Oct 22

Songs From Scripture #7: “God Saw a Cross”

MissingPeople“God Saw a Cross” was a number one hit for the Kingsmen three years ago this month, off of their 2009 album Missing People.  Written by Rodney Griffin, it is in my opinion one of the most lyrically powerful songs in the catalog of this legendary quartet.  You can’t have a powerful gospel lyric without it being solidly grounded in Word of God, so let’s take a look at the Scriptural basis for this tremendous composition.

As the title indicates, the song illustrates a glorious aspect of the grace of God: His all-knowing and all-loving perspective.  That perspective is presented in three phases in “God Saw a Cross”.  In the first verse and chorus, we hear of His view of sinful man, as Creator and Judge.  The second verse and chorus puts it on a personal level, with God’s view of the lost individual.  Then in the bridge and last chorus, it is God’s view of the born-again believer that brings the song to a triumphant close.

The first verse traces a history of sinful man, using major Biblical figures Adam, Cain, Moses, and David as examples.   In each of four pairs of lines, Griffin recalls their failing (disobedience, two murders, and adultery), and then offers in contrast God’s take, which is a providential look to the cross of Calvary.  We know that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son to die (John 3:16).  But the Bible makes it clear that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was not something that just occurred to God after His prized creation, man, let him down.  Rather, the Son of God is the “Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8).  An eternal and omniscient God knew that the redemption of man would cost Him His only Son, but He loved enough to create man anyway.  How it surely broke the heart of God every time man chose to reject His way, knowing what the price would be!  From the very beginning, when God saw sin, He saw the cross: “For then must He often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.” (Hebrews 9:26)

The second verse has a similar format, only it shifts into the first person, speaking of God’s view of the individual.  Contrasts are again used: “When I was born, the world just saw a sinner, but…God saw a cross.”  So many people live their life thinking that God could not love them, or God could not save them, as sinful as they have been.  Some feel that they need to get “cleaned up” before they can become worthy of His grace.  But according to this song, and more importantly, the Word of God, the vilest of sinners is the precise object of saving grace: “But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)  Thank God that when He saw us in our sin, He still saw the cross!

The bridge and last chorus provide a final shift, this time in tense, from past to present.  And what a glorious shift it is!  Though short, the bridge tells of the salvation experience and its aftermath.  It has the view of the repentant sinner (“I saw a cross”) and then the eternal view of God from that moment on: “When God sees me, He only sees the cross!”  This is the doctrine of justification: the guilty being declared innocent, through the sacrificial death of Christ alone. “And you, being dead in your sins…hath he quickened together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses; blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross.” (Colossians 2:13-14)  And when God says “out of the way,” he means way out of the way: “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us.” (Psalm 103:12)  It is only through the prism of the blood of Christ that God can view us as worthy of heaven, and escape the judgment of sin: “…when I see the blood, I will pass over you…” (Exodus 12:13)  Remember and rejoice that no matter what we have done, the salvation work of Jesus Christ on Calvary is the eternal act of atonement and justification!  “For every fault, God sees a cross!”

Oct 02

Now Featuring…Mike Holcomb

HolcombThe announcement yesterday that Mike Holcomb and the Inspirations were parting ways after 42 years resonated strongly in the tightly-knit southern gospel community.  Holcomb is widely admired for his skill at the bass-singing craft, but also for his exemplary spiritual and personal example.  Singing for over forty years in a group one doesn’t own or manage is extremely rare in gospel music, and it is bittersweet to see that end.  The loss of Holcomb is significant for the Inspirations, but many lives will surely be helped by his move into full-time evangelism.

Mike Holcomb holds a special place in gospel music for me on a personal level.  As I’ve said before, I didn’t grow up listening to the major gospel groups, with one exception.  Until I was in college, the only southern gospel group I had ever seen live, and the only one for whom I had a recording, was the Inspirations.  So certainly for me as a kid and teenager, Holcomb was the definition of a quartet bass singer.  I didn’t have anyone else to go by!  But as I’ve learned in the last several years more about this genre of music and about all of the other great bass singers who have come down the line, I still believe I can say that “6’4, 94” fits the bill as a model bass.

Holcomb is a little different from George Younce or Pat Barker, very melodic basses who are lead-singing experts in a bass range.  And he’s not quite like a Tim Riley or Jeff Chapman, who make a living in the basement, hammering low note after low note.  That’s not to say Holcomb isn’t skilled in those aspects.  But Mike is one of the best there ever was at providing a rock-solid rhythmic foundation for traditional quartet singing.

