Tonight from Pittsburgh.

It's Make a Joyful Noise with the music that stirs your soul.

Featuring the talent of the greater Pittsburgh alumni Carol Lauren Moncrief and Virginia Woodruff and the Treble Jones, with commentary by musicologist, the Reverend Richard Allen Farmer.

It's time to raise your voice and praise on Make a Joyful Noise.

Before.

I got a rumble in on that kingdom.

of that good news I got up and let me down.

Of that good news I'm gonna lay down this world.

I'm gonna take it up to my Jesus.

I got a crown up in.

That's good news.

High right up front of me.

Jesus That's good news.

I'm gonna lay down this world, for a shoulder up my cross.

Gonna take it all to my Jesus.

Good news.

I got a savior into that kingdom.

And, that's good news, I got a savior into that kingdom.

And, that's good news, that's great.

to my Jesus.

I got, I got the father ring in that kingdom and of that.

Good news.

I got the father ring in that kingdom and of that is good news.

Up, up I cross, gonna take me up to my Jesus.

Bring up my good news Gonna take me up to my Jesus Good News Hello, I'm Chris Moore, the producer and host for Make a Joyful Noise.

This is the sixth year that we have done this program.

And on tonight's program, I think that you will enjoy some of Pittsburgh's best gospel performers.

And we also have this year, as we did last year, Reverend Richard Allen, farmer noted musicologist, my former pastor, who is now the dean of the chapel at Gordon College in Boston, Massachusetts.

Welcome back.

Thank you, Chris, glad to be back.

Ain't that good news?

Now that's one of the, old traditional gospel tunes again.

And I think what we have here is a lot of repetition.

Is that very common?

Yes, that is very common.

Sometimes it's very annoying, to tell you the truth, because you get to the point where indeed repetition is the is very important.

It's one of the ways we learn by rote.

But there's a point at which it almost becomes monotonous.

And actually, over a period of time, you almost don't even know what you're saying.

You're both for the singer and the listener.

It becomes a real problem.

But there have been times when I've been just a little bit tired of a phrase.

I remember hearing one gospel record and I that was one phrase was going on so long I counted it, and they sang one phrase 40 times.

And I think that's a little bit much.

It works for some songs.

But you said that it is repeated, or repetition is used in a lot of songs like jazz.

Yes.

Jazz will have very frequently.

You get this kind of thing.

And you'll just have that going on forever.

And the guys will just start taking their solos Yes, yes.

And I'm not bearing this very much harmonically.

I mean, it'll just go like this.

But then for that be part of the solos will take a little piece and scat a little bit.

And the guitars take a little piece, drum roll, take some.

And no one says a thing about that.

That's part of what jazz is, or repetition of a few sequences.

But there's more to gospel music because there's always a message behind yes, yes.

And some would say we must repeat the message until we drive it home.

So those in favor of repetition would say, hey, listen, just sing it until we get it.

But can that be a way to lead someone to God just by just by rote, over and over and over again?

So some would say yes, some would say what we believe.

We believe because we have heard it over and over and over again until it became true.

Like someone telling you I love you, you can't ever hear it too much.

You won't say, listen, I heard it enough.

You don't need to tell me again.

We love to hear it.

And every time we hear it, it becomes more and more true.

It's confirmed.

Others would say, no, you don't understand.

You need to put it in front of the person and let them just chew on a little bit so they those who don't favor so much repetition would say you're guilty of overkill here.

And it also is part of a black church service where emotion and spiritual involvement is so much a part of of the service.

And be it a quiet kind of yes, Lord, I believe, or a very effervescent yes bubbling over.

Either way, it's part of the emotional forces that we go through.

Yes, very, very emotional and very willing to stray from the spirit.

One of the things about our music is that if it's printed on one page, that doesn't mean we only have to sing it.

One time I was speaking to an audience made up primarily of Caucasians recently, and they said, what are some of the differences you travel in both worlds?

What are some of the differences between, quote, white worship and black worship?

When I told them, well, one of the ways that we see the differences is in the way we sing hymns, you folk singing hymns, and if it has three stanzas, you sing, you sing three stanzas.

