An Introduction to America’s Music

CHAPTER 14 | THOMAS A. DORSEY AND GOSPEL MUSIC 339

coin—all of these made him the very model of a black gospel musician. At a time

of cultural tension in Chicago’s churches, Dorsey came forward with music that

was authentically southern yet urbanized enough to counter the northern cul-

ture’s push for European anthems.

For several generations Dorsey’s gospel songs have offered black gospel sing-

ers an attractive body of music: songs in standard forms, with straightforward

melodies and harmonies. The richness and excitement are supplied neither by

the written music nor by the words, which both tend to be simple, but by the

performers. “Talk about Jesus” (LG 14.2) is a good example of this type of gospel

song: a verse followed by a chorus, which is then repeated with altered words. The

approach to the subject is more down-to-earth than elevated; as seen by Dorsey,

Jesus is no distant icon but a “friend of mine,” a comrade who is “mighty fi ne.”

In her recording of “Talk about Jesus,” Marion Williams provides her own

piano accompaniment. Williams was fi fty-nine years old when she made this

recording in 1986. In 1993 she became the fi rst singer to receive a “genius” grant

from the MacArthur Foundation; she died a few months later. In this perfor-

mance Williams starts quietly but is soon caught up in the spirit of her praise.

By the start of the chorus she has established a powerful rhythmic groove, using

her large, supple voice and an arsenal of techniques—blue notes, bent notes, off-

beat melodic phrasings, register shifts, and even a growl (when “the tears come

rolling out”)—to express religious devotion in an inventive, heartfelt way.

Gospel music offered rich opportunities for women as well as men, includ-

ing solo singers Sallie Martin, Clara Ward, and Mahalia Jackson. Jackson, born in

New Orleans and raised chiefl y in Chicago, won fame during the 1950s and 1960s

through recordings, tours, and broadcasts. Her voice and artistry made her the

world’s leading gospel singer in her lifetime and long after.

Roberta Martin’s career in gospel music proved that singing was not the only

role open to women. Born in 1907 in Arkansas, Martin moved with her family

at age ten to Chicago, where piano study gave her a solid musical background.

At Ebenezer Baptist Church in the early 1930s, she worked with Dorsey and

K Thomas A. Dorsey

(1899–1993), the “Father of

Gospel Music.”

LG 14.2

Marion Williams

Mahalia Jackson

Roberta Martin

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