When I think about songs featuring Holcomb, the first songs that come to mind are not songs for which he has an extended solo.  In his most celebrated features, he is stepping out in call-and-response formats, going down octaves or up octaves to provide excitement.  Examples of this are signature songs for him: “When I Wake Up (To Sleep No More),” “When I Walk on Streets of Gold,” “Is That Footsteps That I Hear,” and “Roll On Jordan”.  There are other perhaps less remembered songs that are similar showcases for this ability: “Soul Savin’ Meeting,” “He Made a Way,” “When Reveille Blows From Heaven,” and “In the Twinkle of an Eye” are some of my favorites.

And while I don’t remember him first for solo features, Holcomb has provided plenty of memorable examples of those: “In God’s Hands,” “If You Only Knew,” and “God Makes No Mistakes” are the finest that come to mind for me.

Though he doesn’t hang out at the bottom of the keyboard during most of their songs, Holcomb is widely regarded as one of the lowest bass singers in gospel music history.  If you’ve gone to enough Inspirations concerts, you’ve probably seen that ultra-low range showcased at some point.  “Bend Away Down Low,” from the late 80s, is a good example of this on a studio recording, but there’s something about him hearing him and feeling him rattle the building in person that is exciting.

How did I do covering some of Mike Holcomb’s best work?  What are some of your favorites?  Do you have any special memories or thoughts on this legend of gospel basses?  I’d love to hear from you!

Aug 27

The Ol’ Red-Back

RedBack

It may surprise you that I’m a relative new-comer when it comes to southern gospel music, at least in some aspects.  Less than a decade ago, if you had mentioned Gold City or Legacy Five to me, I would have been as likely to guess that they were movie titles as singing groups.  Though I didn’t grow up with a treasure trove of gospel CDs, or with my radio tuned to a gospel station, I knew many of the songs.  I knew many of the songs because, from the time I was born, three times a week I was in church singing them and hearing them sung.  And for my entire childhood and into early adulthood, I only knew one songbook.

My church was one of many Baptist churches in the Southeast that utilize the Church Hymnal, known everywhere as the “Red-Back,” for congregational and choir singing.  I am no scholar on the history of this hymnal.  But what I do know is that it was published in 1951 by Tennessee Music & Printing Company, now Pathway Press, which is the publishing arm of the Church of God based in Cleveland, Tennessee.  (Pathway Press still sells them like hotcakes!)  It contains standard hymns, traditional gospel songs, and even Christmas and patriotic numbers.  But what sets it apart from many hymnals used in churches today are the convention songs.  The first 150 or so pages of the Church Hymnal are an all-star roster of some of the greatest quartet and convention songs to come out of the 1930s and 1940s, written by giants of the genre like Albert Brumley, Vep Ellis, Luther Presley, Lee Roy Abernathy, and others.  This is the music I cut my teeth on, and the music I still love today.

I’ve been thinking recently about the impact this songbook has had on my Christian life, and the impact it has had on gospel music at large.  Both are quite immeasurable.  But that doesn’t mean I can’t try!  I decided to look at my personal gospel music collection, some 16,000+ tracks strong, and see just how pervasive therein are the songs of the Church Hymnal.    If you don’t like numbers, you may get a little overwhelmed.  But my statistical nerdiness extends to everything that interests me, including gospel music, so buckle up!

The Songs

RedBackSongs

The 410 pages of the Church Hymnal contain 429 songs.  (Now is a good time to mention one of the book’s idiosyncrasies: the pages are numbered, not the songs.  Some songs cover two pages, while some pages contain two songs.  If you’re told to sing 382, for example, you’ll need to be told which song!)  Of those 429 songs, 244 are represented in my personal music collection.  See the chart to right to see which songs are the most popular.  The least surprising thing you’ll read in this post is that I have more versions of “Amazing Grace” than any other song in the Church Hymnal (or any other song, regardless of book).  Also listed are the Christmas carols that just about every southern gospel group has recorded at some point.  The remainder are classic hymns and gospel songs, most of which you can probably sing without much of the book’s help!

Besides the 18 songs listed to the right, there are 44 more songs from the Church Hymnal for which I have 10 or more versions, and 65 more songs on top of those for which I have 5 or more versions.  As you can easily tell, there are a lot of very popular gospel songs in this songbook.

The Artists

RedBackGroupsSo we’ve established that a lot gospel artists have recorded songs from the Church Hymnal.  Now let’s look at specifically who has recorded them, and how often.  Take a look to the left to see which gospel artists have recorded the most of these songs, based on my music collection.

