I just love gospel music

I thought I’d play a little “Jeopardy” today.

That’s the famous game show where you’re given the answer, and then you must find the question that goes with that answer. For example, given the title of this entry, I can safely ask:

Why did I start this blog?

And in truth, one of the reasons I did was because I love gospel music enough to where I thought I’d need a vehicle to express my thoughts about it.

Another question I could ask that would fit is: Why do I participate on southern gospel oriented message boards?

Same answer. I love discussion about this music, and I enjoy fellowshipping with those who share my love for it with me.

Now some of those places discuss the music more than some of the others, but I don’t care. I enjoy them all all the same.

Yet one more question I could reply with is: Why do I write a history article for a gospel music website?

Again, the identical answer. I love quartet style gospel music in particular, and I enjoy sharing information and background about those who have made that kind of music over the years, and laid the foundations for the gospel music we so enjoy today. It is a labor of love, and something I never tire of sharing with people.

Do I get to go on to Double and Final Jeopardy?

I hope so. Because the more opportunities I have to discuss and share about this great music that contains the most urgent message in the world for all mankind, that makes me a happy camper, so to speak.

Occasionally, when you visit this corner of the Web, you’ll get my takes on this or that issue…and sometimes you’ll find me expressing myself on the issues of my life that affect me in particular on that particular day. But mainly, you’ll get a regular treatise on how I love gospel music, and examples of why that is so.

That is my privilege and pleasure in having this space.

Hail to the Cardinals!

Well, it’s all over.

And the baseball Cinderella story of the Detroit Tigers, a downtrodden team that finally broke through in a big way this year, is overshadowed by the much more unlikely Cinderella story of the St. Louis Cardinals…a team that had come so close in the recent past, but especially after their embarrassing four-game sweep two years ago at the hands of the Boston Red Sox, tasted their share of frustration snd disappointment.

Those who looked upon the Cardinals’ 83-78 regular season record this year and dismissed them as possibly the worst team to ever make it to a World Series had embarrasingly short memories…the 2004 team had baseball’s best record before being squashed, and this year’s team was doing quite well for itself until injuries began to ravage them.

And the Cardinals fell into quite a tailspin at the end of this season, nearly losing their division to the onrushing Houston Astros, before closing the door in the last weekend of the season.

Then, the Cardinals were given very little hope of getting past the West Division champion San Diego Padres in the first round. Thus challenged, the Cards promptly blew the Padres away quickly, earning the right to play the team with the majors’ best record, the New York Mets. Again, the doubters crowded like vultures at the Cardinals’ door.

But again, like the little engine that could, the Cardinals rose to the challenge, and chugged past the Mets in an exciting seven-game series, refusing to fold in the face of those who scoffed at their mere presence that far into the playoffs.

As the World Series began, their opponents, the Tigers, had blown past both the New York Yankees and the Oakland Athletics with such ease, they had a week to rest and wait for the battle-weary Cardinals. Yet, as this Series unfolded, a quite different than expected scenario developed.

For it seems as if the long layoff cooled whatever momentum the Tigers had built up in crushing their American League foes, and they seemed to forget how to hit and produce runs. Certainly their pitchers forgot how to field their position, committing crucial errors in all five games of the series. The Cardinals, meanwhile, rolled on, oblivious to what people thought they were supposed to do. They just kept playing baseball as best they could, and they made all the big play necessary to win games.

Tonight’s clincher was won by the much maligned Jeff Weaver, who’s college games I had the pleasure of seeing up close at Fresno State(I even got to broadcast a few of them), and he was one of the school’s most celebrated pitchers, setting a then-College World Series record 18 strikeouts against Texas Tech, and he went on to spend several years with the Tigers, among other major league teams. I knew Jeff a bit, and it’s always nice to see an old acquanitance make it to the top of his profession.

Clearly, the better team won…proving that a regular season record is not the sole indicator of championship playoff success.

One disturbing aspect of this year’s World Series is that the TV ratings hit new lows for such an event. There are lots of explanations for why they were so low, and possibly many of them are correct. Yes, the teams were located in smaller markets than they could have been. And yes, the teams themselves might not have been as exciting in a superficial way as others who could have been playing.

But there’s another aspect that’s not been written about much, and I’d like to suggest that one right here.

