Site Update – 8/1/2012

Today is the first day of August and it’s that time once again for my site update. I have not posted on this blog since July 26th and it’s because my life has been hectic and crazy as of late. I am in the home stretch of my online college courses at Tennessee Tech University and will be starting another semester of online courses at the end of August. All is not lost, because once I am finished with my current semester, I will continue to post more of my thoughts on southern gospel music.

Here is what will be coming up in the next few days:

I will be posting two new Top 5 lists. The first Top 5 will feature southern gospel LPs that need to be released on CD at some point. The upcoming list will focus on LPs that were released in 1980. The other Top 5 will focus on my five favorite songs ever sung by The Collingsworth Family. Watch for those within the next week or two.

I recently heard about a new bible translation that focuses on compelling narratives as well as a screenplay format and a fluid retelling of the bible. I never heard about this bible translation until there was a mention of it on the news. I will talk about The Voice in my next edition of Thoughts.

I will also post a review of a concert that I went to this past Saturday night at 13th Street Church of God (Faith Tabernacle Church of God) in LaFollette, Tennessee to support the church’s building fund. That will be within the next week or two.

This has been my site update for August 1st, 2012 and I hope that all of you have a blessed day today.

Top 5: Southern Gospel LPs That Need To Be Released on CD (1982)

I had originally planned to post this edition of “Top 5” last weekend, but I had been busy with everything else plus I have been on the home stretch of my online courses for the Summer semester at Tennessee Tech University. Without further ado, here is this week’s edition of “Top 5”.

Recently, I checked out the Southern Gospel History website and noticed that The Speer Family released an album in 1982 entitled ‘Hallelujah’. Although I’ve never heard of this album, I have heard of The Speer Family. In fact, The Speer Family has done some of the best songs in southern gospel music. One of the songs, The Dearest Friend I’ve Ever Had, is a song that I remember hearing on the Gaither ‘Nashville Homecoming’ DVD and I also remember singing that song with the choir at my home church (Long Hollow Baptist Church) many times. As I found that out, it made me wonder if any southern gospel LPs from 1982 would ever be released on CD at some point. Here is my top 5:

#5
‘Chosen’ (The Happy Goodmans)

#4
‘Hallelujah’ (The Speer Family)

#3
‘Feeling At Home’ (The Rex Nelon Singers)

#2
‘Someday’ (The Inspirations)

#1
‘I’ve Got A Feeling’ (Gold City)

Thoughts: Glenn Dustin Leaving Legacy Five

I had originally planned to post this edition of “Thoughts” last weekend, but I had been busy with everything else plus I have been on the home stretch of my online courses for the Summer semester at Tennessee Tech University. Without further ado, here is this week’s edition of “Thoughts”.

This is the second edition of “Thoughts” on Southern Gospel Thoughts. In this edition, I will post my thoughts on a recent change that took place as Glenn Dustin, bass vocalist for Legacy Five, left the group. From Legacy Five’s Facebook page, here is Glenn Dustin’s personal statement:

“Dear Legacy Five Family,

If you know me at all, you know I am a man of few words, so I’ll be brief.

It is with much regret that I am announcing my resignation. Effective immediately, I will no longer be traveling and singing with Legacy Five. I have had the time of my life, traveling the highways with L5, getting to meet so many wonderful people. However, nothing lasts forever. I have been honored to see so many things that I would have never had the opportunity to, apart from L5. I have so many wonderful memories, and I will miss so many people.

Please keep me and my family in your thoughts and prayers, and continue to pray for and encourage L5. I will miss those men, and I doubt there will be a day that passes where I don’t think of them. I have so many wonderful memories.

