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I would start with some compilations of Gospel's Golden Age. So, you can find out what groups, quartets and singers you're interested in getting more material.

Let me have a look into my collection to see what I would recomment:

- "Kings of the Gospel Highway", Shanachie/Spirit Feel 6039, 2000: The Soul Stirrers with Rebert Harris, the father of quartet; the Pilgrim Travelers with Kylo Turner and Keith Barber, famous for their "walkin' rhythm"; the Swan Silvertones with Claude Jeter, the man who brought falsetto singing into quartet; the Spirit of Memphis Quartet with Silas Steel, Jethroe Bledsoe and Willmer "Little Axe" Broadnax and enjoy Steel's thunderous voice in contrast to Little Axe; the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi with Archie Brownlee, they have been much more famous than Clarence Fountain and his Alabama Blind Boys and wrecked the houses in those times and the Sensational Nightingales with Julius "June" Cheeks, the baddest man on the road.

- "Women of Gospel's Golden Age", Specialty SPCD 7056-2, 1994: Bessie Griffin who could moan like a mountain; the Helen Robinson Youth Choir, Princess Stewart a blind Chicago singer; the Argo Singers, a fine Chicago female group; Dorothy Love Coates and the Gospel Harmonettes, the most respected femal group of the South; Lil Greenwood; the Simmons-Akers Trio; Sister Wynona Carr with a jazzy voice ahead of her time; the Sallie Martin Singers, the first nation wide well known female group and the Clara Ward Singers, one of the greates groups of the fifties.

- "The Great Gospel Women", Shanachie 6004, no date (?): Mahalia Jackson with old Apollo stuff; Wilie Mae Ford Smith who was the first singer singing in a free way none other did before and who influence many others like Brother Joe May, the "Thunderbolt of the Middle West", Cleophus Robinson, Fontella Bass' mother Martha Bass and the O'Neal Twins; Roberta Martin, Chicago's icon; Sister Rosetta Tharpe; Mary Johnson Davis; Mary Knight who did a lot of duets with Rosetta Tharpe and is still among us; Clara Ward; Marion Williams who is one of the best singers in gospel but you will like her high soprano or won't like her; Goldia Haynes who always is accompanied by great rhythmic piano playing; Cora Martin, the adoptive daughter of Sallie Martin; Frances Steadman who had been with the Wards and the Stars of Faith and sings in a very deep alto; Jessie Mae Renfro; Bessie Folk, one of the Roberta Martin Singers, Dorothy Love Coates; Lucy Smith, another Chicago legend and Gladys Beamont Gregory very well known in the windy city, too. Smith and Gregory are still with us.

- "Great Gospel Women Vol. 2"; Shanachie 6017, 1995: Mahalia Jackson; Sister Rosetta Tharpe; Ernestine Washington who had been very respected in those times but now is a bit forgotten; Edna Gallmon Cooke who always was "Madam" Cooke and until today she is very respected among Blacks who like old school, she had a musical training and you'll hear it; Marie Knight; Clara Ward; Marion Williams; Bessie Griffin, Jessie Mae Renfro; Bessie Folk; Mary Johnson Davis; Imogene Green; Delois Barrett Campbell who sang for many years with the Roberta Martin Singers and afterwards with here own group the Barrett Sisters and who has a very beautiful voice; Gladis Beamon Gregory; Ruth Davis of the Davis Sisters who are legends until today and are most respected within Black audiences; Francis Steadman and Myrtle Scott another Chicago legend who only cut three tracks. Old folks in Chicago talk about her in veneration.

- "The Great Gospel Men", Shanachie 6005, 1993: Brother Joe May; Prof. J. Earl Hines who later went to Los Angeles and formed the St. Paul's Choir which was one of the best choirs in those times; Norsalus McKissick, another Roberta Martin Singer, Eugene Smith, the same; James Cleveland who was named to be the king of gospel music; Robert Anderson who was another legend in Chicago; Robert Bradley; R.L. Knowls and Prof. Alex Bradford well known for his appearance in Black Nativity. Bradford recorded with the Chris Barber Band and also toured with Barber.

- "The Best of Nashboro Gospel", ace CDCHD 373, no date: The Angelic Gospel Singers who have been one of the first famale groups; Alex Bradford; the CBS Trumpeteers with their hit "Milky White Way"; the Consolers, a Florida based couple with down home family harmonies; Madam Edna Gallmon Cook; Brother Joe May; the Skylarks who had been formed after some members left the Fairfield Four; the Swanee Quintet, famous for its funky rhythms; the Boyer Brothers; the Radio Four, simple arrangements but very effectful; the Christland Singers who are nothing but some old Soul Stirrers with Rebert Harris on lead; the Fairfield Four; the Supreme Angels and the Brooklyn All Stars, New York's famous legendary quartet with bass leads.

