averyfineline

Contra the Demotivators assertion that none of us is as dumb as all of us, let’s do a little a Dottie Rambo crowdsourcing shall we. Particularly, I’m interested in high-profile or otherwise noteworthy covers/performances of her songs (yes, The Preacher’s Wife, I know, I know). Please show as much of your work as possible (names, […]

It’s seems about time for one of these. The academic summer of self-directed work is here for me in the real world, which ideally will mean more time to listen and write about some of the music that’s piled up during the school year (plus feel free to suggest an album, recently released or not, […]

In one of those strange convergences of virtual discourse and daily life, the conversation around here over the past few days had turned back round to the topic of Shannon Childress - the well-regarded pianist, songwriter and arranger/producer who was probably best known for his stint with the Hoppers in the 90s. He died early […]

After a while, you get the feeling that you’ve already had that idea … and then discover it’s not just de ja vu. Here’s Paul Ford, noting a phenomenon similar to my experience of strolling through Avery’s archive:
[I]t kept happening: I’d have an idea, search through my archive, and find that I’d already had that […]

The Library of Congress has made a vast collection of rare music available online in something LOC is calling the National Jukebox. Since I’ve been spending a lot of time lately thinking and writing about the early years of gospel music in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, I popped in a couple of names and […]

Finalists in categories for the SN Fan Awards are out and one of Avery’s longtime correspondents passed along this reflection on the Top 10 nominees for Song of the Year:
I’ve heard one of them for sure only because I played it for a guy at church a few weeks back and had to listen to […]

Via DBM, here’s Jennifer Hudson stealing the show with a few lines from “His Eye is On the Sparrow” during an appearance on Jimmy Fallon (the singing starts around the 2:00 mark):

Words (almost) fail in these kinds of wonder-working moments, no? Oddly enough, I found myself trying to make this point just yesterday while finishing […]

It’s been nearly seven years, and Avery’s email inbox never ceases to deliver ever new sources of bemusement. A recent gem, in its entirety:
why do quartets get away with adultery? they sing for God supposedly, who checks up on this?
I actually don’t think it’s a matter of people getting away with it, so much as […]

From the backlog of email I’ve been pushing through, a heads up from reader JM a few weeks back about a sg-affiliated player, Nathan Stoops, who appeared on American Idol late last month. According to JM, Stoops at one time sang with Naomi and the Segos (maybe 5-6 years ago). He has since gone country […]

So while I was away, enLighten, the XM/Sirius sat-rad station for southern gospel, was slated to be kicked off the satellite feed and relegated to the online-only roster, became the cause celebre of a chorus of professionals and fans protesting the plan, and has now been given a reprieve and will remain on the sat-rad […]