In His Grip,

Glenn “Cuz” Dustin”

(from Legacy Five’s Facebook fan page)

My Thoughts: When I first heard of Glenn Dustin, I remember hearing him sing the second verse to I Wouldn’t Take Nothing For My Journey Now on the Gaither ‘Nashville Homecoming’ DVD. What a great job he did singing the second verse! I also got to see him and the rest of Legacy Five perform Strike Up The Band a few songs later on the same DVD. Ever since I first heard Glenn Dustin on the Gaither ‘Nashville Homecoming’ concert video, Glenn Dustin has done wonderful things for Legacy Five. With his departure from Legacy Five, my prayer goes out to Glenn Dustin and his family as he goes on a brand new journey.

We Sing Praise (Psalm 100)

Have you ever thought about singing praise to the Lord daily? Singing praise to the Lord is something to be happy about. It’s not just something to be happy about, singing praise to the Lord is something to shout about. We sing praise to the Lord as a way to understand the love and grace that He gives us in our daily lives.

In my bible devotional, I will focus on Psalm 100 which talks about a song of praise and joy:

Psalm 100
[1]  Make a joyful noise until the Lord, all ye lands.
[2]  Serve the Lord with gladness: come before his presence with singing.
[3]  Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
[4]  Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
[5]  For the Lord is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.
(KJV)

When it comes to singing praise to the Lord, it is always best to be joyful. Praise and joy – they go together. They go together like sunshine on a beautiful day. When you have praise and joy, it can bring forth a lot of great blessings to your day. The Psalmist reminds us in verse 4 to “enter into his gates with thanksgiving”. We must use our emotions to praise the Lord and to do that, we must be sure to seek the Lord with praise and joy. The Psalmist also reminds us in verse 5 that “the Lord is good”. The Lord is good to all of us and watches over us in times good or bad. It is always important to know that the Lord will never leave you nor forsake you. He loves us each and every step of the way.

I will close my devotional with this moral: Sing praises to the Lord and He will provide for you daily.

Site Update – 7/21/2012

I want to welcome all of you to my site update for Saturday, July 21st, 2012. I would like to apologize for not updating my blog for at least a week. The reason for that is because my Internet got disconnected on Friday morning and without Internet access, I had no way of updating the blog. Now that I have Internet access once again, I can continue blogging about my thoughts concerning southern gospel music. I will be posting a devotional from Psalm 100 after I complete my site update. Later today, I will be posting my thoughts on a recent change in the horizon for Legacy Five as Glenn Dustin recently left the group to pursue new opportunities.

I will also post a new Top 5 of southern gospel LPs that need to be released on CD. The focus will be on LPs that were released in 1981 and 1982. Look for that post coming up tomorrow.

Now, I have some news to share with all of you: I have set up a new email address for this blog. If you have any comments or suggestions, you can be sure to email me at southerngospelthoughts@gmail.com.

Next Saturday night, New Harvest will be performing at 13th Street Church of God (Faith Tabernacle Church of God) in LaFollette, Tennessee for a benefit concert to support to church’s building fund. I am looking forward to attending the concert and I will be getting photos from the concert.

This has been my site update for July 21st, 2012 and I look forward to posting more stuff within the next few hours. May God bless you and may God bring forth many blessings to your day today.

CD Review – ‘Climbing Higher and Higher (The Cathedral Quartet, 1990)

In 1990, The Cathedral Quartet released an album from Homeland Records entitled ‘Climbing Higher and Higher’. ‘Climbing Higher and Higher’ is considered to be one of the best albums since ‘Symphony of Praise’. This album was not only Mark Trammell’s last album with The Cathedral Quartet, it was also Ernie Haase’s first album as a member of The Cathedral Quartet. When it comes to songs that deliver great messages, this is the album for you. When it comes to rich harmonies and powerful orchestrations, then this is the album for you. This album not only stays true to group’s musical style, it also stays true to the message, in general. As you listen to each song, they build up until the final track asks a true question: What will you do for Jesus? Here is the list of songs that are included in this album:

(1)  Climbing Higher and Higher
(2)  The Man I Used To Be
(3)  I’m Too Near Home
(4)  I’m Free
(5)  Oh, What A Savior
(6)  Read The Book
(7)  Thus Saith the Lord
(8)  Led Out of Bondage
(9)  The Lamb Has Prevailed
(10)  What Will You Do For Jesus

