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It has never been a secret to anyone who knows me that I am a big fan of the Original Hinsons. I've been reminiscing about them lately because I just found an old cassette tape in my garage while I was moving from the Nashville area over to East Tennessee.

It's amazing the things you find when you have to do the deep cleaning that is required to make a move like this. I thought I had lost this tape a long time ago. It was recorded 40 years ago, on the front row of a High School auditorium, in Salinas California, where I heard the Hinsons for the first time. I dusted off my old boom box, put the tape in and re-lived that night once again. Although the sound quality wasn't very clear, the pictures that it brought back to my mind were like watching it in HDTV.

As I listened to this tape, I soon realized that Ronny had not yet developed as a writer. As a matter of fact, his entire writing catalog consisted of only two songs. And the family only performed one of them in concert. Ronny said, on stage, that he couldn't even convince the group to record it on their first album, which was soon to be released. The family wasn't convinced yet of his writing potential. Most of the songs they sang that night were cover tunes of the Happy Goodmans and other popular groups of the day.

But as time passed, the Happy Goodmans would soon be singing Hinson songs. Ronny wrote award winners for the Goodmans that included The Lighthouse, and He Pilots My Ship. He later gave the Florida Boys one of their biggest career songs, When He Was On The Cross ( I Was On His Mind). And several more of Ronny's songs would grace the top of the charts for the Hinsons. Two Winning Hands, God's Gonna Do The Same For You And Me, and Mercy Built A Bridge would all climb to the #1 slot. He would also compose hit songs for other artists like the Singing Americans (Victory Side), Gold City (Once Upon A Hill), Vern Jackson (Higher Than I Ever Been) and Three Bridges (I Feel A Little Song Coming On). And he's not finished yet. Every time I see him, he says, "hey, you got a minute, listen to this). I've heard several hit songs performed by Ronny, with no music, in the front seat of a car, a lobby at a concert, or standing in the aisle of a department store. When I hear them later on the radio, I always remember the a cappella version Ronny sang for me before it was recorded.

Kenny and Larry Hinson would later follow in their big brother's footsteps and compose great songs of their own. Kenny wrote the hits, Ain't That What It's All About, Call Me Gone, and I'll Never Be Over The Hill. Larry would go on to compose Hinson chart hits that included Come To The Water, Shinin' In and Joy Comes In The Morning.

As I think about the top artists we have today, there are only a precious few that still compose the majority of their own material. Don't get me wrong, I am thrilled, as a songwriter, that there are groups that will turn to other full time writers when they get ready to record. But I do miss the Artist/Writer that seemed to be so prevalent back a few years ago.

I was always drawn to groups that had great writers in them. The Happy Goodmans usually had at least two new compositions from Rusty on each record. The Hemphills filled their albums with great Joel Hemphill songs. And if he didn't have enough great tunes for the record, Labreeska, Trent, Joel Jr., or Candy would deliver the rest of the top notch material to make the album a winner.

I have written previous articles praising the compositions of Lanny Wolfe. Ten new Lanny Wolfe songs on a record was a sure fire way to make a great album. And the Lanny Wolfe Trio made great albums.

The same was true for the Rambos. If the Rambo's new record didn't have another He Looked Beyond My Fault on it, there would be If That Isn't Love instead. If the next album didn't have a tune like one of those, Dottie would write I Will Glory In The Cross or We Shall Behold Him. Reba would contribute chart hits as well for the Rambos, like Just When I Need Him and Precious Jesus. When Reba decided to record contemporary solo albums, she filled each one with award winning hits from her own pen.

In the 80's, I always knew the Talleys albums would be great, because Kirk Talley is great. The Talleys never made a record without a great tune from Kirk. No Other Word For Grace But Amazing, Triumphantly The Church Will Rise, He Is Here, God's Gonna Send Revival, Lonely People, and so many others made the Talleys records stand out from the rest.

AND THEN GOD SAID "LET THERE BE THE BILL GAITHER TRIO"

Is there anyone out there who has never sung a Bill and Gloria Gaither song? They painted the 60's, 70's and 80's with masterpieces of music. Pick up any record they made during their prime, and you won't find HITS, you'll find CLASSICS. He Touched Me, The King Is Coming, Something Beautiful, Because He Lives, It Is Finished, I Am Loved, This Is The Time I Must Sing, Let's Just Praise The Lord, I'm Free, I Believe In A Hill Called Mount Calvary, The Old Rugged Cross Made The Difference, The Family Of God, I've Been To Calvary, The Church Triumphant, Get All Excited, There's Something About That Name . . . need I say more?

There are still a few artists out there today that deliver their own great material, but not near as many as we had in the past. There is something special about hearing the songwriter sing their own song. You know that they are not just singing it, but they have had to live every line of it. Another singer may come along and sing it prettier, but they can't usually match the emotional connection that the writer has with a their own song.

I'd like to encourage every full time Southern Gospel singer to try writing at least three songs. The first one may not be any good, but the next one might be great.

Or maybe you'll have to wait until the third song is written before you strike gold, like Ronny Hinson did. His third song was The Lighthouse! His fourth song was He Pilots My Ship!!! Just think what the world would have missed if he had stopped trying after song number two.

Until next time, keep on writing!
Daryl Williams
http://www.darylwilliamstrio.net

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