# Music by Genre > Bluegrass, Newgrass, Country, Gospel Variants >  Old Gospel tunes

## demotlj

I've started a bluegrass group in our church which has two mandolins (one generally doing chop chords and one doing melody picking), two guitars, and a banjo and I'm in charge of finding tunes to play once a month.  The ironic thing is that I actually mostly toodle around with classical mandolin not bluegrass so I'm not real familiar with the gospel bluegrass repetoire.

Could anyone give me either a list of suggestions or a source for songs that would meet the following criteria:

Church type lyrics (no "My dog died after I shot my lover" kinds of lyrics  :Smile:  )

Old time flavor (for example, people loved it when we sang and played "The Old Country Church")

Not too fast -- we're better at the singing than blazing instrumental solos -- but not too slow.  The congregation loves the ones that make you want to clap along.

Those would be the main things we are looking for.  My group is pretty adept at figuring out harmonies and short licks if we have the tune and chords.  We can always do hymns but I'm sure there must be tons of old time gospel tunes and I'd hate to restrict ourselves to stuff out of the hymnal.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

Laurie

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## fatt-dad

"When the Roll is Called up Yonder, I'll be There"
"Are you Washed in the Blood of the Lamb"

Just a few that come to mind. . .

f-d

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## Fred Keller

It isn't cheap ($104 and change) but this box set was well worth the dough, IMHO:  Goodbye Babylon.

There's a whole lot of gospel material of all genres represented.  The book includes lyrics for all the songs.  I've been listening to this for a couple months.  I've only learned one or two so far but it's currently my "go-to" source for new gospel material.

On the other side--i.e., free--you could check out the Juneberry listening room, though you'll have to figure out lyrics on your own.

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## recon

Down to the River to Pray might meet your criteria

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## Denny Gies

Jesus Savior Pilot Me
Pass Me Not O' Precious Savior
Will The Circle Be Unbroken
Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver do some great gospel songs;
  Just Any Day Now
  The Redeemed Are Coming Home
The Nashville Bluegrass Band..."To Be His Child"
I Heard My Mother Call My Name In Prayer
Working On A Building
Flatt and Scruggs also have a bunch of great gospel songs
Good luck and have fun.

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## Scott Holt

Don't forget Drifting too far from the shore and The Old Rugged Cross.  There is so many out there, you should not have a problem finding any.

Scott

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## CES

Softly and Tenderly...a little on the slow side, but a nice 3/4 tune you can do a lot with harmony wise...

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## OlderThanWillie

The Monroe Brothers did a great version of "What Would You Give in Exchange For Your Soul?" and the Carter Family did "Meeting In The Air" which is a good song to listen to and easy to play. A version I heard has the first verse in G, the 2d in D, and the 3rd back in G. It's very inspiring.

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## talbotpat

'I Saw The Light' and 'I'll Fly Away'...you can transition from the first to the second seamlessly and they go together very well.  Nice opportunity for mandolin breaks as well...I played both of these tunes about a month and change back with only a week of 'time in' on the mandolin and they are simple to learn.

Here's an example of one way to do this...from the David Crowder*Band.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uL3Dp...embedded#t=155

Pat

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## demotlj

Thanks for the great and quick response.  That should keep me busy for awhile!

Laurie

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## Alex Orr

I've always liked

In The Sweet By and By
Keep On The Sunnyside
The Land Where We'll Never Grow Old
Uncloudy Day
I Saw The Light

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## swampstomper

My #1 alltime favourite in this genre is Leaning on the Everlasting Arms -- easy tune, nice words, a nice simple call-response chorus. Chris Jones did a super version with Paul Brewster on tenor on one of Chris' projects.

Get the Stanley's Old Country Church etc. Starday albums. They picked great old simple songs. Paul & Silas, Jesus Saviour Pilot Me.  If your congregation is willing to holler a bit how about Travelling the High Way Home or I am the Man Thomas, or Somebody Touched Me?

For super mando-guitar duet material, go Louvin Bros., although these take a lot of vocal skill. Make Him a Soldier, You'll Be Rewarded Over There (check out YouTube for Carl Sauceman's version of that one).

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## Shawn Gambrel

dont forget Wayfaring Stranger

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## Rick Albertson

Albert E. Brumley was the author of many, many well-known gospel songs. His family still publishes an old booklet called Olde Time Camp Meetin' Songs that contains about 60 or so songs, many of which have been noted above.
See http://www.brumleymusic.com/Store%20...me%20Camp.html

On that site are other inexpensive books as well.

