured the hopes, fears and aspirations of the poor and disenfranchised African American but spoke to all people.” (26)

The time aspect

The songs I analysed were composed or recorded between the 1920s until the 1950s. The majority of them are from the 1930s, which was an important era for establishing gospel music. Kip Lornell in Encyclopedia of

52 Southern Culture states that Dorsey’s songs “made up the first wave of modern gospel music during the depression”. (27) I did not manage to find out when the songs recorded in the 1950s (“It Don’t Cost Very Much“and Walk Over God’s Heaven“) were composed. As for “It Don’t Cost Very Much, we may assume that Dorsey composed it earlier than in the 1950s. “Walk. Over God’s Heaven” is a borrowing from the spiritual “I Got Shoes”. I did not find any songs from the later period of Dorsey’s life. This may have been caused by either a lack of the sources or the decrease of Dorsey’s popularity as a songwriter in the later period due to the coming of the new generation of gospel songwriters influenced by new genres of pop music. Dorsey’s first gospel song “If I Don’t Get There” was written under the influence of rev. Nix whose performance impressed Dorsey to such an extent that he decided to compose sacred songs. His “If I Don’t Get There” and the following compositions feature the aspects of Nix’s performance: the use of the pronoun “I” emphasizing the personal attitude, emotionalism and improvisation. According to Harris, the majority of Dorsey’s songs written before 1932 were not as appealing to the public as those that he composed at the time of his crisis. The reason for this attitude Harris explains as following: “Dorsey’s gospel blues were most genuine, as were his secular downhome blues, when spawned by personal despair and written to make a declaration to listeners who could empathize with the desolation that such a loss of hope brings.” (28) Dorsey’s famous “Precious Lord” from 1932 was a turning point in his composing style. In comparison with his former songs in which he always ran away from his pains to find refuge in hope, in “Precious Lord” he fully expressed his sorrow over the loss of his wife and son. This corresponds to the basis of the blues in which feelings are expressed openly.

Notes

1. Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. p.95 2. ibid, p. 168 3. ibid, p. 68 4. ibid, p. 71 5. ibid, p. 69 6. ibid, p. 70 7. ibid, p. 96 8. Wainwright, Jeffrey. Poetry: the basics. pp. 86-87 9. Green, J. Lisa. African American English. A Lingvistic Introduction. p. 34) 10. Reagon, B. Johnson. In: ‘Introduction’. Wade in the Water III. 11. Horstman, Dorothy. Sing Your Heart Out, Country Boy. pp.57-58 12. Mikkelson, Barbara, and P. David. “Precious Lord”. Urban Legends Reference Pages. 14.08.2005. 04.04.2006. 13. Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. p. 236 14. ibid, p. 237 15. ibid, pp.237-238 16. Moore, Alan. The Cambridge Companion to Blues and Gospel Music. p. 82 17. “John Leland”. 29.03. 2006 18. “The Day Is Past And Gone”. 29.03.2006 19. Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. p. 221 20. “Spirituals as expressions of protest”. Sweet Chariot: the story of the spirituals. A multidisciplinary online curriculum by The Spirituals Project at the University of Denver ©2004 Center for Teaching & Learning. 05.04.2006 21. ibid 22. Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. p. 232 23. ibid, p. 233 24. ibid, p. 100 25. ibid, p. 241 26. Boyer, C. Horace. The Golden Age of Gospel. p. 61 27. Wilson, CH. Reagan. Encyclopedia of Southern Culture. p. 1012 28. Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. p.225

5. Dorsey’s contributions to the development of gospel music

5.1. Dorsey’s influence on gospel music

Dorsey’s formative influence on gospel music started in the late 1920s when he tried to promote his solo gospel songs. In the 1930s, the period known as the Great Depression, gospel music developed as a distinctive genre of which Thomas A. Dorsey was the “father”. After the tragic loss of his wife and son he devoted his time entirely to promoting gospel music that included composing, lecturing and organizing gospel events and choruses in the Pilgrim Baptist church in Chicago as well as across the USA. Don Cusic in The Cambridge Companion to Blues and Gospel Music defines Dorsey’s significant role in the black gospel music as following: “it was Dorsey and his songs that unified the movement which became black gospel, giving a definition to the music that has survived through the twentieth century.” (1) Although Eileen Southern in The Music of Black Americans claims that Dorsey “is credited with being the first person to use the term”gospel song” to apply to the church songs of the black folk” (2), Dorsey in the interview with Harris confided: Now, I didn’t originate the word gospel, I want you to know. I didn’t originate that word. Gospel, the word “gospel” has been used down through the ages. But I took the word, took a group of singers, or one singer, as far as that’s concerned, and I embellished [gospel], made it beautiful, more noticeable, more susceptible with runs and thrills and moans in it. That’s really one of the reasons my folk called it gospel music. (3)

