There has been a tremendous amount of talk on the various message boards about dress codes and other such things as they pertain to Southern Gospel. I will not for a minute pretend I have all the answers to those issues anymore than I have the answers to a magnitude of other controversial topics confronting us this day and time. So, with that in mind, may I be so bold as to give you where I stand on a few of those subjects? Not that it matters mind you, nor will it change lives as we know it. But maybe it will help people understand why some feel so passionate one way or the other.
As to dress code, and what is appropriate for a Southern Gospel Artist or group to wear, this horse has been beat to death, but I will give it a go. Not one of us today dress in a style that would have been fitting for Paul, or Timothy, let alone Christ. In fact, if we wore garments that mirrored what they might have worn, we would certainly be ridiculed in this day we live. I personally cannot attend a church service without suit and tie. Not because I feel it is the only way to dress, but because I don’t feel comfortable dressed any other way. It is for me, a way of showing reverence to the One we serve, and to show respect to His House of worship. There is a wonderful image, lost through the years that I dearly miss. That is the “Sunday-go-to-meeting” dress-up that was so much a part of our past. That image and the respect it showed represented a time of innocence and reverence that I feel we have all but lost. Can we serve God in jeans and a T-shirt? You bet. Some of my best hours have been alone with God humbling praying in whatever attire I had on for the day. I remember a day when I was just a teenager, facing a crisis and hard decision in my young life. I decided to go fishing one warm afternoon to get away for a while with my thoughts and reflect on the task ahead of me. I do not recall what I was wearing that day, but I am sure it was nothing more than tennis shoes, jeans and an old work shirt. The point is, before I reached the edge of the lake, I fell on my knees in the tall fescue around the lake and prayed to God like I had never prayed before. It was one of the most spiritual times in my life that day, alone with God. I am sure God cared very little that I was not dressed in suit and tie. It is for certain I could never dress good enough to measure up to the Glory of God, for in His measure, I will always fall short.
Now, as to groups dressing alike or not dressing alike that too is personal taste. I personally like the look of matching suits for a quartet for it is a throw back to the days I believe were the golden years of Southern Gospel. And too, for me, it is a way of showing respect to our audience and to make sure as a group, we present ourselves to the audience as neat and respectful as possible. Now that said, I have no problem with non-matching suits, or even no suits at all. I however, cannot personally bring myself do that, for my own personal reasons. But, I do understand that I am somewhat of a relic in this business of Southern Gospel Music. All of us certainly know what is decent and what is not. No one in Southern Gospel should wear something that could be considered revealing or distasteful for the genre we represent. And, all of us should realize that clothing styles are a constantly changing dynamic. My complaint is, as time marches on, we seem to become more worldly in appearance and the world becomes more churchy. Suffice to say, it is a safe bet that you will likely never see me on stage in sandals and body piercing. That seems somewhat silly to me anyway. But, I also am viewing this through very conservative minded eyes that with age has found me very set in my ways. I am however, open minded enough to realize that in many circles, I am considered very old fashioned and out of touch with current trends. Being trendy has never been very high on my to-do list anyway.
The other “grey area” I would like to address is the concept of group members going from one group to another and the fact that it is so prevalent in Southern Gospel this day and time. Our group has been through this ordeal too, and I suppose that stepped on a bare nerve or two with me, so indulge me please.
I cannot imagine Christ saying to any person “I want you to leave your group, so that you may begin with this other group, who might pay you a few dollars more.” I see that as self serving and very shallow. The idea that we as group owners can go recruiting within the ranks of other established groups seems very distasteful to me. I understand people leave groups for many reasons. Being away from family, health, monetary support or the lack thereof, are all valid reasons and are to be expected from time to time. But, I do find the process of tearing apart one group to fix the turmoil of another as being a very un-christian way of conducting business.
I find it hard to believe that God “moves” people around from group to group in order to glorify His Kingdom. That is simply a hard pill for this ole boy to swallow. Now please believe me, I am not trying to pick on anyone person or group, I am trying to bring to the attention of Southern Gospel as a whole that this common practice within our ranks does not reflect well on our business, nor does it show a Christian love to the outside world looking in.
