GOSPEL MUSIC (1940s)GABRIELLE WILLIAMS, GABRIELLE BRIM, AND IMANI JONES

u In the late 1930s early 1940s there was a shift from the traditional spirituals

u The 1940s was the era of traditional gospel music

u During this time gospel music as a genre was still being formed, the sound was still developing

u In the 1940s and after many gospel albums by African Americans were lost and there have been efforts to locate and preserve this music.

u Utilizing a rocking beat in gospel was created in the 1940s

u Blues had an influence on early gospel since the musicians in churches were the same people who were performing in clubs

u In 1944 the Apollo Records in New York was created and the company recorded many black gospel artists such as Mahalia Jackson, the Dixie Hummingbirds

u Sister Rosetta Tharpe had a rock and roll style and in the 1940s she was very popular among gospel musicians. She also performed secular music in clubs which had an influence on the way she sung gospel music

u Rosetta Tharpe recorded “Strange Things Happening Every Day” and “Two Little Fishes and Five Loaves of Bread” in 1944

u Rosetta Tharpe’s style was frowned upon by the religious community because she had jazz elements in her gospel music

u Mahalia Jackson recorded “Move on Up a Little Higher” in 1947

u Pastor W. Herbert Brewster wrote “Move on Up a Little Higher” and it won an award in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

u Jackson’s single sold over 8 million copies and held the record for the highest selling gospel single in history