Grove Music Online provides an explanation of these discrepancies: „Although earlier uses of the terms “gospel hymn” and “gospel song” can be found, their use in referring to this body of song can be traced to P. P. Bliss’s Gospel Songs (1874) and Gospel Hymns and Sacred Songs (1875), by Bliss and Ira D. Sankey.” (4) Harrris further explains that the term “gospel” was widely used among the blacks in connection with music signifying “the practice of conveying the gospel through song”. This interpretation of the term appeared in the Baptist songbook Gospel Pearls in 1921 . (5)

55 To conclude, Dorsey shifted the meaning of the word “gospel”. While the term “gospel” previously referred to sacred songs generally, it later signified the new style of music combining the blues and sacred texts that Dorsey created.

5.2. Dorsey as a gospel song writer

By 1920 Dorsey developed his compositional skills and achieved a reputation as a blues pianist. Since the blues was played in brothels and clubs, the conservative members of the Baptist church considered it the devil’s music and opposed to its performance in the Christian service. Dorsey’s attitude towards the blues stayed neutral after his conversion. In comparison with the conservative members of the church, he considered the blues as a mere way to express feelings. Moreover, he was persuaded that he succeded in writing gospel songs due to the knowledge of the blues:

[Blues] is a digging, picking, pricking at the very depth of your mental environment and the feelings of your heart…Now people look down with derision, discontent, vulgarity on the blues; after all I don’t see anything wrong with the blues unless you use vulgarity in it. But the blues itself, the music itself? It can’t hurt…I wouldn’t have been as successful in gospel songs if I hadn’t known some of these things, trills, turns, movements in blues. It’s the trills and turns in it that you can’t get into anything but blues and gospel songs. (6)

As a gospel song writer, Dorsey’s vital concern was to write valuable music that would enrich and strengthen the faith of its listeners and performers alike: “I began to write songs. Not the blues and double-meaning songs that we played for the Saturday night parties, but songs of hope and faith, spiritual songs and gospel hymns. This was the turning point in my life.” (7) Horace Clarence Boyer characterised Dorsey’s songs as follows: “Marked by catchy titles, many of which became part of the religious rhetoric of African American Christians, these songs had simple but beautiful melodies, harmonies that did not overshadow the text, and open rhythmic spaces for the obligatory improvisation that identified gospel.” (8)

56 Sallie Martin, the gospel music composer and Dorsey’s co-worker in the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, considered Dorsey’s lyrics more expressive than his music. After she heard Dorsey’s “How About You?” she stated “[the music] wasn’t so much different [than] we were accustomed to….The words was the biggest thing. I said, ‘I want to find that. Where can I get it?’” (9)

5.3. Dorsey’s impact on choral singing

Dorsey’s involvement in gospel chorus music was caused by two factors: firstly, choirs played a significant role in the conservative black Baptist and Methodist churches, and secondly, his lack of success with promoting his gospel solo songs at the end of the 1920s and the beginning of the 1930s. Thus he was forced to focus his attention towards chorus music and organising choirs in the USA. The gospel choir movement started by Dorsey’s effort met with resistance among the conservative members of the church due to the preference for more traditional forms of musical performances based on classical music. They opposed the singing of Dorsey’s gospel music because it was influenced by the blues that he performed before 1932. Despite the resistance of the conservatives to the gospel music, in 1931 Rev. Smith, the pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church - who was in favour of southern music of which the blues is the part - asked Dorsey to conduct the choir in his church. Thus the first gospel choir in conservative church started. The choir gave powerful performances and its fame spread quickly. According to Dorsey “Everybody at that time was pulling at the chorus, because nobody had a gospel chorus but Ebenezer. And every church wanted them to come, because wherever we went we drew a crowd and I mean a crowd.” (10) Although we may presume that the choir in the Ebenezer Baptist Church sang Dorsey’s songs, Dorsey taught the members of the choir traditional hymns arranged to gospel music style. Harris mentions two reasons for Dorsey’s choice of songs: firstly, traditional hymns “were born in the hearts of the forefathers down in the southland” and secondly, Dorsey “made them sound like the gospel blues that [he] wrote.” (11)

57 In 1932 the choir from the Ebenezer Baptist Church accepted the invitation to sing in the Pilgrim Baptist Church led by Dr. Austin. He asked Dorsey to organise a choir in his church. It had more than 100 members from the beginning. In spite of such an interest, at first the Board of Deacons refused to pay Dorsey for his position that he held until the late 1970s.

