Hopefully, everyone
who reads this will find Wally's words to be good advice.
The man who wrote those words, "Genial, Jolly Wally
Fowler" was the founder of the Oak Ridge Quartet.
He was also the man who is credited with creating the
All-Nite Sing. His All Nite Sing programs were first held
at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee, the original
home of the Grand Old Opry. After the Friday night Opry
show ended at midnight, Wally, with his Oak Ridge Quartet,
along with the top SGM groups of that era, would then
take over the Opry stage and literally 'sing all night'.
The concept quickly caught on, and the All Nite Sings
began to be held all across the southland.
Wally's thoughts, penned sometime before November, 1956,
were found in the souvenir program pictured below. We
present them not only as a part of our history , but we
also believe they are worthy of discussion, consideration
and application in this new millennium. Hopefully you
do, too! |
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From Wally Fowler almost 50 years ago.................
To you, the regular members of our All Nite Singing
Family, and especially, you, who may be in our midst for
the first visit, we extend an invitation to you to come
back and enjoy Gospel Singing with us each month. Please
tell your friends and bring them along.
OUR PURPOSE
To express ourselves with music, in singing, playing instruments,
blending our voices together in harmony melody and rhythm
s- FELLOWSHIP. To sing the praise of our Lord; renew our
faith by singing and listening to the gospel in song.
SIX INGREDIENTS
(of our productions)
Gospel and Spiritual Singing
No. 1. That enough gospel in song may be rendered
in any one All-Nite Singing; that any one who has not
accepted the "faith" may learn enough about
the plan of salvation to have a desire to consult an interpreter
of religious faith, a minister of the gospel in the church
of his choice.
We do not advertise that we do preaching, but our prayer
and purpose is that we may be helpful as gospel singers
in starting men and women, boys and girls to thinking
about the higher meaning in life. Our prayer is that
God may use us in serving Him through the gospel in
song as a channel of blessing. The nearest to preaching
of the gospel in our All Nite sings is "Sermon
in Song." Our All Nite Sings are not revival meetings
not evangelistic meetings nor church worship service
but rather:
CHRISTIAN
ENTERTAINMENT
No. 2. Many people have told us that our monthly
gospel sings are their primary entertainment. They feel
that it is the one source and place of entertainment they
can carry their entire family and not feel condemned.
ENTHUSIASM
No. 3. Our singers come on the stage with an enthusiastic
spirit, and there is no problem of a group ever short-changing,
so to speak; their audience in not taking the maximum
time allotted. More often, the singers over-run their
time, and though, it sometimes upsets schedule, it still
seems commendable.
HUMOR
No. 4. Some people have said that the singers,
at least some of them, feel that they have short-changed
their audience if they do not supply a little humor in
their presentation. This humor is important in our production.
However, with some of the singers, this can be very easily
overdone. And we feel sometimes it is overdone. It surely
is a fact, that a little humor (between songs) is good
- A VERY LITTLE. No one would want even their pastor in
their church to be morbid. It seems the most effective
sermon by any minister carries with it at least one or
two stories of humor if only in an illustrative form to
get a point across.
INSPIRATION
No. 5. Surely Gospel Singing to everyone is inspiring.
SINCERITY
No. 6. Whatever we do in life, we should be sincere,
but more, especially, in singing gospel songs.
| This souvenir program is a great
piece of SGM memorabilia and comes from our friends,
The Inspirations. Southern Sound thought it so timeless
we wanted to include it here on our site as well.
A big thanks to the Inspirations of Bryson City,
NC for retrieving this great piece of history. |
LET US CONSIDER
Those of us who listen to gospel singing, that the gospel
singers are human beings, just the same as the listeners
and are prone to err. Would to God that all Gospel Singers
were God's best Christians! Does not the pastor of his
church feel the same, "Would to God that all the members
of my church were God's best Christians," so: Some say
that many of our Gospel Singers lean stronger towards
humor and entertainment! So therefore, they are prone
to overdo this.