Here are three songs that stood out in this album:

(1)  Oh, What A Savior – Oh, What A Savior is a song that was made famous by Rosie Rozell & The Statesmen so many years ago. For the first time as a member of The Cathedral Quartet, Ernie Haase sings his signature song and nails it. I love the high note he sung while singing these words:

“Then I’ll join the chorus
In that great city
Then I’ll sing up there forever and ever more”

Not only is Oh, What A Savior considered to be one of the album’s strongest songs, this song is considered to be a southern gospel classic, in general.

(2)  The Lamb Has Prevailed – The Lamb Has Prevailed provides a dramatic orchestration as well as dramatic vocals that reflect the song. Mark Trammell sings the first lead while Ernie Haase sings the second lead.

(3)  What Will You Do For Jesus – What Will You Do For Jesus was written by Mark Trammell and is a strong way to end Ernie Haase’s first album as a member of The Cathedral Quartet. The song starts with the chorus and goes into George Younce’s wonderful narration. As I noted earlier in my review, the final track asks a true question: What will you do for Jesus? When I first heard this song, it brought me to tears and I almost couldn’t hold them back.

The Cathedral Quartet not only put out one of the best albums of the 1990s, the Cathedral Quartet also provided us with songs that can lift you up in a big way. Don’t be without ‘Climbing Higher and Higher’ by The Cathedral Quartet, because this album is a pure southern gospel classic that will live on for generations to come.

Score – 5/5

Site Update – 7/13/2012

I want to welcome all of you to my site update for July 13th, 2012. Since I started the blog over a week ago, I have been adding lots of interesting features to the blog and I am thankful for that. At the end of the update, I will make an important announcement which will involve a brand new email address for this blog. Recently, I included a blogroll which contains a list of southern gospel-related blogs that are found on the Internet. One of them is Daniel J. Mount’s Southern Gospel Blog. I recommend Southern Gospel Blog, because this is the best place on the Internet for information related to southern gospel music, in general.

Sometime this weekend, I will be posting a bible devotional from the book of Psalm and I pray that you’ll be richly blessed. I will plan to post an album review of The Cathedral Quartet’s 1990 album ‘Climbing Higher and Higher’ and this is a review that I look forward to doing.

I am still scheduled to go over to 13th Street Church of God (Faith Tabernacle Church of God) in LaFollette, Tennessee for a benefit concert featuring New Harvest, a bluegrass gospel group from my hometown (LaFollette, TN). The benefit concert will go toward the church’s building fund. The review will be listed under a new page on the blog entitled ‘Concert Reviews’ and will include photos from the benefit concert.

As for the next edition of “Thoughts”, I will post my thoughts on a recent change in the horizon for Legacy Five as Glenn Dustin is leaving the group. That will be sometime this coming week.

Now, onto the big announcement: Starting next week, I will be setting up a brand new email account for this blog. I will reveal the email address in my next update.

But for right now, may God bless all of you and I hope all of God’s rich blessings come to you always.

Video – Welcome To Heaven (Singing Americans, 1980s)

Sometime in the 1980s, the Singing Americans recorded a concept video for their song, Welcome To Heaven. The concept video was filmed at the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum in Chattanooga, Tennessee and was unveiled during a live concert with the Singing Americans. The song features a timely message and is dedicated to anyone who has lost a friend or loved one and is looking forward to seeing them in Heaven again one day.

As for the video itself, the camera shots were really nice and the overall production was outstanding. Watch for Clayton Inman who not only does the lead in Welcome To Heaven, he is also featured in the music video.

