• Support the Reader
  • CITY LIFE
    • Public Service Announcement
    • Shop Local
    • Street View
  • NEWS & POLITICS
    • Features
    • Podcasts
      • The Ben Joravsky Show
      • Chicago Queer & Now
  • COLUMNS
    • John Greenfield: On Transportation
    • Deanna Isaacs: On Culture
    • Ben Joravsky: On Politics
    • The Ben Joravsky Show
    • Dan Savage: Savage Love
    • Opinion
  • MUSIC
    • Music Feature
    • Chicagoans of Note
    • Gossip Wolf
    • The Listener
    • The Secret History of Chicago Music
    • Music Reviews
    • Concert Previews
    • Early Warnings
    • Music listings community calendar
    • Chicago in Tune guide
    • Bull Horn (paid sponsored content)
  • ARTS & CULTURE
    • Fall Arts Preview
    • Theater
    • Dance
    • Visual arts
    • Book reviews
    • Ghost Light by Kerry Reid
    • Arts listings community calendar
  • FILM
    • Features
    • Reviews
    • Small Screen
    • Archives
  • FOOD & DRINK
    • Features
    • Reviews
    • Sommelier Series (paid sponsored content)
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • RSS
Skip to content

Chicago Reader

Support The Reader
  • »
  • Reader 50
  • Fall Arts Preview
  • Cityscape architecture special
  • Nonprofit survey
  • Advertise
Home » The Secret History of Chicago Music: Georgia Tom Dorsey
Posted inMusic

The Secret History of Chicago Music: Georgia Tom Dorsey

He had his biggest hit as a raunchy bluesman, but today Thomas A. Dorsey is known as "the father of gospel music."
by Chicago Reader December 12, 2013August 19, 2021

Share this:

As part of our 50th anniversary celebration, the Reader is giving out 50 incredible prizes for 50 days. We’ve partnered with some of Chicago's most popular establishments for prize packages that include concert tickets, theatre tickets, gift certificates to popular restaurants and retailers, and more. The best part is, every Reader Revolution member will be automatically entered to win, no matter what giving level you're at.

BECOME A MEMBER

Related

  • Chicago celebrates a century of Black gospel
  • August 18, 2021
  • In "Chicago in Tune"
  • Georgia Tom: Thomas A. Dorsey, the Father of Gospel Music
  • February 13, 2003
  • In "Arts & Culture"
  • See the Bronzeville church that is the real birthplace of gospel
  • October 16, 2019
  • In "Architecture"
Tagged: Atlanta, Barrel House Tom, Big Bill Broonzy, Blind Lemon Jefferson, blues, Chicago Music Publishing Company, Ebenezer Baptist Church, Ed Butler, Eddie Heywood, Georgia Tom Dorsey, gospel music, Lark Lee, Ma Rainey, Memphis Minnie, National Baptist Convention, National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, Oak Woods Cemetery, Paramound records, Pigrim Baptist Church, Tampa Red, The Secret History of Chicago Music, Thomas A. Dorsey, Villa Rica, Georgia, Vocalion Records, Vol. 43 No. 12, W.M. Nix, Whispering Syncopators, Wild Cats Jazz Band, Will Walker

Get the Reader's free daily newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Monday through Friday.

Recent Posts

  • We’re giving away tickets to Second City
  • From radical literature to ‘schlock and awe’
  • 50 years of a Chicago weekly
  • Kinky or killer?
  • R&B newcomer Jaas finds strength in solitude on her debut EP
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • RSS

About the Chicago Reader
Reader Staff
Reader Careers
Freelance Information
Contact Us
Support the Reader

Advertise

Find the Paper
Subscribe
Shop the Reader Store
Giveaways/Promotions

Reader Classifieds

Reader Matches

Get our free newsletters

Privacy Policy | Terms of Use

© 2021 Chicago Reader. Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic