Thomas A. Dorsey
Musician
Thomas A. Dorsey...(July 1, 1899, Villa Rica, Georgia - January 23, 1993, Chicago). He is known as "the father of gospel music". Earlier in his life he was a leading blues pianist known as Georgia Tom. As formulated by Dorsey, gospel music combines... In this article: Thomas A. Dorsey, Mahalia Jackson, Chicago, Take My Hand, Precious Lord, Peace in the Valley, Ma Rainey, Albertina Walker, Elvis Presley, and Martin Luther King, Jr. |
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Wikipedia | October 26, 2009
Take My Hand, Precious Lord
...credited to Dorsey, was taken from a 1844 hymn entitled, "Maitland," by American composer, George N. Allen (1812-1877). Dorsey said he used it as inspiration. The "Maitland" music was for the text "Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone", it first...
In this article: Take My Hand, Precious Lord, Mahalia Jackson, Martin Luther King Jr., Jim Reeves, Aretha Franklin, Songs of the Century, 'nuff Said!, and You've Got a Friend
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The Daily Beast - Blogs and Stories | October 12, 2009
Dylan's Early Christmas Present
...side, and carols and black gospel songs on the other. (The latter include Presley and his backup singers, the Jordanaires, performing Thomas A. Dorsey's "Peace in the Valley," which was still a daring thing for an up-and-coming white...
In this article: Bob Dylan, Bing Crosby, Christmas music, White Christmas, Elvis' Christmas Album, The Christmas Song, American Christmas, Princeton University, Here Comes Santa Claus, and Winter Wonderland
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Miami Herald - 5-minute Herald | September 26, 2009
Artist Judy Chicago tackles cultural, political taboos
...such gospel greats as the Rev. Shirley Caesar , Albertina Walker , Dorothy Love Coats , Clara Ward , the Rev. James Cleveland and Thomas Dorsey , will be performed March 20-22 in the Lou Rawls Center of Performing Arts at Florida Memorial...
In this article: Judy Chicago, Booker T. Washington High School, Basel, and Northwestern High School
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Wikipedia | August 05, 2009
Tampa Red
...Man With The Gold Guitar", and, into the 1930s, he was billed as "The Guitar Wizard". His partnership with Dorsey ended in 1932, but he remained much in demand as a session musician, working with John Lee "Sonny Boy" Williamson , Memphis...
In this article: Tampa Red, Elmore James, Chicago, Big Bill Broonzy, Chicago blues, and Amplification
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Wikipedia | July 31, 2009
Villa Rica Historical Markers
For a while, any new gospel-blues song, regardless of who wrote it, was called a "Dorsey" until Dorsey himself coined the name "gospel". Dorsey died in Chicago on January 23, 1993. This historical marker sits alongside U.S. Hwy 78 because...
In this article: Villa Rica, Georgia, Take My Hand, Precious Lord, Chicago, Natural gas, Peace in the Valley, Frank Clement, and Elvis Presley
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Wikipedia | May 27, 2009
Sallie Martin
...and was reluctant to hire a singer who could not read music. Martin nonetheless persuaded Dorsey, after three auditions, to hire her as part of a trio he had formed to introduce his songs to churches. She proved to be an able organizer with a...
In this article: Sallie Martin, Chicago, Baptist, National Convention, Just a Closer Walk With Thee, Dinah Washington, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
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Library of Congress - News | May 08, 2009
2007 National Recording Registry Announced
...to many listeners and earned her a long and successful operatic and recording career. 4. "If I Could Hear My Mother Pray Again," Thomas A. Dorsey (1934) The acknowledged father of modern gospel music, Thomas A. Dorsey made only a...
In this article: Art Tatum, Fiorello LaGuardia, Smokey Robinson, Harry S. Truman, Library of Congress, Rosa Ponselle, Roy Orbison, Ella Jenkins, and National Recording
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New York Times | April 06, 2009
Music Review John Scofield: Jazz Guitarist in a Gospel-Soul Catharsis
...funk band. A canny embellisher, he often created a counterpoint to Mr. Scofield's leads. He also sang, notably on "Never Turn Back," a Thomas A. Dorsey tune that in this version became a sprawling but hard-driving jam. Chief vocal...
In this article: John Scofield, Jon Cleary, Ricky Fataar, George Porter Jr., New Orleans, and Hank Williams
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Baltimore Sun | January 13, 2009
Cousin of Thomas Dorsey dies
Dorsey died in a nursing care center last week at the age of 75. Dorsey loved singing "Precious Lord,'' a song penned by her cousin Thomas Dorsey who was known as the "father of gospel.'' She traveled the world singing gospel, performing...
In this article: Thomas Dorsey, Mahalia Jackson, Lyric Opera House, Portland, Baltimore, and Oregon
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www.washingtonpost.com | March 28, 2008
Restless Soul
...it's what he's tapped into. Famous gospel predecessors have had varied ideas of how to combine the religious and the secular: Thomas Dorsey was a blues musician who came to the gospel side and brought the blues with him; Ray Charles...
In this article: Kirk Franklin, God, Fort Worth, The Fight of My Life, Thomas Dorsey, Black Entertainment Television, and Accounts receivable
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More on Thomas A. Dorsey
Description from Wikipedia:
Thomas Andrew Dorsey (July 1, 1899, Villa Rica, Georgia - January 23, 1993, Chicago). He is known as "the father of gospel music". Earlier in his life he was a leading blues pianist known as Georgia Tom.
As formulated by Dorsey, gospel music combines Christian praise with the rhythms of jazz and the blues. His conception also deviates from what had been, to that time, standard hymnal practice by referring explicitly to the self, and the self's relation to faith and God, rather than the individual subsumed into the group via belief.
Dorsey was the music director at Pilgrim Baptist Church in Chicago from 1932 until the late 1970s. His best known composition, "Take My Hand, Precious Lord", was performed by Mahalia Jackson and was a favorite of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr, and "Peace in the Valley", which was a hit for Red Foley in 1951 and has been performed by dozens of other artists, including Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash.
In 2002, the Library of Congress honored his album Precious Lord: New Recordings of the Great Songs of Thomas A. Dorsey (1973), by adding it to the United States National Recording Registry.
- Name At Birth:
- Thomas Andrew Dorsey
- Birth Date:
- July 01, 1899
- Instrument Played:
- piano
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