Sunday Service -- the original, the one that started it. These are the foundational texts: Mahalia Jackson warming up a quarter-million people at the March on Washington, Sister Rosetta Tharpe bending notes on a Gibson SG in a floor-length robe, Thomas A. Dorsey writing the song that MLK asked for before he died. Blind Willie Johnson recorded 'Dark Was the Night' in 1927, one man and a bottleneck guitar, and it traveled into space on the Voyager Golden Record. Washington Phillips played a zither and sang about denominations. Clara Ward wrote 'How I Got Over' and watched Mahalia make it famous. Marion Williams and Roberta Martin built the church's sound, Kirk Franklin and Yolanda Adams carried it into the future. These twelve tracks document gospel before it was a genre, when it was just the sound of people believing.
gospel · 12 tracks
gospel · 12 tracks
Sunday Service
Sunday Service -- the original, the one that started it. These are the foundational texts: Mahalia Jackson warming up a quarter-million people at the March on Washington, Sister Rosetta Tharpe bending notes on a Gibson SG in a floor-length robe, Thomas A. Dorsey writing the song that MLK asked for before he died. Blind Willie Johnson recorded 'Dark Was the Night' in 1927, one man and a bottleneck guitar, and it traveled into space on the Voyager Golden Record. Washington Phillips played a zither and sang about denominations. Clara Ward wrote 'How I Got Over' and watched Mahalia make it famous. Marion Williams and Roberta Martin built the church's sound, Kirk Franklin and Yolanda Adams carried it into the future. These twelve tracks document gospel before it was a genre, when it was just the sound of people believing.
1
0:30
Mahalia Jackson (1958)
Mahalia at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival, warming up a crowd that came for jazz...
2
0:30
Sister Rosetta Tharpe (1956)
Rosetta's electric guitar in a 1956 gospel recording. The competing narrative: t...
3
0:30
Thomas A. Dorsey (1932)
Dorsey wrote this after his wife and child died in childbirth. The competing nar...
4
0:30
Rev. James Cleveland (1963)
The King of Gospel at the peak of his power. A sermon set to music. The competin...
5
0:30
Marion Williams (1961)
Marion Williams, Clara Ward's rival for the gospel throne. Her voice could move ...
6
0:30
Roberta Martin (1957)
Roberta Martin led one of the first integrated gospel groups. Her piano playing ...
7
0:30
Clara Ward (1963)
Clara Ward wrote 'How I Got Over' and watched Mahalia make it famous. The compet...
8
0:30
Washington Phillips (1927)
A man who played a zither-like instrument and sang about the absurdity of denomi...
9
0:30
Blind Willie Johnson (1927)
One man, one bottleneck guitar, no words -- just moans. The competing narrative:...
10
0:30
Brother Joe May (1955)
Known as the Thunderbolt of the Middle West. His voice was a natural disaster. T...
11
0:30
Yolanda Adams (1999)
Yolanda Adams bringing gospel into the 90s without losing the fire. The competin...
12
0:30
Kirk Franklin (1998)
Kirk Franklin turned gospel into a crossover event. 'Stomp' was a hip-hop gospel...
No algorithms. No trending sections. Just a song someone loved and the story behind it. Delivered Sunday morning.
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Image Credits
1,414 artist portraits across 5 genres (Rock, Jazz, Soul, Blues, Folk).
1,363 sourced from Wikipedia (Creative Commons / Public Domain), 50 from
Deezer (promotional artwork).
Sunday Service -- the original, the one that started it. These are the foundational texts: Mahalia Jackson warming up a quarter-million people at the March on Washington, Sister Rosetta Tharpe bending notes on a Gibson SG in a floor-length robe, Thomas A. Dorsey writing the song that MLK asked for before he died. Blind Willie Johnson recorded 'Dark Was the Night' in 1927, one man and a bottleneck guitar, and it traveled into space on the Voyager Golden Record. Washington Phillips played a zither and sang about denominations. Clara Ward wrote 'How I Got Over' and watched Mahalia make it famous. Marion Williams and Roberta Martin built the church's sound, Kirk Franklin and Yolanda Adams carried it into the future. These twelve tracks document gospel before it was a genre, when it was just the sound of people believing.
No algorithms. No trending sections. Just a song someone loved and the story behind it. Delivered Sunday morning.
✓Check your email to confirm.
Free. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Image Credits
1,414 artist portraits across 5 genres (Rock, Jazz, Soul, Blues, Folk).
1,363 sourced from Wikipedia (Creative Commons / Public Domain), 50 from
Deezer (promotional artwork).