Rick

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## Miked

I heard Chris Hillman and Herb Peterson do The Old Crossroads which is an old Monroe tune.  Not the type that the congregation would sing along to, but one they would definitely enjoy.

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## Steelee

I second "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms". The version I have is on an old gospel tape by the Stanley Bros.

Gives me the chill bumps  every time I hear it.

Regards, Lee

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## Mike Snyder

Precious Jesus Hold My Hand and Cryin' Holy Unto the Lord come to mind. Ron Block has written a few that I really like. I'm Not Holding Onto Jesus, He's Holding Onto Me has the feel of an old time gospel number.

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## Jon Hall

Life Is Like A Mountain Railway
The Unclouded Day
Pass Me Not
This World Is Not My Home

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## JeffD

You may want to try a Louvin Brothers song, Songs That Tell A Story.

Great stuff, with lots of mandolin turn arounds. Listen to some of the audio samples.

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## Denny Gies

Another great old gospel album is "Grandpa Jones and the Brown's Ferry Four...16 Sacred Gospel Songs".  Some really good four part harmony and simple chord progressions.

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## mandogreg2

Some of the gospel tunes I have been working on lately are a nice versions of "Be Thou My Vision" by the Buckhannon Brothers, "Pass Me Not" from Butch Baldassari's A Day in the Country cd (simple but beautiful) and I like to work my own versions of "In The Garden", "How Great Thou Art", "What a Friend We have in Jesus" and "The Old Rugged Cross".

A book I would recommend would be Steve Kaufman's Flatpickin' the Gospels for Mandolin. He gives the basic melody and also a variations on the melody. The book also comes with a cd

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## Norm Buck

maybe "I am a pilgrim"
or "Farther Along"

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## Big Joe

"Where Could I Go"
"Come and Dine"
Supper Time"

Those are a few of my favorite older Gospel songs that are great in bluegrass or old time or country styles.  Some of the older parishoners will remember these and love you for them!

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## David M.

Hazel Dickens' song "Won't You Come and Sing for Me" is a great one that Hot Rize covered.

Stanley Bros.' "Rank Stranger" and "Let Me Rest (on a peaceful Mountain)".  Good stuff.

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## David M.

Oh, and also don't forget about "Amazing Grace", "Angel Band" and the Stanley Bros. "Gathering Flowers for the Master's Bouquet".

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## CES

I'd second the Kaufman book as well...remember that he's primarily a flatpicker, and so some of the mando "solos" sound like flatpicking guitar breaks, but there are some really nice arrangements in there.  My favorite to play of late has been Heaven's Jubilee (which, ironically enough, is one of the flatpickin'-esque numbers).

The nice thing about that book is that it has basic vocal/mando lead with guitar accomopaniment in addition to the solos, so you can go as simple (often preferred in this setting) or embellish as much as you'd like...I also like to periodically play these through my Mandobird...playing with the amp you can get some cool "vintage" gospel wailing outta that thing...

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## Spencer

A Beautiful Life is fun to sing, has a nice message.  

Spencer

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## JeffD

These will work

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## OKMike

I'll second "Angel Band"

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## Chad Thorne

Emmylou Harris has that great "Angel Band" CD with some songs that have been mentioned and some others.  Killer.

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## Michael Gowell

Butch B has a 15-song book called 'Mandolin Hymns' and Bud Orr has a Mel Bay collection of 32 called 'Gospel Mandolin.'  Several of the songs suggested above are included in one or the other.

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## NewtoBluegrass

I always liked "when he reached down his hand for me" By the cherryholems
Doyle lawson and the primitive quartet has some great songs

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## Jim Kirkland

I second the Primitive Quartet.

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## mannc385

On the National Park's series there is some great music in the background and one song sort of stood out for me on one episode, This is my Father's World.  Good mando.  All the others that were mentioned are good and we do The Old Crossroads and Working on a Building and they get good response.  I almost forgot, How Deep the Fathers Love.

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## re simmers

Doyle Lawson did "A Wonderful, Beautiful Place" which is a medium tempo, 3 chord tune.  It's on an early recording.

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## Willie Poole

There is a web site called "Bluegrass Lyrics.com" and there is a section there that lists many, many gospel songs....Should be enough there to hold you for years....good luck....Willie

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## chasray

> Butch B has a 15-song book called 'Mandolin Hymns' and Bud Orr has a Mel Bay collection of 32 called 'Gospel Mandolin.'  Several of the songs suggested above are included in one or the other.