If it's getting good to us, we'll sing the three stanzas three times and sing the chorus, and we just keep singing it over and over.

After we close the book, you folks just stick to the script and we will likely to go on from there into another song.

So there's a lot more flexibility and willing to repeat.

We've got another group that's coming up right now that's it's got to be my favorite in this particular show, because I'm from the South and I grew up with these male quintets and quartets and just a guitar, because we didn't have anything else at the time.

And the music, I really love it.

I just love it.

That's the travel time.

That's a very distinctive sound that we're going to hear in a moment, because that sound has not changed much over the over the years.

When you hear groups like The Mighty Clouds of Joy and the Dixie hummingbirds and the Blind Boys of Alabama, and all the groups whose lanes end with errors, you know, the joy errors and all the errors and the tones.

You really are hearing some people who really stayed with a form and art form, a musical form.

And this song is a much more narrative.

They usually tell stories, I shouldn't say usually, but frequently tell a story in their songs.

So you get, I want to tell you about some time ago when I was down in Mississippi, where I, where I want to tell you and you hear the guitar kind of tuning up a little bit, you know.

No, no, no, no.

And I want to tell you, there was a day when I was young and I wanted.

And.

And so you get to telling the story and the guitar just going.

It's a wonderful sound because that song hasn't really been tampered with very much.

That has gone on continually is a wonderful sound.

Well, it's the sound that I love and I think we should listen to it right now.

Let's hear it.

Oh, there was a woman in the Bible day.

She had been sick for very long, but she heard about Jesus was passing by on heavenly road, and while she was pushing away through the sun, What do you try to do?

But you just took the name of the storm, and I will be made whole.

I stood there crying, oh no, she cried.

Oh oh she cried Amen.

I will be faithful when anybody hear this.

I could see hand.

Oh!

Oh boy.

You know the doctor and the Holy.

Is here to get her to write somebody touch me.

You know, I could just under some and I will be made whole.

Jesus stood there.

Oh, God, oh, Lord, oh, Lord.

Oh, Lord.

She just stand there and I will be faithful.

He stood there like, oh la la la la la la la la la la la la.

Oh Lord Amen, I will be there.

You are some something.

I'm an unknown.

There are some places that I cannot go.

But I am sure One thing that God is real for I can feel God is really, really real.

I can feel.

God is real, for I can feel it in my soul.

There are some things.

I may not know.

There are some moments when I am all alone, but I am sure.

love this one thing that God is real, where I can feel God is really real.

I can feel God is real, for I can feel in my soul.

I can feel God is real Love for me.

Real.

in my soul I know God.

is so real.

At the beginning of the year.

So real.

He's really real.

So real.

Get started.

So real.

I know.

Don't go.

So real.

He's real.

Oh my God, he's so real.

God is real.

He take me home.

Oh whoa!

Oh, real.

take me home.

Oh oh.

Oh.

Oh.

Hey, pick me up and turn me around.

Oh.

Oh.

Oh.

Jesus.

Jesus hallelujah Say oh please love Jesus Oh, God.

Oh.

Jesus But I do need to know how you know God.

Oh, yeah.

Jesus, Jesus Oh, yes.

Jesus.

hallelujah oh.

Oh.

So glad Jesus Oh, you know, you both got.

Hero Yeah.

Thank you.

hallelujah when you say oh, I was living in a world of sin.

Oh, I didn't know.

Oh, no joy I called you Jesus.

Heard me.

Yeah, he washed my sins.

So happy I got to play.

Oh, you said and.

the love of Jesus for you.

oh, all the blood of Jesus, Side.

Thank you.

Jesus.

Yeah.

So glad So glad Thank you Jesus Say Say Say The song that we have just seen.

Hallelujah.

Oh the blood.

It's it's one of those traditional old hymns that we are very familiar with.

And I guess it's it's the kind of song that we have seen throughout gospel music.

Yes.

That's one of those old songs that addresses one of the grand themes of the Christian life.

And one of those grand themes is the death of Christ, and what that means for the believer.

