Rosemary In Time
May-24-2011, 18:35 GMT
United Kingdom
 | Born around 1885, he started to preach at age 25 in Alabama and took up the ministry of Mount Calvary Church in Rock Dale Park, Atlanta in 1914 and was still a pastor there at the beginning of World War 2.
In the summer of 1926, Polk C. Brokeman, an Atlanta furniture-store owner and a talent scout for the Okeh label (he had already launched Fiddlin` John Carson`s career and the whole `Hillbillyâ? Records market in 1923) signed up the Reverend for an exclusive contract and by the end of that year, Gates had already cut over 70 titles.
Most often his sermons were warnings against sins and bad behaviour, with Hell raised as the inevitable consequence.
Because of The Depression, Gates stayed 4 years without recording but when he returned to the studio in 1934, he included politics and the events of the day more and more in his sermons until his last recording year in 1941.
Gates was also famous for his Christmas sermons and he recorded several of them during his career, including his very last recording, `Getting ready for Christmas Dayâ?.
An mp3 of this last song, without the little white boy singing along, is now available in the Excessive Fan section.
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Mike
May-24-2011, 22:34 GMT
USA - United Staates America
 | Thanks!! That gives this little white boy (me) a chance to sing and play guitar to the sermon track. Maybe I´ll try to edit it and fit it with my guitar playing... |
Cher
May-27-2011, 15:09 GMT
USA - United Staates America
| I loved hearing the original song. Yes, that´s quite common
in those churches even today. But I would think Paul would have had to pay the Gates estate something to use it. |