Generating page narration, please wait...

Overview

Around 1968, at the close of the golden age of gospel, music approaches applied new stylistic labels to gospel such as urban contemporary gospel, holy hip-hop, hip-hop gospel, or just contemporary gospel, to name a few. Many continue to use these labels to describe gospel music from the late 1960s to the present day. As gospel music's boundaries concerning its stylistic labels continue to expand, notable differences in music characteristics and performance practices contribute to gospel music's broad appeal at this juncture.

Be ready to:

List important events and artists' accomplishments that contributed to the contemporary gospel.

Recall specific performers/composers and their songs that engendered the transition between the golden age of gospel and contemporary gospel.

Identify contemporary gospel songs that borrow music elements from secular songs, specifically how they incorporate music characteristics and performance practices similar to those found in soul, funk, and disco music.

Explain the use of many stylistic labels as applied to contemporary gospel music.

Discover Music

Discover Video

Keywords

Listening Guides

References

History and Key Performers of Urban Contemporary Gospel: The Late 1960s to 1970s 2

We have already covered the beginning of contemporary gospel by looking at some music of the Edwin Hawkins Singers and James Cleveland. Now let's look at a few performers and events of contemporary gospel music during the 1970s. Perhaps the most significant event during this time includes the 1972 album Amazing Grace: The Complete Gospel Recordings by James Cleveland's Southern California Community Choir, featuring Aretha Franklin. Aretha Franklin could have proclaimed whatever she wanted when she walked up the aisle of the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Watts, Los Angeles, on January 13, 1972. Her performance would be the first of two nights there. Her introduction, to audience cheers and an arsenal of microphones and cameras, gave her enough confidence to shout in a voice that has become internationally familiar.

The notes to the hymn 'Amazing Grace'

Aretha Franklin's Amazing Grace album cover

Amazing Grace also became a milestone because of Franklin's call-and-response with her collaborators. Cleveland's vocal tone and compositions are even more influential than Franklin's voice within the church. He also brought choirs to a higher level of precision. But Cleveland never worked with a more accomplished rhythm section than on this album, primarily Franklin's working band of bassist Chuck Rainey, drummer Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, and guitarist Cornell Dupree. The group and environment gave Franklin space and support to sing with more freedom than she had when she cranked out two- or three-minute singles throughout the preceding decade.

Aretha Franklin also released an album of the 1972 event at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church. Her recording of the title track "Amazing Grace" is indeed amazing.

Aretha Franklin - Amazing Grace (Live at New Temple Missionary Baptist Church, 1972) [ 00:00-00:00 ]

Mahalia Jackson

Gospel music is nothing but singing of good tidings-spreading the good news. It will last as long as any music because it is sung straight from the human heart.

Whitney Houston

I'm an old-fashioned girl. And I love gospel. I like things that lift me up, inspire me.