In the very least, if I as a group owner feel I really need the services of John Doe who currently sings with the Traveling Soul Searchers, I should go to the owner(s) of TSS and ask their permission to talk with John Doe. This simple courtesy would melt away any ill feelings and either give me a green light to approach Mr. Doe, or tell me I should go recruiting some other place.
We recently lost our very talented and long time baritone Trevor Haley, as he is leaving the group to pursue a career closer to home. Through the trials of finding his replacement, we have interviewed and/or listened to almost 100 applicants for the job. During this process we have met many wonderful men, who love their families and love their God. This journey has given me time to reflect on all that God has blessed us with and I have come up on the other end far more focused and ready to work. Seeing the faith and work ethic of many of these candidates made me realize we have a lot to be thankful for. Sure, Southern Gospel has its problems, but we have some really bright spots that need encouragement and support.
In the last few weeks we learned that Tony Peace might be available, and after a few phone calls and a bit of singing together, Tony has agreed to accept the position of baritone for Southern Sound Quartet. Tony brings a wealth of experience and talent to the position, and we look forward to working with him. He brings a new dynamic to the group, and we are excited that he has agreed to join our little extended family. We covet your prayers, not only for Tony and Southern Sound, but also for Trevor as we all begin a new chapter in our lives.
In closing, we are what makes up the face and the body of Southern Gospel Music. What the world sees is simply, who we present ourselves to be. How we dress, how we do business, and how we treat our fellow man, all play a huge role on our testimony and our ability to win the world to Christ. Southern Gospel Music has seen a few rogues and scoundrels along the way, both in the past and in modern times as well. But, we must not allow those of questionable character to define who we are to the world. Today, we are left with a great legacy from the past to honor and protect, but we are held accountable for the future. Is it not high time we take this business of representing Christ in song very serious?
Ben Harris
http://www.southernsoundquartet.com
Author: Ben Harris
| Author's Website: www.southernsoundquartet.com
Written: 12/16/2009
| 
Category: Sound Advice
Comments: 11
RSS Feed
| (What's an RSS feed?)
|
Ads Sponsored by Southern Spin
Ben: Great words of advice with much wisdom. First, church has dressed down in general and I miss that. I prefer to wear a suit, but I admit, I'd be one of the few that do and don't always anymore. Even the pastor says by his not wearing a coat and tie, he is more approachable to the unsaved or unchurched. If that will bring them to Jesus, then I say go for it. Of course, dressing casual is more comfortable many will say, especially if they wear a coat and tie to work 5 days a week, but what's one more day for our Lord? Regarding quartets, I agree dressing alike does reflect the "golden years of southern gospel" as you stated so well. Our group does both, matching suits and different suits and outdoor summer events in the hot weather, we have matching monogramed shirts we wear with matching pants, no ties. Thanks for a well written, well spoken article for our times. God bless! JERRY
Mr. Harris,
I understand your frustration. The only thing I could advise you to do is make a quality demo and send it to every group you can think of. Being there at the right time and the right place is half the battle. Of course having the talent to do the position is required, and groups will try and pick the most qualified first. IN our case, we looked for both a talented individual and one we thought we fit well into our close knit family. For us, this was a long and tedious process. We are very pleased with the prospect of Tony working with us, but at the same time, we really were saddened to see Trevor leave.
Ben,
Tony's broad baritone will certainly fly well with SSQ's great tones!
An article very well written. Thanks, Ben.
This comment is meant as encouragment to PrimaryOvertone.
Dustin is not telling all the story.....Yeah he did try out for us and yes we did select someone else....but not because of his lack of talent. Dustin can sing the lights out and higher than this lead singer wanted to go. We needed someone a bit lower in range. I am honored to call Dustin my friend, and I probably had a little to do with him getting the job with the Florida Boys. If any of you are looking for an ultra high tenor, Dustin is your guy. Great Christian young man too.
Dustin,
Let me clarify Ben and I are in my mind great friends. I was saying he didn't select me just being funny. However, I am singing with probably the best group talent and friend wise I have ever been with. We just finished a new project produced by Tommy Swindle. Check us out. http://WWW.allianceqt.com
I don't know much about quartets but I think that anyone who is truely serving God in a singing ministry should dress in thier best that is what God deserves! Now if your best is blue jeans and a nice shirt then God bless you but remember God wants our best in everything we do.
Page 1 of 1 Comment Pages