The column titled “Tracks” contains the total number of recordings the group has made that are (or that contain in medley form) songs from the Church Hymnal, including duplicate versions.  The far right column “Songs” contains the number of unique such songs recorded by those groups, that I have in my collection.  So on Gaither Homecoming albums that I have, 124 different songs from the Church Hymnal have been recorded, a total of 191 times.

This list contains many of the longest-lasting and most popular groups on the history of southern gospel music.  They’ve recorded a lot of songs in general, not just a lot of songs out of one songbook.  It’d be perhaps more interesting to see which groups most frequently record them.  Oh, wait, I have that, too!

The Rate

Out of a total of 16,371 total tracks in my collection, 1,586 of them are or contain songs found in the pages of the Church Hymnal, an overall percentage of 9.69%.  Using that as a baseline, check out the chart below to see the percentage of each group’s tracks that are from the red-back.  (Minimum of 100 total tracks in my collection)RedBackRateNow there’s an eye-opener!  I don’t believe any individual in gospel music today has done more to promote and preserve the legacy of the Church Hymnal than Gerald Wolfe.  If you go to enough Greater Vision concerts, or listen to Gerald talk enough, you’ll hear something about the red-back.  I’ve heard Gerald rattle off page numbers of songs off the top of his head, a skill that I share with him, though he would probably whip me in a “Church Hymnal Drill”.  Greater Vision doesn’t just talk about the hymnal…they bank on it, with their music.  They recorded four albums over a period of nine years (the “Church Hymnal Series”) that contain 50 total tracks, recorded with delightful, straight-up arrangements that remain true to the “book”.  Even besides the dedicated series, Greater Vision has recorded plenty of them scattered on other albums.  The result is that their percentage of Church Hymnal songs is significantly higher than anyone else’s.  The Kingdom Heirs, third on the list, have recorded three “red-back” exclusive projects themselves.  I would attribute the Gaither Homecoming’s high place on the list to, by the series’ nature (especially early on), recording a higher proportion of older songs in general.  I’m glad we have artists like those above who are still recording this old-fashioned music!

My Say

RedBackFavsNow that I’ve given you more information than you ever wanted to know, I’d like to share some of my favorite songs from this cherished book of my youth.  See to the right for 10 of my personal favorites, in no particular order except page number.  They are mostly convention songs; I especially love the ones with lots of moving parts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

RedBackUnderThere are also songs that I grew up singing and hearing that, in conducting my research for this post, I was surprised to see how little they have been recorded, if at all.  To the left are some of my favorite “underrated” and “under-recorded” songs from the red-back.  The far right column is the number of recorded versions I have in my collection.  Any readers out there recognize them, love them, or know of any recordings I don’t have?  You never know…if the right person reads this, maybe we can add to the number of recorded versions!  Well, I can dream…

 

 

 

Your Turn

I’d love for you to share with us any special memories you have of the Church Hymnal.  Has it had an impact on you and your love for gospel music?  What are some of your favorite songs?

Aug 21

Album Review: Kevin Mills – Travelin’ Through

CD 4-panel.qxd

Kevin Mills is a Canadian-born country/gospel singer. Born in Winnipeg, Canada in 1985 to the son of a traveling evangelist, Kevin grew up with his family while traveling/touring churches across North America. His first appearance on stage was at the age of 8, and over the next 15 years Kevin would open for his father as a soloist at countless evangelistic meetings and crusades.

Since then Kevin has worked extensively within the music, radio, and voice-over industry. Kevin is currently working with Song Garden Music Group/Grapevine Records of Nashville. This is the same label that represents such musical greats as the Chuck Wagon Gang, Dixie Melody Boys, Jimmy Fortune (from the Statler Brothers) and more.

This new project from Kevin Mills was a pleasant surprise.  I don’t normally like a solo project, but Kevin’s deep baritone vocals won me over.  His voice reminds me of the old country crooner, Don Williams.  Maybe it was Kevin’s cover of William’s song, “You’re My Best Friend”, that reminded of William’s vocals, but nonetheless, their vocals are similar.  This is the 3rd project available from Kevin and is a good CD to listen to while driving, working or just relaxing.

My favorite tracks included ‘Walk On The Water’, ‘Travelin’ Through’ & ‘You’re My Best Friend’.