Baseball used to run from April to early October, and made a graceful exit just as football season was getting underway. But now, with the expanded playoffs and preponderance of teams, the season is stretched for longer than most seasonal sports fans can bear. In recent years, the World Series has stretched into November, and the October classic has threatened to become the November classic, which this one would have done had the Cardinals not been so efficient in dispatching the Tigers. When the baseball season lingers until the halfway point of the NFL season, something is wrong.

And it is rightly disturbing to see championship baseball being played in the weather conditions of New York in the NLCS, and St. Louis early in the World Series. Baseball is not meant to be played in cold, damp weather. If baseball insists on having all these teams, and all these extra games, pehpas it would be advisable to look into starting the season in March, to get things over with by October, so the interest in following baseball will not be hindered by bad weather and bad NFL games.

Or maybe they could go back to a 154-game schedule as they did before 1961…then they wouldn’t need to worry about putting asterisks beside record season performances.

In any case, something needs to be done before we end up watching the seventh game of the World Series over our Thanksgiving dinner. There is NO reason to prolong baseball until November…none.

In any case, congratulations to the St. Louis Cardinals…REAL champions, for their deserved, hard-fought World Series victory.

A true Courier

Sometimes the really important contributors to an enterprise are the people we never see.

One really important contributor to the Couriers, one of gospel music’s most acclaimed and accomplished groups, was a used car dealer from central Pennsylvania named Ted Rossey. But to my knowledge, Rossey never sang a note, wrote a song, arranged or produced an album, or made any musical impact on the Couriers at all.

How, then, is Rossey a contributor to the Couriers?

I’m not certain of this, but I believe that Rossey came to know Christ as his savior through the singing ministry(and it was literally that)of the Couriers early in the group’s career, and because he was an obvious fan of the group, I imagine he felt led to give back to the men who helped change his life.

So Rossey became a friend of the members of the group, and accompanied them often on their concert trips. But in so doing, he wasn’t just along for the ride.

Often Rossey insisted on driving the bus to wherever the group had to go…not only that, he insisted on buying the fuel for the bus, which, as any gospel singer who travels by bus will tell you, is no small expense.

Once Rossey insisted on accompanying the group on a 40 day trip from Pennsylvania to the West Coast and back. He also insisted on buying all the fuel for the entire trip.

Keep in mind that the Couriers’ bus had a 140-gallon tank. And they were making a round trip of some 5,000 miles. This was some gesture that Rossey was doing. The story has it that Rossey had to call home to his wife, because he ran out of money on the way and had to have her send him some more.

Rossey was a constant source of help to the Couriers. Once he noticed that the bus needed new tires. He insisted that the group get a set of Michelin tires for the bus. The group told Rossey they could not afford tires like that. So Rossey made sure that within days, the group’s bus had a new set of Michelins! And Rossey always kept an eye on those tires…that first set lasted 200,000 miles…and by 1980, Rossey had bought 42 tires for the Couriers’ buses over all that time. Clearly, Rossey was a key support figure in the ministry of the Couriers.

Why am I writing about Rossey?

For one, because I feel that people like that, who are clearly examples of the concept of “paying it forward”, deserve their due recognition for the part they play in a successful worldwide ministry, because they don’t get it that often, and for two, because I learned that Rossey went home this past weekend to the Lord he came to know as a result of the musical ministry of the Couriers.

I have become good friends with the men who were a part of the Couriers musically, but I never even got to know Rossey. Nonetheless, I feel a certain brotherly bond to Rossey, because of the friend and contributor he was to making the Couriers. I can’t feel the loss they feel, obviously. But since they are such a part of me, and Rossey was such a part of the Couriers, I feel a little bit of me went home to Christ this weekend, too.

Yes, “Tedford”, as the Couriers called him, was an important behind the scenes contributor to one of the most successful musical ministries that has ever existed…and I feel he deserves a salute for what he gave the Couriers through the years.

I’m quite sure, though, that one of the first people the Couriers will introduce me to when we’re all in heaven will be Ted Rossey.

For Ted was a true Courier.

Ouch!

I was reminded again today of how fast time is indeed passing.



Today is the first day of the World Series, where the St. Louis Cardinals will face the Detroit Tigers. The two teams played against each other in the 1968 World Series as well. And on the hourly news I listen to at work, the anchor ventured that no one on either team remembers that 1968 World Series, since they probably weren’t alive to see it.



Ouch.