5.4. The National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses

Stimulated by the forming of the Gospel Choral Union, the foundation of the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses (NCGCC) in 1932 was an important milestone in the development of gospel choir music. According to the Chicago Defender , the metropolitan black newspaper, Thomas A. Dorsey, eminent gospel writer, Mme. Magnolia Lewis Butts, directoress, Metropolitan Community Church Gospel Chorus, Prof. Theodore Frye, director, Ebenezer Baptist chorus, launched a drive advocating a renaissance of gospel singing in the churches of Chicago. (12)

Dorsey’s work for NCGCC included organisational tasks as well as training the singers. In 1933 Dorsey was elected a president and set these objectives for NCGCC: “I recommend that the gospel singers of this national convention have a home or headquarters, with departments to study, rehearse and develop the highest type of gospel singing with the very best interpretation of the spirituals and heart songs.” (13) NCGCC played a significant role in promoting gospel choir singing. Not only did it help to establish gospel choirs across the USA, but also improved the quality of gospel singing. Due to the growing popularity of gospel music, gospel choirs moved outside the church, too.

5.5. The structure of NCGCC The objectives that Dorsey set became a vision of this colossal organisation that today helps people in developing their talents as well as growing in their faith.

58 NCGCC is held annually in summer. It is divided into these departments: a. Carol E. Hayes Pre-Teen Department (Ages 3-12): provides training of children in music and aspects of Christian belief b. Youth & Young Adult (YYA – Ages 13-16): trains the gifted singers, musicians, directors and writers, it also awards Song of the Year and Director of the Year at this category c. Supervisor's Guild : trains young people d. Alumni Chorale (Ages 26-50): it is part of the Parent Body e. Thomas A. Dorsey Mass Choir : created by all age groups, gives the final concert at the end of NCGCC week f. Soloist Bureau : provides training of the talented soloists g. Artelia Hutchins Training Institute : provides courses in voice, organ and piano h. National Scholarship Committee : decides about granting scholarships (14)

5.6. Significant gospel songbooks

th Two outstanding gospel songbooks were published in the 20 century that had a significant impact on promoting black gospel music: Gospel Pearls and Songs of Zion.

Gospel Pearls

In the late 1921 Dorsey’s song “If I Don’t Get There” was included in the second edition of Gospel Pearls , the compilation of 165 favourite sacred songs (the first edition of Gospel Pearls was published in early 1921) . It was published by the Sunday School Publishing Board of the National Baptist Convention. With the spreading fame of gospel music in the 1920s and the 1930s, Gospel Pearls became popular in other denominations too and was used by the whites and blacks alike. There are three reasons why Gospel Pearls is a landmark publication. Firstly, Gospel Pearls “made the songs of the pioneer black composers accessible for the first time.” (15) Secondly, due to the

59 publishing of Gospel Pearls gospel music “began to spread among black Christians, endorsed by the respectability of the National Baptist Convention”. (16) Thirdly, Gospel Pearls “profoundly affected the singing of gospel music in the African American community because Baptists no longer have to attend Pentecostal, Holiness or sanctified churches to hear the music. They could now hear this music in their churches on Sunday morning”. (17) Gospel Pearls is divided into three parts: in the first part, called “Worship and Devotion”, there are mainly hymns of white composers such as Isaac Watts, Charles Wesley and Lowell Mason. In the second part, “Revival”, there are gospel hymns by Lucie Campbell, Charles Tindley, T.A. Dorsey and other black composers. The third part, “Spiritual”, is focused on black gospel songs and arrangements of spirituals by John Wesley Work II and his brother Frederick. (John Wesley Work II was a professor of Latin and history at Fisk University who toured with Fisk Jubilee Singers until 1916. He collected and arranged black spirituals.) This compilation also describes the development of the black sacred songs and refers to the use of the term “gospel music”. Since 1921 Gospel Pearls has been issued several times and in the 1990s the 1921 version was “still a saleable item” “without any changes or additions”. (18)