Track Listing:

  1. Til The Answer Comes
  2. Dig Another Well
  3. Believe In The Dream
  4. Walk On The Water
  5. Travelin Through
  6. Church Bells
  7. You’re My Best Friend
  8. Black And White
  9. Bible And A Belt
  10. Three Wooden Crosses
  11. A Living Prayer
  12. Til The Answer Comes (Reprise)

Rating: 4 stars

CD Available to purchase from: http://www.kevinmillsusa.com

Review Copy Provided

 

Aug 09

Album Review: Born With a Song (Freedom)

FreedomThe latest offering from Freedom, Born With a Song, is interesting on a few different levels.  Chief among them are the circumstances surrounding its release.  Soon after the project was finished and released, lead singer and co-founder Josh Garner accepted the lead position with the Dixie Melody Boys.  The change has been accompanied by good will and encouragement from all parties involved, including Freedom’s other co-founder, tenor John Rulapaugh, which is refreshing.  But it makes for a slightly unusual situation with this recording.  Fans of Freedom, as well as fans of Garner and Rulapaugh, should consider this a must-have collector’s item, since the two voices may never be heard together again.

The exit of Garner from Freedom is not the only personnel-related circumstance affecting Born With a Song.  Baritone Tyler Vestal’s departure from the trio during the recording process created a void that had to be filled.  Who better to fill that void than one of the greatest voices in gospel music today?  Arthur Rice, along with helping produce the recording, stepped in to record the baritone vocals.  You would be hard-pressed to find a recording made by anyone this year with a better collection of voices than Garner, Rulapaugh, and Rice, all of whom are gospel music “all-stars” from a vocal standpoint.

Finally, the song selection makes Born With a Song an intriguing recording.  As the title indicates, most of the songs were drawn from the Singing News charts from the years Garner and Rulapaugh were born (1979 and 1977, respectively).  This creative sort of concept is something you don’t see too often, and also makes for a great assortment of songs, many of which have not been heard enough over the last few decades.  My two favorite examples on this recording are “It Made News in Heaven,” from the Kingsmen’s long list of hits, and “I Won’t Walk Without Jesus,” out of the Hinsons’ catalog.  Another highlight is “I Believe He’s Coming Back;” I was flabbergasted to see how few times it had been recorded since the Happy Goodmans had a monster hit with it.

Only three of the eleven tracks on Born With a Song are on the slow side in tempo.  So 75% of the time as a listener, you’re tapping your foot or bobbing your head, which is a good percentage for my taste.  The style is straight-up no-frills gospel singing (with tracks produced by Gerald Wolfe), and these are voices that can bring it with the best of ’em.  Fans of gospel music who came up in the late ’70s, or who enjoy the music from that period, should find a lot to love about this album.  It’s worth a listen for anyone who likes traditional singing of tried and proven hit songs.  Especially among non-mainline label releases, Born With a Song should go down as one of the year’s best.

Album Rating: 4 stars

Song List:

  1. Somebody Touched the Lord (Sandy Knight)
  2. I Won’t Walk Without Jesus (Ronny Hinson)
  3. One Way Flight (Roger Holmes/Jim Wood)
  4. What Sins Are You Talking About (Harold Lane)
  5. Learning to Lean (John Stallings)
  6. It Made News in Heaven (Gordon Jensen)
  7. Standing on the Solid Rock (Harold Lane)
  8. Rise Again (Dallas Holm)
  9. I Believe He’s Coming Back (Rusty Goodman)
  10. On a Journey (Joe DiQuattro)
  11. Closer to You (Dave Clark)

Available: Freedom Trio

 

Jul 24

Songwriter Series #6: Rodney Griffin

GriffinRodney Griffin is the people’s choice as the best songwriter in southern gospel music today, and in the last decade and a half.  And for good reason.  With thirteen Singing News #1 hits, and many more high on the charts, he is one of the genre’s most prolific hitmakers.  Even more than the hits, however, I believe gospel fans love his unique personality, his tender and humble spirit, and the sincerity of his Christian walk.  All of these are reasons he is not just a fan favorite, but a hero of the faith to many, including me.

When I think of Rodney Griffin songs, two words come to mind: “simple truth”.  He is unparalleled in the ability God has given him to draw out a nugget from the Bible, and put it to music in an engaging way.  Many times have I heard one of his songs for the first time, and came away saying “Wow, I’ve never thought of that story in that way before.”  And my understanding of that particular truth of God’s Word is instantly strengthened.  I will never again think about Joseph of Arimathaea (“He’ll Carry Me”), Mary, Martha’s sister (“He Is Loved”), Judas Iscariot (“He Washed My Feet”), the garment of Jesus the soldiers parted (“Common Garments”), or the sign above Jesus’ head on the cross (“This Is Mercy”) without thinking about what I learned from a Rodney Griffin song.

