Sunday, May 23, 2010

by musicclipoftheday

You don’t have to go to Chicago’s south or west sides to hear music that comes from the gospel tradition. The other day, at a Catholic church in a far northwest suburb (Barrington), a funeral service (for my uncle) closed with this.

Thomas A. Dorsey (1899-1993), “Precious Lord,” live,  c. 1981 (Say Amen, Somebody [1982])

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lagniappe

More from Mr. Dorsey (and Say Amen, Somebody):

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Since it’s the best-known gospel song [‘Precious Lord’], it was perfectly natural for Dr. Martin Luther King to request its performance the night of his death.

—Anthony Heilbut, The Gospel Sound: Good News and Bad Times (6th ed. 2002)

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Want more gospel?

Here’s the theme song for one of my favorite radio shows, Kevin Nutt’s Sinner’s Crossroads (WFMU-FM), which can be heard live on Thursday night from 7-8 p.m. (EST) or at the archives anytime.

Silver Quintette, “Sinner’s Crossroads” (1956, Chicago)/mp3

(This comes from The Widow’s Might, a DVD containing [in mp3 format] every song played on Sinner’s Crossroads in 2009, which is available as a premium for a $75 pledge to WFMU.)