Amazing Grace: A Gospel Celebration To Aretha Franklin

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Image courtesy of Palau de la Musica

Amazing Grace. A Gospel Celebration To Aretha Franklin will be Grans del Gospel's contribution to the fiftieth anniversary of a recording that continues to influence the performance standards of African-American music. The direction of this production, which will present in its entirety the songs from the original LP and some hits by Aretha Franklin, would not be possible without the passionate participation of the protagonists of this story: The Black Heritage Choir, a selection of singers from Mississippi Mass Choir, under the musical direction of Jerry Calvin Smith, organist of the Grater Fairview Missionary Baptist Church, professor at Jackson State University and pianist of the great state choir of Mississippi.

Aretha Franklin recorded Amazing Grace in the Black Heart of Los Angeles fifty years ago. On January 13 and 14, 1972 in a small church in the neighborhood of Watts, the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church, she was once again the preacher's daughter. With the collaboration of James Cleveland and the Southern California Community Choir she made Gospel history.

Amazing Grace is one of the most beautiful records of popular music of the 20th century. With nods to the modernity of Marvin Gaye and Carole King and pearls of the new tradition created by Thomas Dorsey and Herbert Brewster, its songs are drawn from hymn books that could be found in any Black church from Memphis, Tennessee to Detroit, Michigan in the Golden Age of Gospel. The church girl who was Aretha calls in these sessions, with the powerful voice of a great singer in full possession of all her momories, images and feelings of a recent past common to the whole congregation. The result is moving as choir members, musicians and audience share the secret codes that hide the songs they know by heart. Because of all this Amazing Grace has an echo of the magic that only live concerts can have, made of warmth, humanity and joy. It is also a song of nostalgia for the good old days and an emotional vindication of the men and women who made the gospel culture possible from the black churches of the United States.

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