CD Review – ‘Pressed Down, Shaken Together, Running Over’ (Gold City, 2001)

In 2001, Gold City released ‘Pressed Down, Shaken Together, Running Over’ from Daywind Records. Now when you think of Gold City, you think of Tim Riley. Tim Riley has been with Gold City since 1980 and is considered to be, one of best southern gospel bass vocalists of all time. The album, released in 2001, features great songs such as He Took The Hill and I’ll Just Praise You. It was also Mark Trammell’s last album with Gold City as he moved on to form the Mark Trammell Trio (now known as the Mark Trammell Quartet). Not only do these songs bring inspiration each time you listen, the songs also provide strong harmonies that develop in each of the songs. ‘Pressed Down, Shaken Together, Running Over’ treats fans to great orchestrations and exciting vocals that make this album even more exciting. Gold City’s 2001 album is considered to be, in my opinion, one of the strongest albums ever produced by this group. Here is the list of songs that are included on the album:

(1)  I Believe
(2)  He Took The Hill
(3)  I’m Not What I Was
(4)  Grace
(5)  Heaven
(6)  Land of No Time
(7)  I’ll Just Praise You
(8)  It’s A Matter of Grace
(9)  He Who Was and Is To Come
(10)  Some Glad Day

Here are three songs that made this album exciting:

(1)  He Took The Hill – Mark Trammell’s powerful vocals on He Took The Hill provide wonderful storytelling about how Jesus took the hill. The second track on the album features great orchestrations and rich vocals that captivate in a big way. This song is considered to be, in my opinion, one of the best songs Gold City has ever done.

(2)  I’ll Just Praise You – I’ll Just Praise You provides some of the jazziest musical arrangements I have ever heard in a southern gospel song. While this song features the jazziest musical arrangement, this song is considered to be one of the album’s signature songs.

(3)  He Who Was and Is To Come – This track from the album is Mark Trammell’s last power ballad as a member of Gold City and he delivers in such a special way.

All in all, ‘Pressed Down, Shaken Together, Running Over’ is a fantastic album that has it all – great orchestrations, outstanding vocals, rich harmonies, and great songs with a powerful message.

Score – 5/5

CD Review – ‘It’s Just Like Heaven’ (Greater Vision, 1992)

From its humble beginnings in 1990, Greater Vision has brought fans the best in southern gospel music. In 1992, Greater Vision released an album from Riversong Records entitled ‘It’s Just Like Heaven’ and is considered to be, in my opinion, one of the best Greater Vision albums ever produced. From uptempo songs (It’s Just Like Heaven and No Army Big Enough) to slow ballads (I Stand In Awe and No One Cared So Much), this album definitely has the makings of an exciting southern gospel album. Not only do the songs provide a good message, they also provided solid harmonies that delivered throughout the entire album. Here is the list of songs that are included on the album:

Song List
(1)  It’s Just Like Heaven
(2)  Always Enough
(3)  No Army Big Enough
(4)  Nothing Is Impossible
(5)  There Is A River
(6)  He Is Mine
(7)  Don’t Try To Tell Me
(8)  Stand In Awe
(9)  Lay Them Down and Leave Them
(10)  No One Cared So Much

Here are a couple of songs that, in my opinion, made this a truly inspirational album:

(1)  There Is A River – When it comes to good songs that tell a story, There Is A River will go down as the album’s signature song. It is also one of Gerald Wolfe’s signature songs. All throughout the song, Gerald Wolfe’s powerful singing captivated me in such a special way. With good melodies and powerful storytelling, There Is A River is a gospel song that hits it out of the park.

(2) No One Cared So Much – No One Cared So Much, written by Jim Hill, is a slow gospel ballad that has been covered by southern gospel groups such as The Hoppers, The Speer Family, and The Blackwood Brothers. Greater Vision’s version of No One Cared So Much is considered to be, in my opinion, the best version I have ever heard. Not only does the song provide a comforting message, it’s also a great finale to such a wonderful album put together by Greater Vision.

While ‘It’s Just Like Heaven’ has the makings of a classic southern gospel album, this project is considered to be, in my opinion, one of the best Greater Vision albums ever produced.

Score – 5/5