I remember it very well….for I AM old enough to remember it. And it was quite a memorable Series, going to 7 games with some outstanding performances, e.g., Bob Gibson’s striking out 17 Tigers in game 1, still a Series record for strikeouts by a pitcher.



I remember all of us in school being allowed to listen to the games on the radio, for back then, all World Series games were only played in the daytime. In fact, the Series began in early October, and NOT November. Of course, it helped that there were no divisional playoffs to drag things out at that time either.



Boy, that really WAS a long time ago.



Excuse me while I grab my cane, and go out for my afternoon walk before I settle in for my afternoon nap. Suddenly, I feel very old right now.

Good morning, good morning…

I can’t help but recall that jaded old John Lennon song from “Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”. All week long I’ve felt like the singer of that song…all kind of random thoughts have been flying though my mind all week, but not enough organized thoughts to make up an entire worthwhile blog entry. Hey, at least I admit it when I’ve got nothing to say…unlike some others in the internet community. As Leenon wrote, “I’ve got nothin’ to say, but it’s OK.”

And it is…I find I learn a lot more when I’m NOT in a hurry to express my thoughts. I think I’ll do a little more listening…and who knows, by the end of the weekend, I may even have coherent, organized thoughts worth sharing with you all. Until then, “Good morning…good morning….good!”

Interaction

…is something I enjoy very much, ordinarily.

And it was fun to visit Daniel Mount’s blog(a link to it is at the right)and discuss my last entry here on the merits of George Younce’s bass singing. While I would have liked to do it with him here, perhaps he is unable to do so. In any case, I enjoy the exchange of ideas with someone else who loves gospel music.

Daniel is a Cathedral Quartet fan, and a chronicler of them…and understandably, his evaluation of George Younce’s place in the relative worth of gospel music singers in history is a bit different from mine. If you disagreed with my analysis(right below this post), perhaps you can go to Daniel’s blog and catch his, and see if you like his better. A number of people I respect weighed in there as well, and I elaborated on my own comments over there.

It’s that exchange of ideas which stimulates my thinking, and helps make it clearer and more comprehensible. If I did the same for Daniel, then I feel I’ve done something positive.

I encourage response to my own entries, whether you agree or disagree…it always does me good. The better I understand you, the better job I can do writing about things you want to read about…and that is one main goal of this blog.

So feel free to comment, and speak your peace. I may bark on occasion, but I hardly ever bite!

The myths just keep on comin’…

…and they’ll never stop, so why bother to try and stop them?

In this case, I’m not out to change anyone’s mind. I’m just posting the following to provide another point of view on an issue that comes up now and again on gospel music message boards.

It came up again this week on the Southern Gospel News message board…under the pretext of a class project. The question posed was very simple…Is George Younce the greatest bass singer of all time?

In a word, no.

My reasons for saying so are several and specific. It is all very well to love Younce for what he was, a kind, humble man who was a gifted singer, and one of the finest goodwill ambassadors gospel music ever saw. And of course, he was a major part of one of the finest gospel quartets of all time…and he entertained and blessed a LOT of people with his talents.

He was a bass singer that had a very pleasant voice that could anchor chords effectively, yet his upper register was such that he could probably sing most quartet lead lines as well…such versatility is QUITE uncommon in this day and age among gospel bass singers.

All that said, the claim of being the greatest of all time is a bit much. Do the people who so rabidly claim this for Younce aware that gospel quartet history spans over 80 YEARS, and includes a whole bunch of similarly gifted and talented bass singers? I seriously doubt it.

And leaving aside the obvious talents of great bass singers such as Arnold Hyles, Jim Waites, and Aycel Soward, does anyone seriously believe that Younce was the superior talent to men such as JD Sumner, London Parris, Jay Simmons, Herschel Wooten, Bill Lyles, Jim “Big Chief” Wetherington, Herman Harper, Bob Thacker, Armond Morales, Noel Fox, Billy Todd, Doug Jones, Gerald Williams, Brock Speer, or even Chalmers Walker?

Perhaps some of these men…but certainly not the majority of them. I would be willing to wager that most of the supporters of the idea that Younce is the greatest of all never even HEARD of most of those men. What basis, then, does someone have for making such a claim without the ability to make a fair comparison?

The answer is, they can’t…but that doesn’t stop them from trying in their zeal!

