The History of Gospel Music

This article is a collaborative effort, crafted and edited by a team of dedicated professionals.

Contributors: Andranick Tanguiane, Fred Lerdahl,

Contents

Origins of Gospel Music
Development of Gospel Music
- The Golden Age of Gospel
- The Contemporary Gospel Era
The Impact of Gospel Music
- On American Society
- On the Music Industry

Gospel music is a genre of Christian music. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context.

Origins of Gospel Music

Gospel music is a genre of music that is composed and performed for many reasons, including aesthetic pleasure, religious or ceremonial purposes, or as an entertainment product for the marketplace. Its origins are in the oral tradition of African American music, especially that of the African American church, and it has been influenced by blues, jazz, and rock and roll.

Spirituals

The first gospel songs likely originated with the influx of African slaves into the United States. Spirituals were originally an oral tradition that imparted Christian values while also providing a form of resistance against slavery. Although spirituals were originally unaccompanied monophonic (unison) songs, they are now also sung in polyphony. Spirituals can be traced back to the early 17th century, but their golden age was during the Civil War era when slaves sang them as maps to freedom.

Work Songs

The first gospel songs were created by slaves who blended elements of their African heritage with Christian lyrics. These early songs were part of the oral tradition and were passed down from generation to generation. They often had a call and response format, with a leader singing a line and the rest of the group responding. Work songs were an especially important part of the tradition, as they helped slaves stay connected to each other while they worked.

Hymns

Gospel music is a genre of Christian music. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is composed and performed for many purposes, including aesthetic pleasure, religious or ceremonial purposes, and as an entertainment product for the marketplace. Gospel music usually has dominant vocals (often with strong use of harmony) with Christian lyrics. Gospel music can be traced to the early 17th century, with roots in the black oral tradition. Hymns and sacred songs were often repeated in a call and response fashion. Most of the churches relied on hand clapping and foot stomping as rhythmic accompaniment. Cheerful singing was a common feature of early Negro spirituals.

Development of Gospel Music

The Golden Age of Gospel

The 1940s through the 1960s are often referred to as the “Golden Age of Gospel Music.” Artists such as Thomas A. Dorsey, Mahalia Jackson, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, James Cleveland, and The Soul Stirrers popularized gospel music during this time.

Dorsey is considered the father of gospel music and is most known for his composition of “Take My Hand, Precious Lord,” which has been recorded by artists such as Elvis Presley and Aretha Franklin. Jackson was a legendary gospel singer who achieved crossover success with her album Songs of Faith, which included the hit single “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” Tharpe was a pioneer in bringing gospel music to a wider audience and is credited with influencing rock-and-roll artists such as Little Richard and Johnny Cash.

Cleveland was a prolific recording artist and songwriter who founded the first ever gospel choir, The Gospel Music Workshop of America. The Soul Stirrers were an influential group whose members included Sam Cooke and R.H. Harris; they helped to define the sound of gospel music for generations to come.

The Golden Age of Gospel saw the genre attain new levels of popularity and commercial success. It also laid the foundation for future innovations in gospel music, laying the groundwork for artists such as Andraé Crouch, Shirley Caesar, Albertina Walker, Luther Vandross, and many others.

The Contemporary Gospel Era

In the Contemporary Gospel era,** which began in the 1970s, artists like Andrae Crouch and Edwin Hawkins popularized a more pop and R&B-influenced sound** that proved more palatable to mainstream audiences. At the same time, groups like the Winans and Commissioned introduced a more modern spin on quartet music. **Meanwhile, artists like Richard Smallwood blended traditional hymns with contemporary styles to create a new sound of gospel music that would come to be known as urban Contemporary Gospel.**

The Impact of Gospel Music

On American Society

Gospel music has been a part of the African-American experience since its inception. It is both sacred and secular in function. It began as hymns sung by Christians in churches outdoors, sometimes accompanied by drums, tambourines, and other percussion instruments brought from Africa by slaves who had converted to Christianity. As slavery was abolished in 1865 with the Union victory in the American Civil War, blacks were able to congregate more freely in larger numbers to worship God in their own way and according to their own traditions. The black church became an important institution especially after receiving its own land following emancipation. Over time,secular influences crept into gospel music including blues guitar licks, jazzy horn parts, and pop-friendly chord progressions leading eventually to soul music,a style with Christian lyrics but profane instrumentation that paved the way for artists such as Marvin Gaye,Aretha Franklin ,and Stevie Wonder who would cross over into the pop mainstream while still maintaining their commitment to gospel values.

On the Music Industry

The history of gospel music is as rich and varied as the history ofAfrican Americans in general. Gospel music is a product of the interactions between blacks and whites in the American South, and it has been shaped by both blacks and whites throughout its development.

Like all forms of black music, gospel music was born out of the interaction between blacks and whites in the American South. Blacks in the South were exposed to a variety of white musical traditions, including hymns, spirituals, work songs, ballads, and cumulative songs. These musical traditions were brought to the New World by English, Irish, and Scottish migrants. Blacks in the American South also had contact with Hispanic music, due to the fact that many Hispanics lived in close proximity to blacks in urban areas.

Gospel music emerged from this melting pot of musical influences in the late nineteenth century. It was initially influenced by both black and white musical traditions, but it soon developed into a distinctly black form of music. The early pioneers of gospel music were mostly black preachers who incorporated elements of white hymns into their sermons. These preachers often sang these hymns with accompanying instruments, such as pianos or guitars.

The first gospel song to be published was “Give Me That Old Time Religion,” which was written by Thomas A. Dorsey in 1932. Dorsey was a musician who had worked for several years as a leader in the blues genre before turning his attention to gospel music. He is credited with writing more than 400 gospel songs, including “Peace in the Valley” and “Take My Hand, Precious Lord.”

Dorsey’s work helped to spread gospel music from its regional origins in the American South to a national audience. By the 1940s, gospel music had become one of the most popular genres of black music. It continued to grow in popularity throughout the twentieth century, becoming an international phenomenon in the 21st century.

The History of Gospel Music