The relationship between Rodney Griffin and Greater Vision is incredibly beneficial to both parties.  Wouldn’t every group love to have in their ranks one of the great songwriters of their time?  And wouldn’t every songwriter love to have one of the top groups of their time as a direct outlet?  Greater Vision has recorded dozens of Griffin’s songs, but many more are recorded by artists across the genre, including some of the best quartet songs in the last decade, recorded by the likes of the Kingdom Heirs, Triumphant Quartet, and the Kingsmen.  My music collection contains 184 unique Rodney Griffin songs, second only to Kyla Rowland.  See below for some more figures.

Unique songs in my collection: 184

Total songs (including duplicate versions): 278

Most common artists:

  • Greater Vision – 144
  • Kingdom Heirs – 28
  • Whisnants – 11
  • Perrys – 9
  • Kingsmen – 7
  • Mark Trammell Trio/Quartet – 7
  • Triumphant Quartet – 6

Songs with 4 or more versions:

  • He’d Still Been God – 7
  • My Name Is Lazarus – 6
  • Just One More Soul – 5
  • God Wants to Hear You Sing – 4
  • He Had to Rise – 4
  • He Locked the Gates – 4

Oldest Recording: “More and More Like You”, Greater Vision, Serving a Risen Savior (1994)

Newest Recording: Saved Sealed and Going, Inspirations, No Two Ways About It (2013)

 

Now comes the part where I normally list my personal favorite songs by the subject songwriter.  I decided to make it a little easier on myself by splitting his songs into three categories.  Griffin is well-known for writing catchy, sometimes even tongue-tying, uptempo songs.  He is also adept at crafting powerful anthems and ballads, making good use of voices like Gerald Wolfe’s.  And then there are the more quiet, contemplative works, often sung masterfully by Griffin himself, and always with a moving message.  His versatility shows in that there are lots of incredible songs that can be put in each category, and it was still a difficult job to rank my favorites.  (I know not every song fits squarely in one of these three boxes, but I did the best I could.)

Fast

  1. “He Locked the Gates”, Kingdom Heirs, When You Look at Me (2009)
  2. “I Know I’m Going There”, Kingdom Heirs, Forever Changed (2004)
  3. “God’s Grace Is Sufficient”, Greater Vision, When I See the Cross (1997)
  4. “My Name Is Lazarus”, Greater Vision, Far Beyond This Place (1999)
  5. “He’d Still Been God”, Greater Vision, When I See the Cross (1997)
  6. “I’ve Never Been Loved”, Kingdom Heirs, Forever Changed (2004)
  7. “He Lifted Me”, Kingdom Heirs, City of Light (2000)
  8. “Paid in Full (Through Jesus Amen)”,Greater Vision, My Favorite Place (2005)
  9. “Going on with the Song”, Kingdom Heirs, Going on with the Song (2003)
  10. “Looking for the Grace”, Greater Vision, For All He’s Done (2013)

 

Powerful

  1. “He’ll Carry Me”, Greater Vision, Faces (2004)
  2. “God Saw a Cross”, Kingsmen, Missing People (2009)
  3. “Soon We Will See”, Greater Vision, Live at First Baptist Atlanta (2002)
  4. “If You Knew Him”, Perrys, Almost Morning (2009)
  5. “If Only Just a Few”, Mark Trammell Trio, Always Have a Song (2008)
  6. “God Wants to Hear You Sing”, Greater Vision, Perfect Candidate (2001)
  7. “All the Way”, Greater Vision, When I See the Cross (1997)
  8. “Just One More Soul”, Greater Vision, Far Beyond This Place (1999)
  9. “They Should Have Cried Holy”, Greater Vision, Live at First Baptist Atlanta (2002)
  10. “Just Pray”, Greater Vision, Far Beyond This Place (1999)

 

Contemplative/Mid-tempo

  1. “A Pile of Crowns”, Greater Vision, Live at First Baptist Atlanta (2002)
  2. “With All the Many Miracles”, Greater Vision, Live at First Baptist Atlanta (2002)
  3. “Faces”, Greater Vision, Faces (2004)
  4. “Common Garments”, Greater Vision, When I See the Cross (1997)
  5. “It Pays to Pray”, Greater Vision, Not Alone (2008)
  6. “He Washed My Feet”, Greater Vision, Far Beyond This Place (1999)
  7. “The Voice I Could Not Resist”, Greater Vision, My Favorite Place (2005)
  8. “Preacher Tell Me Like It Is”, Greater Vision, For All He’s Done (2013)
  9. “The Spirit of Brokenness”, Greater Vision, The Shepherds Found a Lamb (1996)
  10. “This Is Mercy”, Greater Vision, For All He’s Done (2013)

 

OK, if you’re still hanging in there with me…thanks!  Now I’d like to hear from you!  What are some of your favorites by this songwriting master?  Any particular ways in which his songs have had an impact on you?

