| The Johnson Family Singers: We Sang for Our Supper [With Companion] Contributor(s): Johnson, Kenneth M. (Author), Wolfe, Charles K. (Introduction by) |
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ISBN: 1578060036 ISBN-13: 9781578060030 Publisher: University Press of Mississippi OUR PRICE: $49.50 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: November 1997 Annotation: This endearing gospel group from North Carolina rose to prominence during the decades their radio show aired nationally. In their heyday thousands of listeners who relished their music also revered the wholesome family grouping. Many who remember the Johnsons in their years of celebrity recall their charismatic stage appearances, as well as their fascinating presence in the broadcasting world. After the group disbanded, their fans were left in wonder. Whatever happened to the Johnsons after radio and America moved into a new age? How had the children, who grew up in a singing family, managed school life? How was their social development balanced with their entertainment schedules? What was the tone of family life as it was exposed in the spotlight of stardom? With remarkable candor, one of the Johnson sons who sang in this celebrated music family gives old admirers and new readers the answers. Looking back on his singing days, he sees both successes and struggles. He describes what happened behind the scenes as the Johnsons traveled the road to stardom. Despite the stress that fame placed on them, especially on the parents' troubled marriage, the Johnsons survived through their love of gospel song. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Biography & Autobiography | Music - Music | Religious - Gospel |
| Dewey: B |
| LCCN: 97-14034 |
| Series: American Made Music (Hardcover) |
| Physical Information: 0.75" H x 6.4" W x 9.56" (1.02 lbs) 126 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - Southeast U.S. - Geographic Orientation - North Carolina |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: The Story of a Family of Gospel Music Stars during the Golden Age of RadioThe Johnson Family Singers, a gospel group from North Carolina, rose to national acclaim during the 1940s and 1950s. This memoir was written by one of the three sons who sang with them. It focuses not only upon family singers that became famous on popular radio but also upon American gospel music. Although neglected by scholars and historians, it is loved by aficionados and is cherished by many devoted Christians everywhere.Here, in a frank, objective narrative Kenneth M. Johnson looks back on his singing days and details both the successes and struggles the Johnsons experienced during the years when their stirring music filled the air. He discusses what occurred behind the scenes and on the road to stardom. He tells how children who grew up in a singing family managed school life and how they balanced their social development with entertainment schedules. He gives details of the stresses that fame placed on family life, especially on his parents' troubled marriage, and of their survival through their love of gospel song. He speaks of humble beginnings, of the illegitimacy of family members, of legal problems, and of the heartfelt hymns that propelled the Johnsons onward and were their mainstay.On many Sabbaths CBS radio broadcast their program. Listeners getting ready for services were likely to hear the familiar litany: Each Sunday morning at this time Columbia presents fifteen minutes of hymns and sacred songs with the Johnson Family Singers...a father, mother, and four children. Southern born, steeped in the tradition of the Deep South, the Johnson Family Singers bring to the well-beloved, familiarsongs of Christian people everywhere a sweetness and simplicity of interpretation.Told with remarkable candor, We Sang for Our Supper recounts the public and the private life of the gospel group touted on the airwaves as one of America's foremost singing families. |