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Dorsey, the "Father of Gospel Music" described gospel, saying, "It's evangelistic, it has a rhythm and carries a message with the feeling and fever that many sacred songs do not have, the gospel is good news." "Good News" is often used as a reference to the word of God. Gospel music is sometimes simply called good news. Thomas Andrew Dorsey, the "Father of Gospel Music," began using the phrase "gospel songs" in the mid-1920s, for a new kind of religious music. GGospels are songs of worship with the bounce and rhythm of early blues and jazz. This music already had a number of champions, but Dorsey's commitment would give rise to a gospel movement in Chicago that would spread worldwide. His association with gospel music was so strong that for decades, songs in this style were simply called "Dorseys." Thomas A. Dorsey grew up in the South, home of the blues. He was born in Villa Rica, Georgia, on July 1, 1899, to Thomas Madison and Etta Plant Dorsey. Dorsey's father was a traveling preacher and his mother played the organ at church. Between 1914 and 1920, the Great Migration saw countless African Americans move North looking for a better life. As Dorsey remembered of his decision to move North, "[T]hey said it was a place of freedom. I was looking for that. And it was freer." The freedom and opportunity sought by Dorsey and his fellow migrants found expression in an explosion of new music in Chicago-jazz, blues, and gospel. Soon Chicago's thriving music scene attracted African Americans from all over the nation. Almost all of Chicago's gospel legends were born elsewhere, but found an outlet for their talents here. In Chicago, Dorsey, known during these years by several stage names--Barrelhouse Tom, Texas Tommy, and, most commonly, Georgia Tom--started out playing theaters, clubs, and rent parties (parties held to raise rent money). By 1930, however, Georgia Tom Dorsey had become a success as a bluesman--composing, performing, and recording the blues with many talented musicians, including Ma Rainey and Tampa Red. Georgia Tom Dorsey worked with many of the significant early blues performers of Chicago. "Ma" and her husband "Pa" Rainey played across the country in the early days of the blues. Dorsey saw her sing at the 81 Theater as early as 1912, when he was just 13. A decade later, Dorsey, living and working in Chicago, was asked to put a new band together for her. Ma Rainey and her Wild Cats Jazz Band opened at Chicago's Grand Theater to a full house. Thomas Andrew Dorsey met Nettie Harper at Dorsey's uncle's rooming house, where Nettie and Thomas each boarded for a time. On August 1, 1925, they were married in Chicago and on August 2 they left to travel with Ma Rainey and her band. Ma hired Nettie to be her wardrobe mistress. Nettie and Thomas were on the road together and Thomas was arranging and playing for one of the biggest stars in his profession. Dorsey said, "[I]t was a joy, just like a big long honeymoon." In late summer 1932, Dorsey went to a meeting in St. Louis for a few days. Nettie was pregnant, and Dorsey felt sure that on his return he would see his wife and newborn child safe and healthy at home. While he was gone, Dorsey received word that Nettie had died during childbirth. Dorsey's newborn son died the next day. Dorsey wrote "Precious Lord, Take My Hand" in the days after this affliction. The power of this plea for guidance and comfort arising from Dorsey's grief has been an inspiration to people around the world. By 1932, Dorsey's had already put together the first-ever gospel choir with Theodore Roosevelt Frye at Ebenezer Baptist Church and now he directed the choir at Pilgrim Baptist Church. In 1933, the first National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses was held at Pilgrim Baptist Church. Within the next year, Dorsey established and expanded the institutions that would secure his place as a gospel legend. The growth of the Dorsey House of Music and the creation of the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses would demonstrate the power of Dorsey's commitment to gospel. n the late 1970s, few outside the gospel community knew of Thomas A. Dorsey's contributions. Between 1979 and 1983, Dorsey's star rose again. In 1979, Thomas Andrew Dorsey became the first African American inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. He was recognized in a tribute at the Smithsonian Institution and in the documentary Say Amen Somebody. Following the movie, Dorsey was honored at universities and cities across the globe. Bibliography: Word Count: 812
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