And one of the little pieces of that death of Christ scenario is the importance of his blood.

The Old Testament has a line in it in the book of Leviticus that says that the life of the creature is in the blood, so that it is not enough for a person to say, I'm laying down my life.

It is almost as if to say, the life hasn't really been given until the blood is shed.

A creature could conceivably give a limb, or give some lip service to their love for another person, but it's when they give their blood that they have actually given their lives.

And so we really celebrate the blood of Christ.

And in many of our gospel songs, we just love to sing about the blood, especially in our communion services, the Eucharist, as it would be called.

In some traditions.

We sing there's power in the blood, nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh, the blood!

The blood will never lose its power.

Which is a little newer of a song written by Andre Crouch.

And so it goes on and on and on.

We sing about the blood.

You talked about newer songs, and we both know, and everyone watching this program knows that gospel music is changing and there's more of a driving rhythm in.

And a lot of the more contemporary kinds of songs that some people find distasteful.

Some people find it distasteful only because it represents for them our moving away from what they see to be one of the last things we can call our own.

This gospel music has a certain sound, and it's a tradition, and it ought to be anchored and set in concrete.

Whereas our version of Handel's Messiah.

Where's our version of box Magnificat, where you don't touch it, you just you always perform it.

The same way and you just leave it alone.

It's got a sense of sacredness to it and you just don't tamper with it.

And I think what many of our people are beginning to say is, hey, wait a minute.

Every time you get a song, you start making it more and more like the contemporary songs we hear on the radio, and we're going to lose that distinctive sound.

And so I think the purists are beginning to get in an uproar saying, hey, wait a minute, it doesn't sound like gospel anymore.

It sounds like what I hear elsewhere.

How important is it, though, to be creative?

On the other hand, and especially open the ears and minds of young people who may want to hear that kind of rhythmic beat?

That's probably the hardest part of the question, because there are those who say, listen, music, by its very nature, has to address every generation and every audience.

And we have to tailor it to meet the needs of the listener.

And if that listener is listening to it in an 80s context, then we have to make it sound like an 80 song.

Others are saying, listen, people of the 80s have to get in touch with the history of the song, so let's sing it like it was sung and let them enjoy it then.

And somewhere in the middle there is the musician who is writing with a great appreciation for history and respecting it, but also listening.

It's something like preaching someone who said that a good preacher writes a sermon with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other, that they want to anchor their message somewhere between the historical Word of God and the current events which we must address as we address the people of God and the gospel song wants to go back to the tradition and wants to hark back to its roots, and at the same time, it wants to be a contextual song, and it wants to address people in its time and in those people's generation, making it sound like a contemporary song.

So the argument will probably be going on for as long as we're alive.

And beyond that.

Well, I'll tell you what, let's let everyone else enjoy some of the contemporary and traditional music that we have in the rest of this song.

We've come to say through the saints who are so depressed, don't give up, Jesus.

will help you.

He won't leave you, will see you through.

All the pain.

Oh, father.

Just be still.

You'll see the storm that's really yes he will.

So don't give up Don't give up.

Oh, whatever father Lord We've been bear Do don't give up Don't give up.

Just keep the faith.

I'm patient with me.

way.

Oh, burden sound with sorrow.

Just look up.

Jesus is within you.

We won't leave you.

We'll see you through.

Oh, don't bother.

Just be still.

You'll see the storm that's raging.

Yes, he will.

So don't give up Our heavenly Father knows how much We confess.

Oh, don't give up.

Oh.

Just give up faith and patience.

I hear music Everywhere, I hear music Everywhere I hear music Oh, God bless.

I hear music There is an ocean surrounding me.

Mostly.

The water is calm.

Just enough breeze to keep me sailing.

I feel safe and warm.

Angry winds blow suddenly.

How this world can threaten me.

When I hear the master speak with the authority.

Peace be still, peace be still peace be still to the wind.

And the wave.

he says.

Peace be still.

Peace be still.

Peace be still.

And the ocean obey.

There is an ocean inside my heart.

Mostly the water is calm.

