The decline of Southern Gospel

[smithaw9027]

The Southern Gospel of the last 10 years has gone down hill big time. Sure theres the occasional great song but I remember when groups like Gold City and the Cathedrals put ou hit after hit after hit. Good quartet singing and straight Southern Gospel seems to be waning. Anyone remember the Album Pillars of Faith. It was awesome then, but if an album like that was released now it would send shock waves throughout the Southern Gospel world.

My personal favorite -fot their great live performances-were the Kingsmen. Wow, what a show old Jim Hamill put on. Today's groups just don't have it anymore. Gold City is decent but not sensational, and Greater Vision has very good songs. Also I like the Hoppers. But does anybody remember 1993.

"Do You Know How It feels," Wedding Music," "The Cross has won Again", "There Rose A lamb," "Mention My Name," He's All I Need," I wish It would Rain" "In my Wildest Dreams" "From the depths of my Heart," "A borrowed tomb" and "Outside the Gate" are all songs that were popular that year. It was truly Southern Gospel's last great stand -although it wasn't significantly better than the 15 years preceding.

I'm not sure what has happened to the Southern Gospel of today but the creativity seems to have been zapped. Perhaps almost all the great songs have been written. The songs of today are too imitatiive of Country to suit me. People also, seem to be content to listen to the oldies on the Gaither videos. I like new stuff personally and I'm not wild about a chorus - I prefer a quartet. If anyone hasn't heard the southern gospel of the 80's I urge you to give it a listen. If anyone agrees or disagrees be sure to write back. I love talking about this stuff.

 

[DogBluff]

I'm a new fan to Southern Gospel but as far as I can tell, you are perfectly right. I love that old sound and I love the quartets. A lot of the music that Southern Gospel stations play and that are on the Southern Gospel charts are really called Progressive Gospel. Which I like fine. No one will replace greats like The Cathedrals, but there are some good groups out there that are trying to replicate the sound.

 

[AlabamaMan]

I love southern gospel and I remember all of those songs you mentioned...they truly were hits! I may get smacked down for this, but I never really cared for the Cathedrals sound that much. I am not big on quartets though. I do see them as major influences on SG music. I have to agree though, a lot of the music has seemed to have lost something. I do like groups like the McKamey's, the McGruders. The Kingsmen and Gold City were my favorite quartet type groups. Now I love the Crabb family and though many people have said they don't like their sound, I think they have brought a lot to S music. I long for the days in the 80's and early 90's when you could turn the radio on and hear those old hits that made me love SG music.
I try to look at it this way, maybe we are just in a phase and we are fixin' to see what the artists really have to offer! We may be down but don't count us out!

 

[Slina]

I remember not too long ago when it was so much easier to find Southern Gospel. Even my favorite Southern Gospel group doesn't do very much any more (though they used to be a genuine Southern Gospel group.) They are really a great group, and they sound great when they do Southern Gospel. So many groups now are Southern Gospel in name only.

 

[giggles605]

That's a shame. As I said under another thread my parents had a Southern Gospel Choir play at their wedding and they loved it!

 

[NorthernGospelBoy]

I think southern Gospel of today is pretty cool. They are bold with their faith and speak it how it is, and that's all that matters in Gospel music. Not watered down. Alot of these so called contemporary bands, you could hardly even tell if they are christians. Southern gospel is strong, bold, and powerful. My friend wrote a southern Gospel song, I wrote the music for it. it's kind of a mix between punk and southern Gospel, lol, yeah, im creative.

 

[Spclone34]

I love The "New" Hinsons, The Happy Goodmans and The "orignal" Hinson.
It had been yrs when I started listening to southern gospel again I used to listen to the old groups like The Hinson, The Happy Goodmans; But when i started listening to it again The "New" Hinson are real good and The Crabb Family love there song "Through the fire" that song is soooo true.

 

[DixieBelle]

The Gold City quartet from the old days....Brian Free, Ivan Parker, Mike Lefevre, and Tim Riley...that was the best!! Nothing's been the same since that group of guys disbanded (in my opinon, of course! ). Smithaw, you're absolutely right! I do remember the late 80s and early 90s Southern Gospel and I loved the music that was put out back then. Gold City, along with The Kingsmen, Hoppers, Bishops, Greenes...that was the good stuff. (Hehehe...I'm sounding like an "old-timer" here guys! ) I've got a "Top 40" songbook from 1991 and looking down the list at songs like: Somebody Touched The Lord, Real Good Feel Good Song, God Will Make This Trial A Blessing, I'm Going Home With Jesus, He Didn't Throw The Clay Away...ah man, now that's good stuff! Maybe I've just gotten away from it too long to know who's good and who's not these days, but I don't really care for a lot of the "Southern Gospel" that's put out today. The one exception would be The Crabb Family as I've seen them in concert and they're pretty good. Anyway, thanks for a walk down memory lane!

