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I wanted to play the piano when I was a kid. We had a piano in the house. Grandma, my mom and my aunt Janie all played the piano. Grandpa wouldn't hear of me learning the piano. That was a "girl's" instrument. Besides, Liberace played piano and he didn't like Liberace. We had a piano player at church who I admired, Miss Minnie Welch. So I reckon I came up with an appreciation of the instrument and an admiration for anyone who played it well. I taught myself to play much later in life, at least well enough to amuse myself. I had a lady auto repair customer who appreciated my helping her one time and offered to give me reduced-price piano lessons. She thought "three finger, straight arm" piano playing, ala Jerry Lee Lewis, Jo Ann Castle, Del Wood, players like that were not "real" piano players and refused to teach their playing style.

Hovie Lister was widely regarded as the premier gospel piano player in the late 1950's, early 1960's. During that time, there came on TV, at 7 am on Sunday morning, a gospel music program. Initially 15 minutes, expanded to 30 minutes, then an hour, then two hours, the show featured the Goodman Family, The Florida Boys, The Dixie Echoes, and a couple others when they started. They later included the Stamps Quartet with J.D. Sumner, The Cathedral Quartet, The Speers Family, The Singing Hemphills, groups like that. "The Gospel Singing Jubilee" was on TV on Sunday morning for, according to Mr. Google, twenty years.

The Happy Goodman Family was the anchor act on the show. Howard "Happy" Goodman was born in 1921, and along with his wife Vestal, known for her floor-length gowns and beehive hairdos, brothers Rusty and Sam. They are generally credited as being one of the first, if not the first, gospel singing group to have a real western band, guitars, steel, bass, drums, fiddle and, of course, piano. Howard himself played piano at the start with others joining from time to time, culminating with Johnny Minick in the later years. To the day he died, Howard Goodman was arguably THE best gospel piano player I ever knew. A rotund man, he "straight armed" the old "88" and was famous for his antics at the keyboard. He was a minister and sang with the group, but I still enjoy his piano playing. I'm not going to include a video of his work, lest I violate rules about religion on the forum. But if you would like to hear Mr. Goodman at his finest, check out his work on You Tube.

I remember when I was very young my Parents would listen to Happy Goodmans along with the rest of the groups on the show. I can't say that it was my favorite music at the time but I didn't have much choice in the matter. I like some gospel music but mostly the songs that are sang with a country flavor.

Lebreeska Hemphill was my mom's first cousin's daughter. We didn't know it until we attended a family reunion, just north of Birmingham, Alabama in 2006. Labreeska was at the reunion but we got held up and didn't get to the reunion until late. Labreeska had a long trip home so she had to leave early and we didn't get to meet her. Sure wish I could have talked to her. I did a search on Labreeska and found that she passed away in 2015. She actually looks a lot like my mom.

https://musicrow.com/2015/12/gospels-he ... -hemphill/

One of my big regrets is not accepting my mother's invitation to take piano lessons. That was something girls did, and I was more interested in outdoor activities. Later in life I saw how much I had missed in terms of making and understanding music. Now the host of the Sunday night blues broadcast knows to call out the piano player behind the blues and gospel groups for me when the recordings tell who they are. When I was in college a group from Preservation Hall came through,including Billie and DeDe Pierce. Billie just brought the piano alive, this old lady making the most joyful noise. You can see a photo of her at an upright here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billie_Pierce

Chris Campbell

There was an elderly man, a WW1 veteran, who moved into a rent house on the old Hazelbaker place. He stayed to himself, didn't dress particularly well. Drove an old Plymouth, wore bib overalls to church. He was quiet and unassuming, kept his place neat, the grass cut. He was at church every Sunday. He sat in the rear of the church. Nobody knew him well, nobody really made the effort to get to know him. Miss Minnie took to her bed one spring. They were using one of the Castor girls to play piano in her place, but she was young and really not very good. The old man approached Brother Morris, one of the trustees of the church and offered to play piano while Miss Minnie was laid up. He assured Morris he was experienced and would not be an embarassment to the congregation if they let him play. We had a church orchestra. Four of the members of the orchestra were in a Western swing band. We had a pretty lively church orchestra. One Sunday, they decided to give the old gentleman a shot at filling the piano during the song service. Turns out, the old gentleman played piano in Vaudeville and to say he was a vertuoso would be an understatement. His forte was playing with the orchestra. He and the guys with the swing band got along well and made some very lively music for the song service. Even after Miss Minnie came back, she would play for worship, but the old guy would play with the orchestra. He could play with a similar style as Howard Goodman. He played for probably six or seven years before he took sick and passed away.

My Grandma, dad's mom, could play piano and I never knew it until I was in my teens. As I have mentioned before I am a organ nut, especially the theater pipe organ and always wanted to learn to play one. Again when I was in my teens I had a job, convinced the parents that I could pay for one and would pay for lessons if they would let me buy one and put it in the living room. They agreed and from Grinnell brothers a Hammond L100 was delivered one day while I was in school. Now, school was just two blocks from home so I walked to and from school everyday. It was fall, probably early October, so if it was a nice day and mom had the windows open to get in as much fresh air before we were locked down for the winter. As I walked up the street I could hear music, someone was playing my new Hammond. I looked up and saw Grandma's car in the drive but was confused as she didn't play and neither did mom, so who was this person. When I got into the house there sat Grandma playing Josephine on the lower keyboard of the new Hammond. What! How come no one ever told me Grandma could play organ. Well, she was not an organ player but was a piano player and come to find out a very good piano player, to the point she could have been a concert pianist but her mother would not let her. So my question was, I come Grandma does not have a piano now. The answer, when they downsized from the big house to the ranch on Lake Street she really did not have room for her grand piano so they let it go with the house and for 25 years she did not play. After Grandpa passed I convinced Grandma to get a piano and start playing again. She did, and I finally got to hear Grandma play and to know just how good she really was. Perfect pitch, sight read instantly, hear it on the radio and then sit down and play it note perfect the first time. I regret never recording her, I did not have the equipment then, but I do have her piano and the bench from her grand piano and wish I would have taken piano lessons too.

Bill