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.Peace as a noun.Peace as a person.I was looking atpeace as an entity.He was quoting Jesus.And I wasbringing it to the 20th century then.Saying, no, therumblings of this peace must be still.”Since moving to Los Angeles and forming theJames Cleveland Singers in 1962, Cleveland becamea gospel industry kingmaker.Within his new city, thegospel audience expanded considerably since the ’40s.Jacqueline DjeDje chalks that up to black migration,institutional support among large churches, andmore media attention, particularly radio broadcasts.13Los Angeles was also the site for an important gospelgathering at the Shrine Auditorium that featuredThe Caravans (with Cleveland) and The Soul Stirrers(with Sam Cooke); it was captured on the album TheGreat 1955 Shrine Concert (Specialty), another live forerunner to Amazing Grace.In 1967, Cleveland established the Gospel Music Workshop of America(GMWA), which had the initial purpose of educatingand training young gospel singers, but evolved intoa juggernaut through its annual conventions that are13 DjeDje, 64–66.• 51 •A A r o n C o h e nstill being held today.The GMWA organizationalmodel followed the National Baptist Convention.Essentially, this made bigger choirs the norm, andCleveland had them trained to sing as a singleinstrument.This constituted a major shift in focus for the music from the time Cleveland and Franklin weregrowing up.Those days featured smaller vocal groups,such as The Caravans, and choirs were not a polishedcommercial force.As that Ebony profile extolled, through the GMWA, Cleveland was “good enough toput together a 300-voice choir within days of arrivalat any town.” Cleveland turned neighborhood singersinto the disciplined Southern California CommunityChoir in Los Angeles.Archbishop Carl Bean, thecity’s founder of Unity Fellowship of Christ Church,and a gospel and disco singer knew this since the ’60s.“The voices would be very exact,” Bean said.“James was a stickler for clarity around lyrics.I don’t care how fast the tempo, with James’ choir you heardthe words, you heard the parts very clearly and theharmony sitting very well.”Essentially, while Purdie, Rainey, and Dupreemade the rhythm section chug and flow with uncannyunison, Cleveland had applied similar methods to themass choir.At home in Los Angeles, Cleveland’s circle oftalented, sometimes classically trained, musicians• 52 •A m A z i n g g r A c ebuilt their own identities after being a part of hisgang — like Billy Preston.Another kid in thatclique was Alexander Hamilton, who began writingscores at the age of 6, studied at the Los AngelesConservatory of Music and Arts, played organ behindMahalia Jackson, and then joined Cleveland’s coterie.When he and I had lunch near the church in which heis pastor, in Compton, it became clear why the leadermust have depended on him: along with his prodi-gious musical skills, Hamilton has the combinationof easygoing good humor and dedication that enabledhim to thrive in this tough neighborhood.He servedas Cleveland’s assistant choir director, including onAmazing Grace.As Hamilton says about Cleveland:The circle wasn’t that big — we all knew each other.Of course, he was already pretty much THE JamesCleveland by then.He was in a very interestingposition: he had come up through the ranks back East,in the Midwest.And he got a contract with Savoy and it worked great.I think he had eight, ten albums a year he had to do.Way it worked was all he had to do was havehis name on it and one song to get paid.Real smart ofhim — he would look around to the good groups andsay, “I’m James Cleveland and will get you on Savoy.”We’d do one marathon, six, seven hour session and thealbum would be done.It would be “James Cleveland• 53 •A A r o n C o h e nPresents …” and he became known as the Star Maker,which put him in a better place than just being thestar.Everybody in the country knew that if JamesCleveland liked you, he might get you on Savoy, whichwas basically the gospel music label of the day.It was sort of fun being one of the king’s kids.Wegot instant respect anywhere we went.He was a nut,but he was fun.You got to be nuts.Especially in gospel because you’re not getting paid most of the time.When you look at the field, the genre, and you lookat the people doing it compared to the people actuallymaking a living at it, it doesn’t exist.He was one ofthe few who was able to make it, and part of it was bydoing the James Cleveland Presents.That made himrich.He was in the right place at the right time.There couldn’t be one like him now.Even during the mid ’60s, Hamilton adds thatinstrumental accompaniment to gospel groups,including Cleveland’s massive choirs, was usuallyminimal:It was still, not taboo, but just not done.Drums andthe rest of those things in the Baptist churches werejust beginning here and there.COGIC churches didn’tmind using tambourines, which Baptists did not.Baptists, COGIC to a degree, gospel music people arevery conservative.There’s a joke, “How many Baptistsdoes it take to change a light bulb?” The answer is,“What do you mean, change?”• 54 •A m A z i n g g r A c eStill, Cleveland used drummers on his Savoyrecords, including a young Purdie who remembersthose pre- Amazing Grace sessions primarily because of the leader’s personality.“He had his act together, morning, noon andnight,” Purdie said.“He could raise more money thanthe Pinkertons.The man just knew what buttons topush on everybody.It was just that good
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