I contend further that the question of Younce’s greatness was never even an issue among gospel music fans until the Cathedral Quartet(of which he was arguably the key member)became the #1 quartet in the gospel business.

And that was only after groups like the Blackwood Brothers and the Statesmen had passed from the scene, the Stamps had mostly become Elvis Presley’s backup group, the Imperials had moved on to CCM, and there was a dearth of competition in the quartet field.

When Younce really entered gospel music’s “big leagues” and joined the Blue Ridge Quartet in the late 1950s, he was in one of gospel’s most popular and visible quartets, and yet, despite his voice being at its’ arguable best, no one even thought of Younce as among the very best basses. The names mentioned most in that regard were JD, Chief, Morales, even Parris(from some!), but Younce was never ever regarded as the best. This despite the fact that he could probably do what he’s so adored for today as well(if not better)than he could at any time. He just was not seen in that light.

Younce maintained his skill level in the early Cathedral years that he possessed during his Blue Ridge years, and like everyone, saw it diminish gradually with time. It’s only my guess, but I would say that by the time the Cathedrals had reached the top of the quartet world, he was only 75%(at best)of the bass singer he was during the 1960s and 1970s. Now if no one noticed how good he might have been when his voice was at its best, how is he supposed to have become greater than all his predecessors after it had declined? You got me.

Now, if you want to make the case that Younce was a better bass than his contemporaries after the Cathedrals had reached the top of the field, I’d be more open to hearing you. After all, compared to the likes of Ray Dean Reese or Tim Riley, certainly Younce was preeminent.

But the greatest of all time? Spare me.

I don’t mean for a minute to say that Younce was not a very, very good bass singer. Certainly he was, and one of the finest men ever to sing gospel music to boot. I just don’t want him to be referred to as something he wasn’t…not to me, or to most of his peers.

A much needed break

Last weekend, I finally had the opportunity to get out of Fresno for more than one day…I know it doesn’t sound like much, but to me, it was like a month long vacation.



The highlight of my two day excursion into Southern California was seeing my good friends Dave, Duane, and Neil sing in person…that concert is described in the post just below this post.



But that was only one highlight among many…the trip was a much needed blessing. I am so glad I had that the chance to go and reclaim a major part of my life.



Certainly a major part of my life is Bruce Baloian, now a professor at Azusa Pacific University, and the personnel director for the Fresno area Youth For Christ when I first met him some 31 years ago. He was also leader of a couple of Campus Life clubs, one of them in Kerman, the town I grew up in.



Besides all that, Bruce was a man who spent a LOT of time explaining Jesus Christ to me while I was battling adolescent depression of the most insidious sort. I must have driven Bruce nuts trying to prove to him how wrong he was about God…but he never gave up. He kept being there as a friend, and never stopped trying to convince me that Christ was the only answer for me.



To make a long story short, he won…and on October 19, 1975 at 8:22 PM, I finally surrendered my heart and soul to Jesus Christ…and my life changed forever.



I had not seen Bruce in nearly five years when I came down to see him Friday, and we had a very nice day of reliving old acquaintances, including a very nice dinner he and his wife Karin treated me, too. Needless to say, spending time with Bruce and Karin was a major highlight of my trip as well.



One other person I was determined to see was my dear friend Nicole. I had not seen her for nearly five years, either…and I had missed her sunny disposition and her bright smile. Nicole loves Jesus as much as anyone I know, and in the past she has never failed to make Christ’s love evident to me in all she says and does. I HAD to see her.



As noted in the last post, I wanted Nicole to see Dave, Duane, and Neil with me…I knew she would enjoy the music, and I was also positive that she would admire my newest friends for their Christian commitment and walk. I was absolutely right…she loved their music, and she loved the guys as well. In so doing, I was able to do her a kind turn as well…and I was glad to give something to HER for a change. We both drew strength from seeing each other again…and that was also a major highlight of my trip.



And of course, it goes without saying that seeing Dave, Duane, and Neil was the coup de grace of it all. I got to spend quality fellowship time with all three men, and had a wonderful time catching up with what was going on in Neil’s life and world. And I even managed to get a couple of pictures taken…and this is something, because I hate seeing pictures of myself. But I got one of Nicole, Neil, and me…and one of just Neil and me…and that made me proud. If I can learn how to post pictures on here, I’ll post them once I get them.



