Thomas Dorsey, the Father of Gospel Music

Thomas Dorsey

Thomas Dorsey was an African-American born in 1899 near Atlanta, Georgia – one of ten children.  His father was a well-respected itinerant preacher and his mother was the organist in their church, a skill she cheerfully taught her son.  As a young man, he left home to go to Chicago and study music – music that paid, that of jazz and the blues.  Despite his mother’s pleadings to not pursue “the Devil’s music” he became fairly successful in the 1920s, playing in clubs under the name “Georgia Tom” Dorsey. 

Tom’s mother’s prayers, however, continued to follow him and he found himself torn between the secular and the spiritual.  A couple periods of depression which he later called “God interruptions,” during which he even contemplated suicide, led him back to church where the pastor told him, “Dorsey, the Lord has too much work for you to do to let you die.”

His pastor’s admonition led him to write gospel music – Christian music with a blues vibe.  Music of this style was initially slow to catch on, and Tom found himself having to rely on his secular music composition for a while until 1930 when he was hired by Pilgrim Baptist Church in Chicago to organize one of the first gospel choirs.  This style of music then quickly caught on, especially among black churches in America, and led to his becoming known as the “Father of Gospel Music.”  During this time, he mentored and trained many noted musicians, including Mahalia Jackson who he later toured with.  From this position, he also founded the first publishing house dedicated to publishing music by African-American composers.

He was not too far along in this position when, while in Indianapolis organizing a choir, he received a telegram informing him that his wife had died in childbirth.  He rushed home to find out that his newborn son had died as well.  Turning to his piano, he felt what he later described as a “mystical experience.”  He later recounted, “As my fingers began to manipulate over the keys, words began to fall in place on the melody like drops of water falling from the crevice of the rock.”

                Precious Lord, take my hand, Lead me on, help me stand;
                I am tired, I am weak, I am worn;
                Thru the storm, thru the night, Lead me on to the light,
                Take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.

                When my way grows drear, Precious Lord, linger near;
                When my life is almost gone,
                Hear my cry, hear my call, Hold my hand lest I fall;
                Take my hand, precious Lord, lead me home.

“Precious Lord” was said to be Rev Martin Luther King Jr’s favorite hymn.  Shortly before his murder, his last words were to his music leader, “Ben, be sure to play ‘Take My Hand Precious Lord’ at the meeting tonight.  Play it real pretty.”  Dorsey’s protégé, Mahalia Jackson, sang it at his funeral.

Thomas Dorsey wrote nearly a thousand gospel songs over the course of his life, including “Peace in the Valley.”  He passed away into the arms of His Lord in 1993, after a nearly two-decade struggle with Alzheimers.

 

Morgan, Robert J., Then Sings My Soul, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003.

https://www.inspirationalchristians.org/influencers/thomas-dorsey-biography/

https://blackamericaweb.com/2019/07/01/little-known-black-history-fact-thomas-dorsey/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_A._Dorsey