Special Alabamian Stanley Smith, and other music links

The posting of links does not constitute an endorsement of the sites linked, and not necessarily even agreement with the specific posts linked.

• Criteria for Evaluating Christian Music -- “A recommendation for corporate worship is based on the song’s message, biblical accuracy, outsider interpretation, and inherent glorification of God, alongside its ability to lead others to proclaim to God His value and worth.”
• Denson Brothers/Sacred Harp Music -- “The ‘Denson Book’ is the most widely used of the hardback ‘old song’ books.”
• Dolly Parton ‘respectfully’ removes herself from Rock & Roll Hall of Fame consideration -- “I don’t feel that I have earned the right.”
• East Texas Sacred Harp Singing Convention returns to Henderson -- “The East Texas Sacred Harp Singing Convention was organized in 1855 and is the second-oldest continuous singing convention in the United States.”
• Nine Reasons People Aren’t Singing in Worship -- “...in the vast pool of new songs, many are not suitable for congregational singing by virtue of their rhythms (too difficult for the average singer) or too wide of a range (consider the average singer—not the vocal superstar on stage).”
• Noises in the Forest: a brief history of some music from East Texas -- “Interviews with six individuals from the Nacogdoches area that highlight how music developed in Deep East Texas over the last several decades.” (A key is the word some; interesting, but misses a lot of important music history of East Texas.)
• Singer and ‘Braxton Family Values’ star Traci Braxton dies at 50 of cancer -- “We have come to a time where we must inform the public that after a year of privately undergoing a series of treatment for Esophageal cancer our beloved Traci Braxton has gone on to glory.”
• Seven Special Alabamians to be honored at the 2022 Celebration of Alabama Arts Ceremony -- “Stanley’s gracious, unassuming manner belies his influence on the community of Sacred Harp singers and the degree to which he has strengthened the tradition.”
• The Theology and Place of Music in Worship -- “Contemporary culture and modern technology bring new possibilities and new challenges to the music ministry of the church.”