There's just enough breeze to keep me sailing.

And I feel safe and wound.

Angry winds blow.

Suddenly I become my charm and I hear a quite voice He says to me.

Peace be still, peace be still, peace be still.

And the wind and the waves.

He says peace me still.

He says.

peace me still.

Be still in the ocean.

Oh, baby.

Angry winds blows out of me I'll be gone.

Then I hear the quite voice He says to me.

Peace be still.

Peace be sting.

Oh!

Peace be still to the wind and the waves.

Peace.

Be still.

Be still in the ocean.

Oh.

Bangs down, he says peace in the ocean.

Obey.

Peace be still a wonderful song.

And the song that we are about to hear.

Right after this peace that we're doing.

Past me.

Not old gentle savior.

They both come from stories in the New or Old Testament, New Testament, New Testament.

Yes, both have to do with a narrative from the life of Jesus.

One has to do with his being aboard a ship with his disciples and Jesus having fallen asleep, and the disciples being tossed by a storm.

And they go and wake up Jesus, who is quite soundly asleep.

And they said, don't you even care that we're perishing?

And he simply stands up and speaks to the winds and the waves, and says to them, peace, be still.

And that story has always been connected with the power of Christ over all forces, the forces of nature, and particularly his ability to calm, a raging storm, so to speak.

And of course, its use then to speak of the storms in one's personal life and how this Lord can calm them.

What about past me now?

old gentle savior past me now old gentle savior Savior is an old hymn that we usually sing in quite a gospel fashion.

Most of our, song, most of our services.

It is also based on an old New Testament story, an old story in the New Testament, having to do with a blind man who was sitting on the side of the road as Jesus passed by and he simply called out to Jesus, Savior, Son of David, have mercy on me.

And the the master did not pass him by.

And there's a wonderful story about the fact that we can get the Lord's attention, but it's usually sung like this in the church passed me now old gentle Savior, with a very deliberate beat.

Hear my hope.

And it just keeps dropping.

While others now are calling to not pass me by.

you will hear a little different treatment in the version we're about to hear, but the same kind of thing, and just sung as a plaintive cry to the master that just as you did not pass the blind man, don't pass me.

But that's part of the magic of gospel music, and magic is probably a bad word.

I'm sorry, but that's part of the appeal of gospel music that it does continue to change.

We spoke about that earlier in the program and how it always is evolving, depending on who's playing it and who who takes it and moves.

Yes.

In fact, the fascinating compilation, a wonderful tape to put together sometime might be taking one song and putting together all the arrangements that have been done of that one song over the years, because there are some wonderful versions of Past Man Out of Gentle Savior, which are very upbeat, and others that are just lilting like the one I just played, and some others that are very staid.

And so you get wonderful renditions of this one song.

How did different people see that hymn?

I'll see that story.

Well, let's see how the following people see that hymn.

Excellent.

Oh, patch me not.

Oh, gentle savior, oh, hear, hear my amen.

Oh, Christ.

And why I would call oh me.

Oh, do you, you not press me by.

I'm singing share the love and say, say.

Share here.

Hum, hum.

Oh, Christ.

Oh, I own other I would call oh Holy Savior.

You know never, never, never, never pass me by.

Oh, by all the spring.

Come.

All right.

Oh, Bird savior.

Oh, oh that I am I to be.

Oh, I Savior.

Oh, in heaven.

Nobody.

Nobody but me I love him, I love him, I love him, I love him, I stay there gentle love and say.

Say Savior please.

You're here.

Oh, oh oh.

Whoa Me savior I do do that.

Mess me up.

Oh, let me up I know the mercy, Savior.

Glory.

Oh man like that like to me.

Come on, I heard this, I think the Savior who in heaven.

Nobody.

Nobody but me.

Oh, oh oh, Savior Savior please turn here.

Oh.

Come on.

Never I would calling savior no, not bad, old man.

Keep up.

Oh.

You Oh Consider the without the fear.

Solemn and dressed in royal robe.

Have not the word fulfilled?

Consider the lilies of the field.

Take after each and every need.

Leave all your cares behind.