I just bought Mandolin Hymns by Butch Baldassari, and glad I did. Got the performance CD with it. You can use these arrangements.

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## Jack Roberts

demotlj:

If you p.m. me with your e-mail address, I can e-mail you a booklet of tunes with chords that we put together for use at the local rescue mission.  These are all old gospel tunes.  I don't have mandolin notation or tabs on these, but they are all pretty easy to play.  Mostly in the key of G to make things easy on the Banjo player.

The booklet has: Amazing Grace, Washed in the Blood, What a Friend, Just a Closer Walk, Softly and Tenderly, Will the Circle Be Unbroken (the original version, not the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band version),
In the Garden, and a bunch more.  Most songs also have a Bible verse associated with the song.

It is available to anyone who asks, but it may take a couple of days to respond over the holidays.  I stay off the internet when I'm not at work.

Next week we are taking time off from Gospel Hymns to sing Christmas Carols, so if you want the Christmas Carol booklet, I can try to put that together for you as well.

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## Danny L Sharp

Holding Up the Ladder is a good up tempo song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqyUy...eature=related

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## Danny L Sharp

Jim & Jesse - The Old Camp Meeting Days.mp3
This is a fun one that I like to play. Jesse doing some great cross picking.

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## haunter112

How about WILL THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN?

Use the original hymn lyrics (not the AP Carter "dead mother" version)

_Will The Circle Be Unbroken?

There are loved ones in the glory,
Whose dear forms you often miss;
When you close your earthly story,
Will you join them in their bliss?

   Will the circle be unbroken
   By and by, by and by?
   In a better home awaiting
   In the sky, in the sky?

In the joyous days of childhood,
Oft they told of wondrous love,
Pointed to the dying Savior
Now they dwell with Him above.

You remember songs of heaven
Which you sang with childish voice,
Do you love the hymns they taught you,
Or are songs of earth your choice?

You can picture happy gatherings
Round the fireside long ago,
And you think of tearful partings,
When they left you here below:

One by one their seats were emptied,
One by one they went away;
Here the circle has been broken
Will it be complete one day?


_

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## wamjr52

We have a little family tro sometimes quartet that plays and sings in the local community churches.  We have compiled over time some 25 - 30 Gospel songs on 11 X 17 size sheets with 18 -20 font for those on us with bifocals.
We have then mounted in an 11 X 17 portrait binder in sheet protectors.
I can e-mail what we have to you if you would like them, beats starting from scratch.  Shot me a e-mail to al@ses.us.com, will attach them and send it back.

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## wamjr52

My family has little tro sometimes quartet that sings and plays in local churches and community.  We have compiled over time 27 -30 Gospel songs on 11 X 17 sheets with 18 - 20 font, for those of us with bifocals.  We have them in a 11 X 17 Binder with document protectors.  If you shoot me a e-mail to al@ses.us.com I will attach them and send it back.  Beats starting from scratch.  If  you do not know the tune for some reason just plug the title in on Youtube and you can hear them,  some better than others

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## David Rambo

The old Blackwood Brothers, the Speer Family, and Hovie Lister and the Statesman all did old hymns that could be done in a bluegrass style.  Also check out the Isaacs.  Their material could be done in almost any church.  Bill Gaither also sells song books with many songs that are usable for most congregations.

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## Mandolin Mick

Albums by Carl Story (the Father of Bluegrass Gospel) & His Ramblin' Mountaineers are chock full of great bluegrass gospel tunes. Also Foggy Mountain Gospel by Flatt & Scruggs is a compilation of their gospel albums.

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## Ridge54

I would put a vote out for Dry Branch Fire Squad and the 1999 album Memories that Bless and Burn

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## Mandolin Mick

I agree. Have you heard the new hit by Carl Story (the Father of Bluegrass Gospel) & His Ramblin' Mountaineers? I believe it is called "All Schmucks Go to Heaven". But I always like to stick to the classics, "What?"

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## Cyndie395

This is the best place that I have found for church hymns written for Mandolin. http://www.music-folk-play-hymns.com...Tab-Hymns.html

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## Cyndie395

http://www.music-folk-play-hymns.com...Tab-Hymns.html is the best for me.

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## Eric "Trapper" G

As a newbe to mandolin but love old gospel here is a wed site http://www.music-folk-play-hymns.com...Tab-Hymns.html

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## Phil Goodson

Great advice after 10 years.   Thanks.

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## Jim1hays

I like 30 pieces of Silver by Hank williams SR., Wait a little Longer Please Jesus by Jamie Dailey, Amazing Grace, and Little Brown Church.

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