There are words that permeate southern gospel lyrics. How many songs do you know about the cross, heaven, the empty tomb, God’s love…the list goes on and on. There’s certainly nothing wrong with that; the central themes of the Gospel need to be broadcast more than anything else.
But there are times when we listen to a song and a word pops up that just seems unusual. Indeed, there are songs whose lyrics contain words that may not be found in any other southern gospel song. That is the subject of today’s light-hearted and fun post.
Here’s a list of words that I’ve heard in various southern gospel songs. I suspect there may be only one song that has them, though I could very well be missing others. For how many of them can you identify the song? Tell us in the comments!
(answers for those that have been guessed correctly)
- pneumonia - Excuses, “pneumonia, I suppose!”
- garlic - I’ve Passed Over Into Canaanland, “never gonna long for the leeks and garlic”
- scum - After the Sunrise, “love-light will banish sin’s vapors like scum”
- dope - Who But God, “set an addict free from dope” AND Just Thinking Out Loud (recitation), “to some it’s dope or anything for a friend”
- slippers - Two Shoes, “two shoes, Sunday slippers”
- glued - Get Away Jordan, “tongue glued to the roof of my mouth”
- gopher - Noah Found Grace in the Eyes of the Lord, “get some sturdy gopher wood”
- moonshine - New Wine, “It’s not from moonshine, but it comes from sunshine”
- civil rights - The Last Sunday, “about social action, war, and civil rights” (is that right? my memory is foggy)
- villains - Build an Ark, “I’m tired of all the villains, tired of all the killin’”
- salvación - Mexico, the Spanish part at the end
- HBO - Good Good News, “all 100 channels, HBO and Pay-per-View”
- CNN - I’m Not Worried About Forever, “the things He said are playin’ out each night on CNN” AND It Has Always Been the Soldier, “it’s not CBS or NBC, ABC or CNN”
- Taco Bell - The Dream, various places (spoken)
39 comments
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quartet-man
November 14, 2012 at 8:54 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Villains was so great, you put it down twice.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 8:55 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Heh…thanks. Feel free to take a crack at some of them!
Saran
November 14, 2012 at 10:06 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Moonshine is from ‘New Wine’
And I think ‘HBO’ is from ‘Good News’???
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 10:11 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Yes! The second is actually “Good, Good News,” but you knew the song, of course.
Saran
November 14, 2012 at 10:12 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Oh you are right! ‘Good, good, news’…I think in the same line it also mentions ‘Pay-Per-View’
Saran
November 14, 2012 at 10:11 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I know multiple artists have done ‘New Wine’….Greater Vision and Gaither Vocal Band.
‘Good News’ is a B&G Gaither song?
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 10:14 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Actually, Bill and Gloria’s daughter Suzanne wrote it, along with Michael Sykes and Guy Penrod.
Adam Edwards
November 14, 2012 at 10:10 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
CNN, I believe, is from The Soldier by the OTGH Quartet.
Taco Bell, also by the OTGH Quartet & Gold City in The Dream…..funny song!
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 10:12 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Hmm…I don’t know that first one…I have a different song in mind. I told ya I would probably be missing some.
You got The Dream.
Brian Fuson
November 14, 2012 at 10:23 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Great post Brian! The easy ones I know of off the bat would be
Pneumonia from Excuses by The Kingsme
And CNN would be from I’m Not Worried About Forever
By The Kingdom Heirs.
And salvacion would be Mexico from The Cathedrals, I believe.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 10:30 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
You got all three!
Aaron Swain
November 14, 2012 at 10:41 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
“Scum” is from “After The Sunrise” by The Inspirations, The Kingsmen, etc.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 10:47 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Yes! Love-light will banish sin’s vapors like scum! Even the clanish together will hum!
I don’t know what it means, but I like it!
Daniel J. Mount
November 14, 2012 at 12:58 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I was going to guess some of these, but I’d talked about the post with Brian in advance of its publication, so I figured I’d better just lurk (even on the ones we didn’t discuss!)
Brian – I assume the second line there refers to a Hatfields and McCoys-type situation. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatfield%E2%80%93McCoy_feud
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 1:02 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Thanks, Daniel! Feel free to take a shot at the last one left, which we didn’t discuss. Someone’s gotta get it…
Daniel J. Mount
November 14, 2012 at 3:28 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Looks like it was gotten by my next visit.