Songs of Zion In 1981 Songs of Zion was published for use in the United Methodist Church. This compilation consists of various kinds of sacred songs that represent the Afro-American tradition including spirituals and gospel songs. Except for the songs of the pioneer black composers Charles A. Tindley, Lucie Campbell and Thomas A. Dorsey, there are also songs of younger composers such as Cleveland, Hawkins and Morris. Songs of Zion contains also sacred songs by white composers that became popular in the black church. According to Southern, Gospel Pearls and Songs of Zion “cut across denominational lines in its appeal to black Christians.”(19)

Notes

1. Moore, Alan. The Cambridge Companion to Blues and Gospel Music. p. 52 2. Southern, Eileen. The Music of Black Americans. p.452 3. Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. p.151 4. H. C. Boyer/ Rye, Howard/ Kernfeld, Barry: In: “Gospel”. Grove Music Online . Oxford University Press 2006. 20.03. 2006 5. Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. p.151 6. ibid, p. 98 7. ibid, p. 126 8. Boyer, C. Horace. The Golden Age of Gospel. p. 61 9. . Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. p. 256 10. ibid, pp.195-196 11. ibid, p. 204 12. ibid, p. 264 13. ibid, p. 267 14. “The National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses” 25.03. 2006 15. Southern, Eileen. The Music of Black Americans. p. 474 16. Boyer, C. Horace. The Golden Age of Gospel. p. 43 17. ibid, p. 43 18. ibid, p. 43 19. Southern, Eileen. The Music of Black Americans. p. 474

6. Gospel music in the secular world

6.1. Recording, radio, television

The first recordings of gospel music were produced in the 1920s when the recording companies such as Paramount and Columbia took interest in recording race music and made it a business. The era of the 1930s was influenced by the Great Depression, but there were other two factors that had a negative impact on recording gospel music during the 1930s and the early 1940s: Firstly, in the 1930s the radio and recording industry was dominated by Decca Records and other large companies that focused mainly on investing in the records of a few black musicians who attracted the public. Secondly, from 1942 till 1944 James E. Petrillo, a president of the American Federation of Musicians, led a strike claiming that the record producers should pay a fee to the government for every recorded disc. As a result, by 1944 the larger recording companies lost interest in gospel. (1) In 1942 gospel won the interest of Savoy Records that specialised in recording gospel music and after WW2 other small independent recording companies such as Apollo, Specialty, and Nashboro focused on this genre and made it a business. (2) Gospel appeared on radio as early as in the1920s, but it was after the WW2 when gospel songs topped the charts. In 1925 the first gospel music program appeared on Chicago’s school radio station WMBI of the Moody Bible Institute. The program was produced by its students. From 1933 on live gospel performances on WMCA and WRNY in New York City featuring the Southernaires, the Golden Gate Quartet, the Soul Stirrers, and many others became favourite programs that soon appeared on stations in other cities. In the 1940s gospel music could be heard on many stations every Sunday and during the weekdays after ten o’clock at night or before seven o’clock in the morning, because radios were not yet in the ownership of the blacks. The program “Gospel train” started to be broadcast regularly on station WLIB in New York produced by Joe Bostic, a well-known Afro- American broadcaster.

62 One of the most prominent stations that broadcast gospel was WLAC in Nashville, Tennessee that covered a large area across the south. It offered the genres of race music at night, including rhythm and blues as well as gospel (at that time other stations did not broadcast at night). In the 1950s WLAC could be heard across 38 states and had approximately ten million listeners. Other prominent stations that broadcast gospel in the 1940s were WDIA (Memphis), WIS (Columbia, South Carolina), and WOKJ (Jackson, Mississippi). Today the black gospel can be heard on several hundreds of radio stations across the USA, e.g. WILD, WXOK, WPFC, KILE, KGNZ, KQJZ and many others. In the 1950s television replaced a role of the radio that served as a primary source of family entertainment in the two previous decades. Mahalia Jackson led a TV program Ed Sullivan Show where the black gospel singers appeared. “TV Gospel Time”, that started to be broadcast every Sunday in the early 1960s, was a program that was devoted entirely to gospel music. (3)

