How Sweet the Sound…
inTheir Musicon July 6, 2020
Every artist interprets Amazing Grace so personally and distinctively, like you are a witness to their own intimate spiritual journey.
Piedmont bluesman Guitar Gabriel once, after a week-long drinking spree, was arrested for stealing a package of bologna and a bottle of wine from a supermarket. When he appeared in the Winston-Salem, NC court, the Honorable Judge Freeman asked him if he did it. Gabe replied “Yes sir, I did, and I am ashamed.” Noticing that Gabe had brought his guitar into the courtroom, the judge asked if he could play “Amazing Grace”. “Yes, sir”, Gabe answered as he picked up his instrument and began to sing. “When the Clerk of Court fainted, I knew I was free” Gabe recalled. As the last notes of the song resonated, Judge Freeman pronounced Gabe “Not Guilty”, and he was carried out onto the streets by a cheering crowd. The Winston-Salem Journal ran a photograph of a smiling Gabe held above men’s shoulders on the front page with the headline, The Truth Will Set You Free!
The beauty of this set list is that it will take a few listens for the uninitiated to realize they are listening to the same song. “Amazing Grace” is among our most poignant national treasures, it will live forever.
– Timothy Duffy, Executive Director, Music Maker Relief Foundation