Behind the best gospel songs of the 20th century

Posted by Mords1944 on December 15th, 2020

It takes more than a powerful performance to make a song great. Song composition also plays a role in achieving greatness and staying power in your listener's mind, regardless of their generation. With the best gospel songs, the title, who wrote them, the artist who made them popular will not be easily forgotten. Composers are like singers in many ways: one of the greats will be remembered for his skill and the innovative ways in which he uses music. Artists like Thomas A. Dorsey, Doris Akers, and Charles Albert Tindley, just to name a few, are behind some of the best gospel songs in the genre. Although a large part of the popularity of the songs can be attributed to the artists who performed the compositions, there is no denying that part of the success of the songs lies in their structure and the innovative ways in which they use the music.

Thomas A. Dorsey is considered the father of black gospel music. He is the composer of some of the most memorable Gospel songs in the industry. It is not very common for a musical style to be named after the composer who wrote the songs, but during the height of their popularity, their compositions were known as "dorseys." He was an innovator, deviating from the standard hymnbook practices of his time and combining jazz and blues rhythms with Christian accolades. One of his best known titles is "Take My Hand, Precious Lord". Mahalia Jackson, the artist who made "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" popular, was the queen of gospel music at the time and her version was a favorite of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and former President Lyndon B. Johnson. . Another standard gospel title attributed to Dorsey is "Peace in the Valley", who wrote it for Mahalia Jackson in 1937. Mahalia Jackson and Thomas A. Dorsey are names frequently attached to some of the best gospel songs, title, who wrote, artist who made popular.

Another songwriter who also worked closely with Mahalia Jackson was Doris Akers. Together they created their own collection of the best gospel songs, title, who wrote them, artist who made them popular and became even more popular. Doris Akers, a successful gospel singer in her own right, became one of the leading songwriters of the late 1950s thanks in large part to her collaborations with Mahalia Jackson, who not only co-wrote with her, but was also the artist who made popular to a great extent. of Akers songs. Akers, who wrote one of the best gospel songs "Lord, Don't Move The Mountain", is considered one of the most prolific gospel composers of the recent century. Other titles of her works are "God spoke to me one day", "Go ahead, Lord Jesus", "Problems", and many more.

And then there are those on the music scene who are regarded as multi-talented menaces being the only name behind some of their own work. An example of this is Andrae Crouch who is known for some of the best gospel songs, title, who wrote, artist who made popular songs like "The Blood Will Never Lose Its Power", "My Tribute", "Through It All" , and many more. Her contributions are known to revolutionize gospel music, adding to them a contemporary sound that touched so many lives outside of its traditional African American base. Andrae went on to build a successful career in mainstream music, but her contributions to the gospel music genre continue to be recorded and reinterpreted by artists today.