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Shout! Black Gospel Music Moments - 'I Call Jesus My Rock' by Willie Webb Singers

The Willie Webb Singers showcased Willie’s amazing keyboards, vocals and songwriting.

At age 14, Willie Webb was asked by gospel legend Roberta Martin to sing and play keyboards with the Roberta Martin Singers, one of the greatest quartets of all time. The group also included Robert Anderson, Norsalus McKissick, and Eugene Smith, in addition to Martin’s extraordinary piano playing, writing and arranging.
        
Webb held his own – and more – and eventually left to form the Willie Webb Singers. They had several hits for the storied Gotham label, including “Every Day and Every Hour.” But Webb was also an innovator, as his unique arrangement of his hit “I Call Jesus My Rock” from 1950 will prove!

2545 Willie Webb - I Call Jesus My Rock.wav

I’m Robert Darden … “Shout! Black Gospel Music Moments” is produced by KWBU and the Black Gospel Music Preservation Program at Baylor University Libraries.

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The Rev. H.B. Crum and His Mighty Golden Keys, “I Can Feel Him” is an exciting example of gospel’s transition from traditional doo-wop harmonies to a more soulful sound.
SHOUT! Black Gospel Music Moments - I Came to Preach a Sermon by Rev. Johnny "The Hurricane" Jones
The Rev. Johnny “The Hurricane” Jones preached and sang at Second Mount Olive Baptist Church in Atlanta for nearly 60 years!
Shout! Black Gospel Music Moments - 'I Call Jesus My Rock' by Willie Webb Singers
The Willie Webb Singers showcased Willie’s amazing keyboards, vocals and songwriting.
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Shout! Black Gospel Music Moments - Sister Jessie Mae Renfro
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Shout! Black Gospel Music Moments - The Famous Blue Jay Singers
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Shout! Black Gospel Music Moments - The Hampton Institute Quartet
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SHOUT! Black Gospel Music Moments - “I Want to be Ready” by The Congregational Church Choir
The Congregational Church Choir’s scratchy “I Want to be Ready” is a rare and wonderful example of a jubilee song from 1927.
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Robert F. Darden is the author of two dozen books, most recently: Nothing But Love in God’s Water, Volume II: Black Sacred Music from Sit-In to Resurrection City (Penn State University Press, 2016); Nothing But Love in God’s Water, Volume I: Black Sacred Music from the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement(Penn State University Press, 2014); Jesus Laughed: The Redemptive Power of Humor(Abingdon Press, 2008), Reluctant Prophets and Clueless Disciples: Understanding the Bible by Telling Its Stories(Abingdon Press, 2006); and People Get Ready! A New History of Black Gospel Music(Continuum/Bloomsbury, 2004).