Jul 08

Now Featuring…George Younce

YounceWe started off the Now Featuring… series with the great Glen Payne, and it only seemed appropriate to follow that up with the other half of gospel music’s greatest pair.  I called Payne the greatest lead singer in gospel music history.  Believe it or not, I think an argument could be made that for 35 years, the Cathedrals had the two greatest lead singers in the genre’s history in the quartet at the same time.  Of course, George Younce was the bass singer.  But if you define “lead singer” as the singer who sings the melody, how many sang a melody better than Younce?  Not many, if any.  He had it all: a smooth upper register, an emotive delivery, charisma, and genuineness.  That’s why you can come up with a far greater list of feature songs for Younce than for any other gospel music bass.

George Younce sang with the Weatherfords (not at the same time as Payne) and the Blue Ridge Quartet before getting the call to make the Cathedral Trio a quartet in 1964.  He would hold this position until the group’s retirement in 1999, after which he continued touring with the Gaither Homecoming crew, and recorded two projects with the Old Friends Quartet before his death in 2005.  I’m not sure there is a more beloved figure in all of gospel music history; I’ve never heard or read even a hint of a negative thought about him.  His Christian character and love for people was on par with Glen Payne’s.  The only difference is that Younce had the more outgoing and vocal personality, which he used on stage to endear himself to gospel music fans like few others.

All of my top 10 Younce features come from Cathedrals recordings, as you might expect.

  1. “Suppertime”, A Farewell Celebration (1999) – One of several to which you could ascribe “signature song” status for Younce, I chose the poignant performance from the Cathedrals’ farewell concert as the best version.  He was not only one of the greatest singers, but one of the greatest talkers in the genre’s history.  He applied this skill as a stellar emcee, and in recitations such as that contained within “Suppertime”.  George is “packed and ready to go,” and boy, do you believe him.
  2. “I Thirst”, High and Lifted Up (1993) – No talking here, just ultra-smooth singing of a gorgeous song.
  3. “Thanks to Calvary”, A Farewell Celebration (1999) – Once again, I had to choose the emotional “final” live version of this signature song.
  4. “Wedding Music”, The Best of Times (1991) – Younce only sings 75% of one verse by himself, but that doesn’t keep it from being one of his most notable performances.  Bass singers at every level of gospel music in the last 20 years have done their best to replicate that second verse, but there is only one George.
  5. “Sinner Saved by Grace”, Master Builder (1986) – It’s difficult for me to choose between the Cathedrals version and the Gaither Vocal Band version of this, one of my favorite songs ever written.  How about I take the Cathedrals’ version in the verses, featuring George and Glen, and the Vocal Band for the power chorus and ending?
  6. “Beyond the Sunset”, 25th Anniversary (1989) – Who said features had to be sung?  As I said earlier, George’s recitations were just as good.  His reading of “Should You Go First and I Remain” with the “Beyond the Sunset” backdrop is exquisite and eternally tear-jerking.
  7. “This Old House”, Symphony of Praise (1987) – For some reason, this is the only song in my Top 10 that really moves.  I would be remiss not to include a song that George has fun with, because no one appeared to enjoy singing more than him.
  8. “Hold Me”, Goin’ In Style (1988) – This pure, childlike outpouring of the heart could not have gone to a more appropriate singer.
  9. “I Know Who Holds Tomorrow”, I’ve Just Started Living! (1989) – This classic song was transformed into a sweeping power anthem at the hands of Lari Goss, and George handles the verses with aplomb.
  10. “Yesterday”, Welcome to Our World (1972) – Though he’s not celebrated as much for it, Younce was also an excellent songwriter.  This is my favorite of his songs, and he sings it beautifully as well.

 

Now, it’s your turn.  What are you favorite George Younce performances?  I love to hear comments from folks honoring the memory of these great Christians, so please share with us!