Downhome Gospel: African American Spiritual Activism in Wiregrass Country (review)

In Downhome Gospel, Jerrilyn McGregory documents a variety of African American sacred music performance communities found among burial leagues, Baptist union meetings, singing conventions, and anniversary gospel programs in the Wiregrass Country of Georgia, Florida, and Alabama. This ethnographic study not only documents African American sacred music performance communities but also notes how these communities fortify spiritual as well as social needs. The title, Downhome Gospel, may lead readers to believe the book is solely about gospel music, but McGregory's research explores an array of sacred music such as spirituals, common meter, Sacred Harp, shape-note, and traditional and contemporary Gospel that persists in Wiregrass Country.

While noting the geographical uniqueness of Wiregrass Country, McGregory also reveals how African American folk traditions make this region distinct. Of the many folk traditions that characterize Wiregrass Country, the Emancipation Day celebrations are most prominent. Although not as well known as the Juneteenth celebrations, the Twentieth of May celebrations typify this region. May 20 marks the date when the general order concerning the Emancipation Proclamation arrived in Wiregrass Country. Celebrated as a day of remembrance, May 20 celebrations, often combined with May Day festivities, consist of a formal program, food, games, musical performances, parades, and other jovial entertainment. While May 20 celebrations still feature prominently in Wiregrass Country, today these activities have significantly declined. Within the historical context of May 20 celebrations, however, Wiregrass African Americans assembled to sing.

African American sacred music performance communities "are trademarks of life in Wiregrass Country" and their sacred music performances, which take place outside of "Sunday church-related activities," create a spiritual space that transcends the denominational divide. This ecumenical spirit is evident in the singing conventions and anniversary gospel programs, which consist of participants from various denominations such as Baptists (Missionary and Primitive), African Methodist Episcopal, and Christian Methodist Episcopal to name a few. McGregory states, "when individuals accept membership into a sacred performance community, they enter not on the basis of denomination but formulate a network, an expansive community with a similar aesthetic and scriptural orientation" (p. xx).

Membership in these communities does not require one to have a spectacular singing voice. McGregory maintains that "in Wiregrass Country, the people often say, 'You don't have to sing like an angel'" (p. xvii). Praising God through song does not require one to have a trained voice because "'good music is God's music regardless of the manner delivered'" (p. xviii). Moreover, these sacred music performance communities are not organized to promote a specific church dogma, neither is membership opened only to those with trained musical voices. The unique feature of Wiregrass Country sacred music performance communities is that emphasis is on praising God and enjoying genuine Christian fellowship.

Largely populated by women, African American sacred music performance communities foster egalitarian ideals and practices. According to McGregory, Wiregrass African American women espouse a "womanist theology" that is concerned with promoting the good of the whole community. For these women, it is about ensuring the success of their entire sacred music network and not just their organizations. McGregory asserts, "these women represent the womanists of whom Alice Walker wrote, who are 'committed to the survival and wholeness of entire people, male and female'" (p. 162). Although the communalism within sacred music performance communities is unique, why did these Wiregrass women promote such an egalitarian ethos over individual pursuits? Why is this behavior more pronounced within Wiregrass Country than outside of it? McGregory points to African American female socialization patterns in the Wiregrass region to understand this phenomenon, which partly substantiates her argument.

Downhome Gospel achieves the goal the author hopes to accomplish, which "is to introduce Wiregrass Country's African Americans and to examine their sacred music performed outside of Sunday church-related activities" (p. xvii). One criticism of this work, however, is that the author discusses too many sacred music organizations, particularly those that make up the singing...