- "None But The Righteous", Chess/MCA MCD09336: The Meditation Singers, Detroit's most famous female group; Norfleet Brothers; Bells of Joy, another old quartet; Aretha Franklin who recorded a few gospel songs before she went into the secular field of musics; the Soul Stirrers after Cooke had left them; the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi; Alex Bradford; Rev. Utah Smith with his famous "Two Wings"; Rev. C.L. Franklin, Aretha's father; the Violinaires singing in high falsetto voices which became common in the late fifties/early sixties among modern quartets; Elder Beck, a preacher who played a lot of different instruments and Martha Bass.

- "Golden Age of Gospel", Vee Jay material, castle select SELCD 584, 2001: Brownlee and the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi; the Staple Singers with their down home harmonies and Pops' Mississippi guitar playing; Clarence Fountain and the Five Blind Boys of Alabama; Shirley Caesar and the Caravans, one of the most famous female groups out of Chicago; Jimmy Jones and the Harmonizing Four, famous for his bass leads but the group has a tendency to "bell canto" singing; Johnnie Taylor and the Highway QC's, Taylor followed Cooke after Cooke left the Stirrers; Dorothy Love Coates & Harmonettes; the Swan Silvertones; Marion Williams and the Stars of Faith; the Sallie Martin Singers; the Patterson Singers and the Boyer Brothers.

- "Sweet Lord - Various Artists" (VeeJay), Charly CPCD 8090: Staple Singers, Argo Singers, Caravans; Bells of Joy; Mississippi Blind Boys; Soul Stirrers; Harmonizing Four; Highway QC's; Alabama Blind Boys; Swan Silvertones; Greater Harvest Choir; Alex Bradford; Pilgrim Travelers; Sallie Martin Singers; Dorothy Love Coates & Gospel Harmonettes; Aretha Franklin and Mahalia Jackson

- There's a box of three CDs by Rhino, R2 75734, 1999 with a lot of good gospel music including the Golden Gate Jubilee Quartet, the Trumpeteers; Fairfield Four; Dorothy Love Coates; Sallie Martin Singers; Blind Boys; Alex Bradford, Dixie Hummingbirds, one of my all time favourite group; Highway QC's; Staples; Harmonizing Four; Mahalia Jackson; James Cleveland; Swan Silvertones; Meditations; Mighty Clouds of Joy; Edwin Hawkins; Inez Andrews, the "high priestess of gospel music"; O'Neal Twins; Danibelle Hall; Walter Hawkins; Shirley Caesar; Marion Williams; Ward Singers; Caravans and also some contemporary stuff like Andrae Crouch; John P. Kee; Ron Winans; Take 6; William Becton; Donald Lawrence; Sound of Blackness; Cissy Houston (ain't contemporary); Williams Brothers, one of the more modern well respected quartets; Oleta Adams; Yolanda Adams, Boyz II Men and Whitney Houston.

- "Greatest Gospel Gems"; Specialty SPCD-7206-2, 1991: Sam Cooke and the Soul Stirrers; Brother Joe May; Pilgrim Travelers; Five Blind Boys of Alabama; Dorothy Love Coates & Gospel Harmonettes; Swan Silvertones; Robert Anderson; Chosen Gospel Singers, another fine a-cappella quartet where Lou Rawls started his carrier as a singer; Wynona Carr; Alex Bradford; Meditation Singers and James Cleveland.

About Sister Rosetta Tharpe. I know there's a set of CDs with all of her recordings. I don't have it for I have a lot of her songs on LPs and CD-compilations but here's a hint to a CD, I think is good: "Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Gospel 1938/1943"; Fremeaux & Associes S.A. , FA017, 1994

I stop right now for my fingers are getting wound...

Regards
Bernd

You're right Muddy, the old Gospel-Label stuff of the "Vans" isn't reissued. Inez' first session with the Caravans dates from 1958 and in December 1958 she recorded "Mary Don't You Weep". Her version is/was as famous as Jeter's with the Swan Silvertones but now most people don't know about it. Inez last session with the Vans was in January 1961. She recorded again with Dorothy Noorwood, Albertina Walker and Delores Washington last September. As far as I know she has some health problems now.

Bernd