• List Price: $174.99  
• Your Price: $131.24
• In Stock: 9

You must login to place orders.




Not purchasing for a business? See our consumer site.

In the 1950s, a quartet from Memphis, Tennessee changed the face of American gospel music. They brought the excitement and passion of gospel to millions, finding a huge national following for white Southern gospel music. Young Elvis Presley had his heart set on joining, and was a regular backstage visitor. They were The Blackwood Brothers.

For the first fifteen years, the Blackwood Brothers travelled to small town church concerts, got up early for local radio shows, and sold songbooks out of the trunk of their car. Then, in 1950 they moved to Memphis, and suddenly things began to change. Their music was infused with a new energy, influenced by the Memphis scene of blues, jazz, R&B, and black gospel. They went where no white quartet had gone before.

The Blackwoods took songs at the fastest tempo, and always had the hottest piano player. They had the most animated stage act, jumping around, bending over backwards, throwing the microphone stand back and forth. They had the most daring, the most complex, and most unique arrangements, often ending on breathtaking high sustained harmonies. They also had the most diverse repertoire, drawing from the rich heritage of black gospel music They sounded like no other group in music, and created a style that was the Blackwood Brothers.

This set comprises the Blackwoods' complete Victor recordings from 1952 to 1959, and includes all-time favorites like Rock-a-My Soul, It Is No Secret, Mansion Over the Hilltop, Swing Down Chariot, Take My Hand Precious Lord, My God Is Real, His Hand in Mine, How Great Thou Art and other songs later popularized by Elvis Presley. This set also includes all of the Blackwoods' early albums.
Also included is a 82-page book, researched and written by Charles K. Wolfe, together with a complete discography by Paul Davis & Richard Weize and many unpublished photos.

Track Listing