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15 Apr 2005
George Younce – Home at Last
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 I debated about writing this ever since I found out George Younce passed away, because I knew everyone else was going to give their thoughts and remembrances about this great man. You can read about his illustrious career in many places on the Internet, but I wanted to give my thoughts and expressions about George Younce and recall the music and memories of a man who became a legend during his lifetime. These are just my own thoughts and memories… I remember the first time I saw the Cathedrals in person was in January or February of 1982 at a church here in Durham , North Carolina . We had just had a bad snowstorm the day before and being the excitable 9 year old I was at the time, I begged my parents to take me anyway. Despite the bad road conditions and against their better judgment, my parents took me, but they insisted no one would be there. Of course being the smart aleck kid I was, begged to differ. We arrived and much to my joy, the church was packed and I remember telling my parents, “I told ya so!” Anyway, I was like a kid with a new toy being able to see the prestigious Cathedral Quartet. I remember very well that they started off with a couple of choruses of “Jesus, We Just Want to Thank You” and then they went straight into “He's Still Working on Me.” I was totally spellbound with the group at that time and even at the age of 9, I knew I was watching greatness. Consisting then of Kirk Talley, Mark Trammell and Roger Bennett along with Glen and George, the group weaved their magic throughout the entire evening and they sang their hearts out. They were just getting ready to release their much acclaimed record, “Something Special” and they sang a few songs from it that night including “Step Into the Water” and “ Mexico ”, and the crowd loved them. The group also did some of their popular songs at that time, “Romans 8:28”, “ Roll Away Troubled River ”, “I Know a Man Who Can” and many others. When the group came back on after the offering, George Younce broke into “The Laughing Song.” I had never heard the song until that night, and of course as a kid, I loved it. I remember George coming off the platform and going through the audience pointing at folks and laughing at them during the song. It was priceless and I remember it like it was only yesterday. I saw the Cathedrals several times in my lifetime, and have many memories of George and the group. I remember one time seeing them in Greensboro , North Carolina , and in the middle of a song, Ernie came up on George and screamed in his ear and it scared George so badly that he slipped and fell flat on his rear and then he just doubled over in laughter while on the floor. In thinking back on it, I think it was a rehearsed stage prank gone awry, and it caught George off guard. But the crowd loved it. Some people didn't know whether to laugh or gasp. Another time I saw the Cathedrals in Winston-Salem , North Carolina at the famed Reynolds Auditorium, and during the intermission I went backstage and there was George sitting in the middle of a bunch of young college students just carrying on and having a ball with them. It was obvious that George genuinely loved people and loved being with them, especially young people. I did a radio interview with George back in October 1989 at the North Carolina State Fair in Raleigh, North Carolina, and he was so gracious and kind and was an absolute joy to talk to. We talked about the group and his singing career, but the highlight was hearing him talk about the ongoing feud between he and JD Sumner. His eyes lit up when I mentioned it and he loved telling about it. He also made it a point to tell me how U-G-L-Y that JD Sumner was. It was evident that he and JD were great friends, and there's no telling what the two of them are up to now! At a more serious point in the interview, I asked George his most memorable concert, and without even a moments hesitation, he mentioned a concert at a large church and there was a couple there that were in the middle of a nasty divorce and they came to the concert and sat on opposite sides of the church. They both were so moved by the songs that during the invitation they both came forward and re-dedicated their lives to Christ and to each other. Standing with the couple were their 3 little girls crying because God had put their family back together. Of all the concerts George was a part of, that one concert stood out above all others in his mind. In analyzing George Younce the performer, I find that he was the consummate singer and performer. He had a style that was all his own. Even now, you can visualize George's typical stance…eyes closed, upraised shoulders, clasped hands and at times swinging from side to side. When watching George, you knew you were watching a master performer at work. He was also one of the greatest emcees to ever utter a word and he could move an audience like few people could. He literally held an audience in the palm of his hand the moment he walked out on the stage. It was always a remarkable moment when he'd stop the program and have the audience sing, and he usually would end the moment by telling the audience they should buy a bus and hit the road. He could lead an audience into wonderful moments of laughter and joy, and then in a split second have them singing and worshipping the Almighty God. George was one of the few bass singers who could boom out the low notes, as well as carry a smooth solo. Not many bass singers can boast that. He was such a charismatic performer and you couldn't help but smile when he took command of a song. Songs like “This Ole House”, “Led Out of Bondage”, “Still Drinking Water”, “Turn Your Back”, “Roll Away, Troubled River” and “Wonderful Time Up There” really shows off the magnetic feel in his voice and just merely watching him sing those songs was such a treat. He could also sing as smooth as silk with songs like “Who Can Do Anything”, “Jesus Have Mercy on Me”, “Wedding Music”, “That's What Jesus Means to Me”, “Child of the King”, “I Thirst” and “Plan of Salvation” . Also, George could evermore pull on your heartstrings with stirring ballads like “Going Home”, “Thanks to Calvary” and “Hold Me”. Another thing that George perfected was the recitation. I have never been a big fan of recitations, but I could listen to George do them all day long. “Should You Go First”, “Suppertime”, “Golden Toys” and “Forgive Me When I Whine” are some of his best spoken works. Even his story songs like “The Last Sunday” could send chills up your spine. Sometimes it's not even the solos or moving performances that set George apart from the rest. Sometimes it's just his voice or the little things he'd do in a song that made it special. Little parts in songs like “Step into the Water”, “An Old Convention Song”, “He Made a Change” and “The Streets of Gold” were made more magical because of his part in the song. George could tell a story or joke, and no matter how many times you heard it, it was still funny. I don't know how many “old man” jokes he told on Glen Payne, but after hearing “I just love old people” for the hundredth time, I still got tears in my eyes from laughing so hard. He made it sound like you were hearing it for the first time, and Glen played the perfect straight man. One other thing that a lot people may not remember about George Younce was that he was also a very prolific songwriter. I don't know why it seems he stopped writing songs in the mid to late 1970s, but he wrote or co-wrote some wonderful songs during the late 1960s and early 1970s like “Then I Found Jesus”, “If I Could Just Hold Out”, “My Lord”, “It's Alright”, “Thanks for Loving Me”, “He Made a Rainbow of My Tears”, “Shine on for Jesus”, “You Ain't Heard Nothing Yet” as well as probably his best known composition, “Yesterday”, which I feel his is greatest piece of work. What a beautiful piece of lyric. There was a lot rolled up into the man known as George Younce. He wasn't a perfect man, but he was a great man and very well loved. He lived like we all do; he had his fair share of shortcomings, failures and demons in his closet. But as life went on and he dealt with those things, he shared them with his audience through testimony and song. When it was all said and done, George would always stop short of completing the song “Suppertime” and say with calm assurance, “You know, I've got a lot more days behind me than I have ahead of me. But I know should I go tonight, my bags are all packed and I'm ready to go!” George Younce is gone now and I can't help but think that as he left this world, he left with bags in tow singing as he often did, “I'm going Home at last!” Read George's Homegoing Celebration here: http://sogospelnews.com/index/features/comments/3760/ Reader Comments |
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George Younce – Home at Last
 Written: 04/15/2005  Author: (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Category:
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