Happy Birthday, JCB!

Today I'd like to use my corner of the Web to honor a worthy colleague.

Maybe "colleague" isn't the most exactly appropriate term to use, since we don't write for the same people...but we write about the same things, and he set the standard that I aspire to in my own work.

This week, John Crenshaw celebrates his 50th birthday...I have long considered John to be the foremost authority on recorded gospel music on the North American continent. I only stop there because I'm not sure who else there may be in the rest of the world who is comparable to John in terms of gospel music knowledge and the possession of gospel music memorabilia...in the latter, I don't know of anyone that has more gospel-music related possessions(photos, programs, souvenirs)than John.

And as many of you know, John was the first writer for the monthly feature I now write for Southern Gospel News(SG History 101)and he has since moved on to the website for the Grand Old Gospel Reunion to write similar articles, in addition to contributing periodically to the Singing News, and other websites.

As a longtime fan of gospel music myself and a collector of it as well(though nowhere near on the level that John and some others are), John has been a help to me in learning about gospel music, and acquiring some of the most treasured recordings of it in my own collection. I came to the various gospel music message boards in 2003 because I was looking for a place where it was discussed, because my appetite for it had been whetted anew because of circumstances in my life at that time. Like many, my enthusiasm for gospel music had had it's high and low points...and I was just coming out of one of those low points when one night, when I was online doing a search for London Parris, I discovered this one particular poster who seemed to know a lot about him and the Rebels Quartet(for whom London sang for 13 years). Anxious to learn more, I read on.

I discovered that John had written all these articles online about some of the best groups that ever recorded gospel music...such as the Blue Ridge Quartet, the Prophets, the Harvesters, the Imperials, the Sons of Song, and yes, the Rebels, too! It wasn't long before I began corrspondence with him, picking his brain about various gospel music personalities and records.

I only had some of the Rebels' old LPs with London, not all of them. But I learned that John did...so I asked him to put them on CD for me, and he willingly did, along with London's first four solo LPs. I still have those CDs...they are among my most treasured recordings that I own. I'll never forget John's kindness in doing all that for me.

In addition, John also taught me a lot about the backgrounds of a lot of the finest gospel singers in history. We exchanged thoughts and information(and inevitably opinions)on a lot of artists and their recordings. Those discussions helped to form the basis of a lot of my current thoughts on gospel music history. I never forget a good turn done me, and I will always be grateful to John for spending that time with me and sharing his own resources and thoughts.

We don't have those discussions any more, and I miss them. I know that I can contribute a lot more to them now than I did then, because I've gone on to learn a lot more about this music we're both huge fans of. Regardless, I'm thankful that we were able to have them for as long as we did.

He must have taught me well enough to impress some people...for in late 2004, he resigned his position with Southern Gospel News, and I was the first choice of Susan and Deon Unthank to take his place!

Let me clear up any potential misconceptions right away...I don't pretend to have John's background, knowledge, and reputation as a gospel music historian...I never have, and I never will!

But I do share John's love for the history of this music, and I share his desire to tell its' story, and to tell it right, to the best of my ability.

And if I've succeeded to any degree in doing that, part of it surely is thanks to the influence that John had(and has)on me...so I'll always salute John Crenshaw!

And since a man only turns 50 years of age once in his life, I wanted to thank and salute John right here on my blog...in front of the world, and in my own little corner of the Web...for being a positive influence in my appreciation of gospel music, and for being a positive influence on my work. Thanks John, and happy birthday!

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