Seek him and you will find your father.

Love you so consider the creatures of the air.

For all the diamonds in all the earth have not the well fulfilled.

Consider the creatures of the air he takes after each and every need.

He knows your every care.

His touch is always there to see you through the night.

And Jehovah, I love you so.

Jesus, I want you to know all you done for me.

To set me free I'll never let you go.

Jehovah I love you so.

Jesus, I want you to know all you've done for me.

To set me free.

I'll never let you go.

Consider the lilies of the field.

Well, how much more does he love his own?

If Yahweh cares for them?

Consider the creatures of the air takes after each and every need.

If we ask him for bread, will he give us the stone?

The father loves you so.

Jehovah, I love you so.

Jesus, I want you to know all you've got for me to set me free.

I'll never let you go.

Jehovah, I love you so.

Jesus, I want you to know.

All you got for me to set me free I'll never let you go.

And Jehovah, I love you, so.

And Jesus, I want you to know all you've done for me.

You'll keep setting me free.

I'll never let you go.

Oh, you're done for me.

Set me free I'll never let you go.

Jehovah, Jehovah.

You mean the world to me.

I love you from the bottom of my heart in the dark.

So much for the whole world.

Your whole life.

I want the whole world to know.

So have you done for me on Calvary?

Never let you go.

Jehovah, I love you, Jesus.

I want you to know all you've done to me, I never let go.

Well, we've just about rounded out another.

Make a joyful Noise and we hope that we'll come back with something a little more creative next year.

We've got some different ideas and, we're going to try to put them together.

I hope you'll come back and join us.

I would love to come back and join.

You would love that very, very much.

Okay.

We're going to close with another one of those repetitive gospel songs.

Yes.

This is a almost a version of shouting music.

Shouting music is music that has been used primarily in the Pentecostal church, but certainly not limited there to it's music that is very repetitious and the people would actually, in worship, dance to it.

There'll be a few phrases repeated over and over, and then the music just continues.

You hear some of that with the the vocalists stop and the music just plays a while.

You might hear some of that.

You also hear just a very subjective kind of song.

This now does not give objective statements about God, but rather let me tell you what he's done for me.

It's a musical testimony, almost as if a person were on the stand.

I'll tell it.

I'll tell it what he's done for me.

And then you just hear this running kind of a, you know, You don't know, like I know what he's done for me and you don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

Don't you tell him.

Let me tell it.

What he's done to me in the tagline is what he's done for me.

And they simply celebrate.

Listen, let me tell you what God has done for me now.

They never tell you too much.

In the song about what he's done, what he's done is done.

There'll be a few lines.

He took my feet out of the miry clay.

That's what he's done for me.

But you almost hear a person wanting to say, listen, we don't even have enough time, but if I could, I just love to tell you all that he's done for me.

And everybody gets to sort of pass that around.

Everybody gets past that around?

Yes.

Just like jazz, you know, just like the guitarist takes a little piece and he does a little solo.

Well, in the church you have a person saying, look, let me have a little piece.

Let me tell.

I know a preacher will get his chance to talk in the choir.

He gets a chance to sing.

But could I just tell it?

Let me tell what he's done for me.

And another person says, look, let me tell it what he's done for me.

As part of our participatory service that.

Yes, yes, we're not just watching.

We're here to bear witness to what God has done in our lives.

Very upbeat, very celebrated.

We've come from a week of hard knocks.

And I just want to tell you what he's done for me, how he kept me all week long.

Let me tell it.

You'll hear that kind of celebrate of air.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

and you don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

I go.

and you don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

and you don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

Oh you can't tell it.

and you don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

while he save my soul make me hope You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

Tell me a miracle.

You don't know what I know You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

What he's done for me.

What he's done for me.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

Oh, I know.

Oh.

Oh.

What he's done for me.

What he's done for me.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

You don't know know know You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

Oh my.

I know, I know.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

oh he save my soul Maybe.

Oh Set me free.

What he's done for me.

You don't know, like I know what he's done for me.

What he's done for me.

What he's done for me.

Oh, oh.

Oh!

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