 

[WIZALOU]

The Southern Gospel of the last 10 years has gone down hill big time. Sure theres the occasional great song but I remember when groups like Gold City and the Cathedrals put ou hit after hit after hit. Good quartet singing and straight Southern Gospel seems to be waning. Anyone remember the Album Pillars of Faith. It was awesome then, but if an album like that was released now it would send shock waves throughout the Southern Gospel world.

My personal favorite -fot their great live performances-were the Kingsmen. Wow, what a show old Jim Hamill put on. Today's groups just don't have it anymore. Gold City is decent but not sensational, and Greater Vision has very good songs. Also I like the Hoppers. But does anybody remember 1993.

"Do You Know How It feels," Wedding Music," "The Cross has won Again", "There Rose A lamb," "Mention My Name," He's All I Need," I wish It would Rain" "In my Wildest Dreams" "From the depths of my Heart," "A borrowed tomb" and "Outside the Gate" are all songs that were popular that year. It was truly Southern Gospel's last great stand -although it wasn't significantly better than the 15 years preceding.

I'm not sure what has happened to the Southern Gospel of today but the creativity seems to have been zapped. Perhaps almost all the great songs have been written. The songs of today are too imitatiive of Country to suit me. People also, seem to be content to listen to the oldies on the Gaither videos. I like new stuff personally and I'm not wild about a chorus - I prefer a quartet. If anyone hasn't heard the southern gospel of the 80's I urge you to give it a listen. If anyone agrees or disagrees be sure to write back. I love talking about this stuff.

Be glad that you still can listen to Southern Gospel music on the radio. I live the Chicago are and NONE of the stations play any southern gospel. The only southern gospel I listen to is online through "All Quartets Radio." We sometimes get a southern gospel quartet in my area about three times a year.

 

[Tenorvoice]

As you can tell by my side name I absolutly can not get my fill of southern gospel music.....

I have tryed my best to find as many of the ole' time style quartets..with not much avail. One of the ones that I have found that I really like to hear is a group called "Signiture Sound" they are pretty good. I aslo like to listen to the sounds of the "Statler Brothers", "the Marksmen", "Thyrd Time out", and few others.

My only complaint is that the only Christian station that I can get here in the RIchmond Va. area is American Family Radio, and they do not play the good ole sounthern gospel music @ all. All they play in the way of music is the "mainstream". Which is pretty good, But there is no way that you can beat that good ole' 4 part harmony. It just does things fer the spirit.

That is why I love being in the men's quartet @ that church that I attend. (if we could just get all four of us together to practice it would be great).

peace

ps. Bring back the Harmony

 

[DogBluff]

ps. Bring back the Harmony

Amen Tenorvoice! One of my favorite SG groups, the CrossWay Quartet, does some of the best harmonizing I've ever heard. They really know how to use their voices. They are one of the most underrated SG groups out there. CrossWay can sing the old style and the new stuff and always get a great reaction from the audience. Wish that more of the new SG groups would learn to balance old with new!

 

[PreacherFergy]

I love the Inspirations, and also the Rochestors, especially their song "Heaven's Door" It's such an awesome song!

 

[AlabamaMan]

The Rambo's!!! I love the Rambo's...I can remember my grandmother listening to them on 8-track as she went to sleep at night LOL...talk about sounding like an old timer!

I do miss the southern gospel of the late 80's and early 90's....oh the good ole days.

 

[dewy_monkey]

dude southern gosple rocks my socks

 

[vatuck]

My parents raised me listening to the Cathedral Quartet, The Speer Family, and The Florida Boys. I always think of my childhood when I hear one of their songs.

 

[growingupinhim]

I remember not too long ago when it was so much easier to find Southern Gospel. Even my favorite Southern Gospel group doesn't do very much any more (though they used to be a genuine Southern Gospel group.) They are really a great group, and they sound great when they do Southern Gospel. So many groups now are Southern Gospel in name only.

Mainstream is where the $ are..I know not all are like that..but have been led astray by record companies to make more sales, and that means being mainstream, and sometimes comprise...
I personally like homade Southern Gospel, musicans who do the church circut and make thier own cd's..though I have alot of commerical SG, too!