6.2. The Gospel Music Association

The Gospel Music Association (GMA), an organisation whose aim is to promote gospel music and the Christian music industry, was established in 1964. Each April in Nashville, Tennessee, the GMA holds “GMA Music Week”. It is a series of seminars and concerts that ends with the GMA Music Awards ceremony. (4) Established in 1969, the GMA Music Awards (formerly the Dove Awards) honour those who achieved a major success in traditional gospel or contemporary Christian music including its various styles such as rap, hip hop, rock etc. In 1971 the GMA created its Gospel Music Hall of Fame honouring recognised artists who significantly contributed to gospel music, such as Mahalia Jackson (inducted in 1978), Elvis Presley (inducted in 2001) and many others. (5)

6. 3. The Grammy Awards for gospel music and Dorsey’s songs

In 1957 the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (later the Recording Academy) was formed with the aim to honour the outstanding talents in music. This event evolved into an annual music awards show whose winners receive a statuette of a gramophone. The eligibility period is from October 1 till September 30 of the past year. The show is held annually in February and is broadcast on TV. Today it has 107 categories within 31 genres of music including gospel. In 1962 the first category that awarded gospel music artists appeared - the Best Gospel or Other Religious Recording. Mahalia Jackson was among the winners with the album “Everytime I Feel the Spirit”. In 1982 Al Green was awarded for Dorsey’s “Precious Lord” in the category the Best Soul Gospel Performance, Traditional. In 1983 Solomon Burke was awarded for this song that appeared in the film Take Me, Shake Me in the category of the Best Soul Gospel Performance, Male . In the same category that year Dorsey received a reward for “Precious Lord” that appeared in the documentary Say Amen Somebody . Linda Hopkins was awarded for this song that appeared in the album How Blue Can You Get in the category of the Best Inspirational Performance. Dorsey’s “Peace in the Valley” won a prize to B. J. Thomas in the category of the Best Inspirational Performance in 1983.

Notes

1. Boyer, C. Horace. The Golden Age of Gospel. p. 51 2. Jackson, A. Jerma. Singing in My Soul . p. 105 3. Southern, Eileen. The Music of Black Americans. p. 473 4. “Gospel Music Association”. Wikipedia. 25. 03. 2006. 30.03. 2006 5. “GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame“. Gospel Music Association. 2006. 30.03. 2006.

Conclusion

Thomas Andrew Dorsey is still considered one of the most prolific composers of gospel music. From 1921 when he converted to Christianity until his death in 1993 he wrote several hundred of gospel songs that are characteristic for their emotional sound and expressiveness. In spite of the high number of Dorsey’s songs, I struggled to find them. I had to search for his lyrics in various sources including books, CDs and the Internet, because there are no available collections of gospel songs in the Czech Republic. My work also included listening to CDs with gospel music and writing down the lyrics. My intention was to explore the lyrics of Dorsey’s songs and trace their development. I worked with songs that were composed in the period between the 1920s and the 1950s because I did not find any songs from the later period of Dorsey’s life. My work was hindered by a lack of written sources and discrepancies in data concerning the origin of Dorsey’s songs, which was the main obstacle in describing Dorsey’s development in compositional style. Moreover, sometimes I found only the dates when the songs were either composed or recorded. I compared various sources and found that Dorsey copyrighted the songs several years after he composed them, so it was impossible to make a chronological order of the songs and trace its compositional development. That is why I put the lyrics in alphabetic order. In the following part of my thesis I focused on the analysis of the lyrics. If possible, I also included the background information from Dorsey’s life about the origin of the songs. The main source for this part of my work was the publication by Michael W. Harris The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church . Having analyzed the lyrics, I found that they are simple, mostly comprise of stanzas and choruses and contain a phrase that is repeated within the song. Typically, this phrase makes a title of the song. It was difficult to trace the most frequent verse patterns because they varied from song to song. The language of the lyrics is enriched by the words used in African American English, archaic expressions, alliterations and inner