Eric Stuve
November 14, 2012 at 10:46 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Civil rights is from “The Last Sunday” by the Cathedrals.
Garlic is from “I’ve Passed Over” by Gold City & the Kingdom Heirs.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 10:47 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Yes, and yes!
Never gonna long for the leeks and garlic, I’ve left Egypt far behind!
Samuel
November 14, 2012 at 3:38 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I’ve heard that line done “Never gonna turn to the world again” on I’ve Passed Over. Probably because it is kind of awkward.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 3:39 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
No way! I love the leeks and garlic line…such a great, Biblical lyric!
David Ragan
November 14, 2012 at 11:04 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
“Slippers” is from Two Shoes. (I’ve sung that enough to recognize it!) I’m pretty sure “villains” is from GVB’s Build an Ark.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 11:05 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Excellent! I wore out the Two Shoes CD when I was a kid! I’m thinking you probably did, too.
And Build an Ark is also correct.
David Bruce Murray
November 14, 2012 at 11:11 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
“Gopher” is in “Noah Found Grace In The Eyes Of The Lord” (Statler Brothers and others), but you may be thinking of a different ark song.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 11:12 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Nope…that’s the one. I did consider that there may be other Noah songs with it, but I couldn’t think of any.
David Bruce Murray
November 14, 2012 at 11:17 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
“Dope” is from a J D Sumner recitation…”Just Thinking Out Loud,” I believe.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 11:18 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I’ll have to take your word for it, because I’ve never heard it. I’ve got another one. This is in a sung lyric.
David Bruce Murray
November 14, 2012 at 11:21 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
“Many a people talk about doing their thing,
To some it’s dope or anything for a friend.”
See:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTBy3uoXRyM
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 11:22 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Thanks…I’ll include that along with my original answer, as soon as it’s guessed.
David Bruce Murray
November 14, 2012 at 11:27 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I didn’t know this when I posted the YouTube link a couple of minutes ago, but at 3:56 into that clip, there’s a photo of JD that I took.
Cool!
David Bruce Murray
November 14, 2012 at 11:20 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
And “Glued” is from “Get Away Jordan”…can’t believe I didn’t get that one first!
“Tongue glued to the roof of my mouth.”
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 11:21 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Yes, definitely. I was surprised it was one of the last one guessed.
David Bruce Murray
November 14, 2012 at 11:22 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Well, it goes by so fast. I don’t think most people understood McCray when he sang it! LOL
Andrew S.
November 14, 2012 at 2:47 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Dope:
He can change a life so wretched when the world says there’s no hope,
Cause a drunkard to quit drinkin’, set an addict free from ..dope..
-Who but God?, the Paynes & Gold City (clever Just Say No! appeal)
One of my favorites is Ronny Hinson’s use of “buzzard” in “Oasis” by the Hinsons. “While the sun cooks up the supper for the buzzards to devour…”
Ironically, Ronny Hinson co-wrote each of those songs.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 2:48 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Ding! Great job!
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 2:50 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Thanks, everyone. There will definitely be another one of these sometime…I’ve already got a couple in mind.
Dianne Wilkinson
November 14, 2012 at 3:17 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
This one was great fun, Brian. Two things. First of all, “After the Sunrise” is in the Heavenly Highways hymnal which is still revered at my little church. When my dear brother was pastor, he also lead the choir, and he loved to do this song. He loved that line, “even the clannish together will hum”, and he always told me he thought whoever wrote that song must have pastored some churches somewhere along the way! Second, Ronny Hinson is the hero to those of us who say this about him: No one will go as far out lyrically as Ronny, and he makes it work! He and I were talking once about how hard it is to find good words to rhyme with “God”, and he told he he once used “squad”… “firing squad”. He’s just wonderful!!!! I was so happy to see so many guessed the right answers. Gospel music fans do listen, God bless us every one! Dianne.
Brian Crout
November 14, 2012 at 3:34 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Thanks for stopping by, Mrs. Dianne! I’ve already got a couple more Ronny Hinson songs in my mind for the next installment! I’m not giving it away!
Baptist
November 15, 2012 at 6:50 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Brian, I certainly enjoyed reading this. Good job. You’ve got me trying to think of unusual words. I think I’ll look through the good old Red Back Church Hymnal.
Saran
December 20, 2012 at 12:40 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I thought of another odd word from a gospel lyric: “termites”….go!