CONSIDER
Let us seek the happy medium and not the radical. God
forbid that any part of our production, by any of the
singers’ presentations, ever be offensive. Then, our purpose
to the higher meaning in life and 'Peace on earth, good
will" should be defeated. Some have said that some of
our Gospel Singers lean towards sometimes preaching long
and perhaps loud. (Understand, no one, surely, would criticize
the preaching of the gospel, at any time or at any place
and certainly, not the writer of this article, but again,
preaching is not advertised.) We advertise gospel and
spiritual singing, and if the people hear preaching rather
than gospel singing, perhaps they have a right to say'
"We come to hear gospel singing, and we think we shall
go to church to hear our preaching." In an "All-Nite Singing"
we expect to hear singing. When we go to church, we expect
to hear preaching and some real good singing of hymns,
but not usually, the "Camp Meeting, rhythmical, spiritual
type of singing that we expect to hear in the All-Nite
singing.
One of our greatest gospel singing personalities is Brother
Hovie Lister, manager of Statesmen, dynamic Emcee, pianist
and sometimes called the "Country Boy Preacher." Once
on the stage in Birmingham, Alabama, at one of the monthly
"sings," Bro. Hovie got to feeling real good and almost
preached. He did give out loud with an "on fire testimonial"
and many of the people asked him to preach then and there,
but he told them to come to the little Mt. Zion Baptist
Church that he pastors near Marietta, Ga., and he would
preach. I took him up on it and paid a visit to Mt. Zion.
Bro. Hovie preached and we feel that his sermon was comparable
to some of our greatest interpreters of religious faith.
Bro, Hovie preached in Birmingham at Jones Memorial Baptist
Church. I attended services there later. The pastor, Rev.
Ben Daniels, makes one feel that Peter Marshall is still
preaching on this earth. So, our prayer is that the gospel
singers will find the happy medium and progress with sincerity
at all times never giving way to antics, feeling that
the people have to be overly entertained. Nor, that any
would try and take the preacher's position away by any
measures of radicalism, in order to create emotionalism.
Just, plain, good gospel singing alone stirs our deepest
emotions. However, dear friends, if anything in our entire
production and presentations do not please you in every
respect, remember, it is our aim to please and ever RAISE
THE STANDARDS OF THAT WHICH WE REPRESENT!
The great statesman, A. Lincoln, once said, "You can fool
some of the people half of the time, half of the people
all of the time, but, you can't fool all the people all
of the time."
May we paraphrase this, and say, you are fortunate indeed,
if you can please all the people HALF of the' time, half
the people all the time and NO ONE can ever please all
the people all the time.
By recent national survey, 2300 radio stations are programming
Gospel Music daily!
IT IS A FACT over five million people are filling the
nations largest auditoriums, stadiums, etc., to hear Gospel
Singing annually.
Is it necessary to ask ourselves the question "Is Gospel
Singing growing?"
REMEMBER, A Gospel Singing America is a Peaceful America.
Ask yourself an important question. WHAT MAKES AMERICA
GREAT? Could you not be justified in saying that only
the good in America makes it great, and if the good in
America be taken away, then would not the greatness of
America also be taken away?
One man said that he searched diligently for what made
America great, and that he found it in the churches of
our land. Is not, "love the Lord thy God with all thy
heart, with all thy soul and all of thy mind" and St.
John 13:34, "a new commandment, I give unto you, that
ye love one another; as I have Loved you, that ye love
one another."
Today, in our country is no "Love Thy Neighbor" policy
needed more than anything except to "Love thy God" and
is not "Loving thy neighbor," also to "Love thy God"?
Our prayer is "Our Father, Who Are in Heaven, give us
a greater capacity for LOVE for our fellowman." Because,
we know we have enough love in our hearts at all times
for our fellowman that we have complied with the fifth
through the tenth commandments; and create a desire in
our hearts to love God and put Him first to love God and
put Him first and in so doing we have complied with the
first through the fourth commandments, Realizing that,
through LOVE, Christ died for us and "Give us the courage"
to change the things in life that we know we should and
can, and to accept those conditions that we cannot change,
and give us the wisdom to know the difference, and lead
us not into temptations, but deliver us from evil for
thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever,
AMEN."
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