Comments on: James Brown 1933 – 2006 http://www.sharpsand.net/2006/12/25/james-brown-1933-2006/ Joseph Duemer's blog about reading, writing, politics, birds, food, & weather Sun, 25 Jul 2010 17:06:12 -0600 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: David http://www.sharpsand.net/2006/12/25/james-brown-1933-2006/comment-page-1/#comment-80 David Wed, 03 Jan 2007 11:50:07 +0000 http://www.sharpsand.net/2006/12/25/james-brown-1933-2006/#comment-80 Hey Joe- I grew up Catholic and they had a way of draining the spirituality out of music, too. Maybe it had something to do with old-arthritic fingers playing a church organ! Down the street from my childhood home in Ossining, NY was a black Baptist Church. On Sundays, after Mass I was always sent to the Italian bakery to pick up a loaf of fresh, HOT! semolina bread. By my tenth birthday I spent many Sunday mornings in front of this church listening to great Gospel music. And when I heard James Brown for the first time in 1966 it didn't take too long to figure out where he learned his craft. Don't be too hard on the beach boys though. You can trace their linneage back through the Everly Brothers, the Louvain Brothers and the Carter Family. All three families were raised on the Emily Dickinson-inspired Gospel music you alluded to. Happy New Year...lets break some bread together, soon. Hey Joe-

I grew up Catholic and they had a way of draining the spirituality out of music, too. Maybe it had something to do with old-arthritic fingers playing a church organ!

Down the street from my childhood home in Ossining, NY was a black Baptist Church. On Sundays, after Mass I was always sent to the Italian bakery to pick up a loaf of fresh, HOT! semolina bread.

By my tenth birthday I spent many Sunday mornings in front of this church listening to great Gospel music. And when I heard James Brown for the first time in 1966 it didn’t take too long to figure out where he learned his craft.

Don’t be too hard on the beach boys though. You can trace their linneage back through the Everly Brothers, the Louvain Brothers and the Carter Family. All three families were raised on the Emily Dickinson-inspired Gospel music you alluded to.

Happy New Year…lets break some bread together, soon.

]]> By: Joseph Duemer http://www.sharpsand.net/2006/12/25/james-brown-1933-2006/comment-page-1/#comment-63 Joseph Duemer Fri, 29 Dec 2006 13:39:49 +0000 http://www.sharpsand.net/2006/12/25/james-brown-1933-2006/#comment-63 Genevieve, I'm afraid that the suburban Grace Brethren congregation I was a member of as a boy had managed to take the great tradition of the Protestant hymn -- the tradition that inspired Emily Dickinson -- and completely drain it of passion, interest & intelligence. It was like singing with robots. Some earnestness would have helped, but I don't remember any. So, sorry, but those are the facts, at least as they are registered in my memory. Genevieve, I’m afraid that the suburban Grace Brethren congregation I was a member of as a boy had managed to take the great tradition of the Protestant hymn — the tradition that inspired Emily Dickinson — and completely drain it of passion, interest & intelligence. It was like singing with robots. Some earnestness would have helped, but I don’t remember any. So, sorry, but those are the facts, at least as they are registered in my memory.

]]> By: Genevieve http://www.sharpsand.net/2006/12/25/james-brown-1933-2006/comment-page-1/#comment-62 Genevieve Fri, 29 Dec 2006 06:35:15 +0000 http://www.sharpsand.net/2006/12/25/james-brown-1933-2006/#comment-62 Please don't be too hard on the music you sang at your childhood church. Obviously, it sounded different than the Gospel music you heard later. Still, the music in that church was the music of a unique time and place, no doubt earnestly sung by many, and it is interesting and deserving of some respect for that reason. Please don’t be too hard on the music you sang at your childhood church. Obviously, it sounded different than the Gospel music you heard later. Still, the music in that church was the music of a unique time and place, no doubt earnestly sung by many, and it is interesting and deserving of some respect for that reason.

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