All in all, my “retreat” was an unqualified success…everything I hoped it would be, and then some. God is really good to His “kids”, you know?

Dave, Duane, and Neil…a review

Time has an effect on all of us, some of us deliterious, others of us just a reminder of what treasures we have in our midst.

The latter is definitely the case when discussing Dave, Duane, and Neil…the former(and original)Couriers, one of the most legendary and accomplished artists in the history of gospel music. They are no longer fulltime touring gospel singers on the “circuit”, but in a sense that’s a blessing, because they can sing on their own terms where they want to, without the need to prove themselves to anyone. After all, after nearly 50 albums, three Dove Awards, and a position of preeminence in the gospel music industry shared by only a few other artists, what do they need to do for an encore?

Nothing, as far as I’m concerned. Last night, Dave, Duane, and Neil were singing at a church in Costa Mesa(Newport Mesa Christian Center), having awakened before dawn in their home state of Pennsylvania, and spending the entire day crossing the country by airplane.

I drove down from Fresno to see them, for not only are they among my favorite singers of all time, but also good personal friends of mine. I was accompanied by my good friend Nicole(who lives in Glendale), for I knew that she would enjoy the singing, and enjoy meeting these gospel legends as well.

Despite obvious fatigue and recurring sound problems, the three were in good vocal form as always. It’s almost a given that when you’ve sung together for nearly five decades, it’s almost second nature that you’ll sound in top form, even with a minimum of practice time…and Dave, Duane, and Neil are no exception.

As far as their repertoire, it was a nice mix of old Courier songs, originals from renowned group songwriter and lead singer Neil Enloe, some old classic hymns, and newer songs that they plan to record soon. NOTE: They plan a new release at the end of the year. Take note…that’ll be a project worth waiting for.

On and offstage, these guys are real, dedicated, and caring. They spent a lot of time talking to those who were there(naturally, I got my share of quality time in)…and the half-full church was extremely blessed by their congeniality and their enthusiasm for singing and sharing.

The major impression one would get if one was coming to see them for the first time is how much they really enjoyed singing, and how Christ-centered their program is. It’s obvious Messrs. Kyllonen, Nicholson, and Enloe love to sing, and love to sing together! That enthusiasm and joy leaps out to every member of the audience that they sing to.

Predictably, the songs that got the biggest response were the patriotic ones, along with their standards, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”, and the classic “Statue of Liberty”, but the newest song, a Neil Enloe original entitled “Next Time I Get Married, I Want To Be The Bride” also got quite an enthusiastic response, partly because of the overall message of the song, and partly because of the tongue in cheek humor of the very non-PC lyrics.

The closing number, for a switch, was the very touching “He Has Forgiven Me”, the closing number of their lone project thus far under their new name, featuring the very poignant lead of tenor Duane Nicholson.

As Dave pointed out, they almost never closed a program in 51 years without some message preached by Dave, and tonight was no exception. Dave preached a very timely, pertinent message on living on the edge of human experience. It spoke to both Nicole and me in separate, but equally powerful ways.

The audience seemed to be quite happy with what they had seen. It was clearly a night of great music, great fellowship, and a great statement all around.

You know, one of the biggest controversies in gospel music is the false dichotomy between “ministry” and “entertainment”. As the Couriers, Dave, Duane, and Neil were point men in the trend toward an emphasis on evangelism and music ministry in gospel music. But, as I’ve long insisted, the Couriers have always ministered AND entertained, simultaneously…and once again, as they’ve done countless times in their long careers, Dave, Duane, and Neil brought those who came to see them a memorable night of quality music, and quality ministry.

Or, as perhaps Nicole put it best when she told Neil Enloe what she thought of the evening, “I was entertained, AND I was ministered to.” Thus the secret of the formula of the Couriers for 50 years, and Dave, Duane, and Neil today.

Ready to go…

I realize I’ve been relatively quiet this week.



Most of the reason for that is that I’ve been preparing for my first trip to Southern California in five years. I leave tomorrow and will spend time with some very longtime, dear friends on Friday and early Saturday, then go see Dave, Duane, and Neil(the original Couriers), some relatively new friends, sing Saturday night…then race back over the Grapevine to Fresno to make it back for work by Sunday morning.



I have needed a trip like this for some time, and I’m looking forward to every moment of it. When I return, I’l post a review of the concert here and share some other impressions as well.



See you when I get back.

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