65 rhymes. Some of the songs contain figurative language such as metaphors and irony. Dorsey made use of a wide range of adjectives, parallel constructions and repetitions that contributed to the emotionalism of his songs. He used a variety of expressions for ‘heaven’ and addressing God. Dorsey’s lyrics are inspired both by personal experience and the Bible . Dorsey played an imposing role in the field of gospel music. He not only shaped the genre of the gospel music, causing that songs written in his style were called ‘dorseys’, but also contributed to promoting gospel music in several ways. He was the chief person who established the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, a huge organisation that fulfils his vision to train the musicians to produce gospel music of a high quality. Dorsey trained singers such as Mahalia Jackson, Roberta and Sallie Martin and helped them in their careers. Besides writing songs and performing gospel music, he established his own publishing company that published the works of the black composers. He also took part in organising various gospel music events in Chicago, where he led the choir in the Pilgrim Baptist Church and served as a church music minister, but also across the whole USA. Thomas Andrew Dorsey was honoured several awards for his immense contribution to gospel music that include the induction in the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1979 and the Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award in 1992. I came to the conclusion that he deserves much more attention from the public because of his contributions to gospel music and songs of good quality. Nowadays only several of his songs such as “Precious Lord” and “Peace in the Valley” are appreciated and sung. Due to the new generation of gospel musicians his influence is overlooked today.

Bibliography and discography

Bibliography

Boyer, C. Horace. The Golden Age of Gospel. University of Illinois Press, 2000.

Brevard, P. Lisa. Reagon, J. Bernice. Williams-Jones, Pearl. Wade in the Water. Volume III. African American Gospel: The Pioneering Composers. “Introduction”. Smithsonian/Folkways, CD SF 40074, 1994.

Green, J. Lisa. African American English. A Lingvistic Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.

Harris, W. Michael. The Rise of Gospel Blues: The Music of Thomas Andrew Dorsey in the Urban Church. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.

Horstman, Dorothy. Sing Your Heart Out, Country Boy. Nashville: Country Music Foundation Press, 1996.

Hrabák, J. Poetika. Praha: Československý spisovatel, 1977.

Jackson, A. Jerma. Singing in My Soul . UNC Press, 2004.

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Malone, Bill C. Coutry Music, U.S.A. USA: University of Texas Press, 1993.

Moore, Alan. The Cambridge Companion to Blues and Gospel Music. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.

Nicholls, David. The Cambridge History of American Music. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998.

O’Neil, Thomas. The Grammys. For the Record. New York: Penguin Group, 1993.

Reagon, J. Bernice. Wade in the Water. Volume I. African American Spirituals: The Concert Tradition. “ Introduction”. Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40072, 1994.

Southern, Eileen. The Music of Black Americans. New York, W.W. Norton & Company, 1983.

The Bible. Glasgow: HarperCollins Publishers , 1971.

Wainwright, Jeffrey. Poetry: the basics. Oxon: Routledge, 2004.

67 Wilson, CH. Reagan. Encyclopedia of Southern Culture. USA: The University of North Carolina Press, 1989.

Discography

Mahalia Jackson. Gospels, Spirituals&Hymns. Sony Music Entertainment Inc. “Columbia”, CD 01-468663-10, 1991.

Mahalia Jackson. Silent Night. Gold Sound, Promo. DCD-935ADD, 2000.

The Best of Mahalia Jackson. Sony Music Entertainment Inc., Harmony Records. CD 0885 61771324, 1995.

The Essential Mahalia Jackson. Sony Music Entertainment Inc. CD 5129022000, 2004.

Wade in the Water. Volume I. African American Spirituals: The Concert Tradition. Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40072, 1994.

Wade in the Water. Volume III. African American Gospel: The Pioneering Composers. Smithsonian/Folkways, CD SF 40074, 1994.

Wade in the Water. Volume IV. African American Community Gospel. Smithsonian/Folkways CD SF 40075, 1994.

The Internet sources

Eskew, Harry. Downey, C. James. Boyer, C. Horace. “Gospel Music”. Grove Music Online . 2006. Oxford University Press. 20.1.2006.

H. C. Boyer/ Rye, Howard/ Kernfeld, Barry: In: “Gospel”. Grove Music Online . 2006 . Oxford University Press. 20.03. 2006

Mikkelson, Barbara, and P. David. “Precious Lord”. Urban Legends Reference Pages. 14.08.2005. 04.04.2006.

“John Leland”. < http://www.cyberhymnal.org/bio/l/e/leland_j.htm > 29.03. 2006

“The Day Is Past And Gone”. 29.03.2006

68 “Spirituals as expressions of protest”. Sweet Chariot: the story of the spirituals. 2004.The University of Denver. 05.04.2006

“The National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses” 25.03. 2006

“Gospel Music Association”. 25. 03. 2006. Wikipedia. 30.03. 2006

“GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame“. 2006. Gospel Music Association. 30.03. 2006.

“Photo Gallery”. Just the Arti-Facts. 2000. The Chicago Historical Society 18.04.2006.