Brother Joe May | |
|---|---|
| Born | Joseph May (1912-11-09)November 9, 1912 Macon, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Died | July 14, 1972(1972-07-14) (aged 59) |
| Occupation | Singer |
| Years active | c.1930–1972 |
Brother Joe May (November 9, 1912 – July 14, 1972) was an Americangospel singer. He was sometimes billed as "The Thunderbolt of the Middle West", and has been described as "arguably the greatest male soloist in the history of gospel music.... [with] a voice of unimaginable range and power, moving from a whisper to a scream without the slightest suggestion of effort".[1]
BornJoseph May inMacon, Mississippi, he was raised as a member of theChurch of God denomination in which all males are referred to as "Brother". He sang with the Little Church Out on the Hills' senior choir and then the Church of God Quartet, building a reputation on theSouthern gospel circuit. He worked as a laborer in Macon, before moving in 1941 with his wife Viola and their children toEast St. Louis, Illinois, where he was employed in a chemical plant.[1]
InSt. Louis, he met and came under the influence of the singerWillie Mae Ford Smith, and adopted much of her phrasing and performing style. He began singing atThomas A. Dorsey's National Conventions of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, directed by Smith, and after a performance inLos Angeles in 1949 was signed by talent scoutJ. W. Alexander toSpecialty Records. His first record, "Search Me Lord", became a gospel hit, and was estimated to have sold over one million copies though without reaching any of the published record charts of the day. His follow-up record, "Do You Know Him?" in 1950, was equally successful, and May became a full-time musician, touring nationally with gospel groups such as theSoul Stirrers and thePilgrim Travelers.[1] He also sang duets with Willie Mae Ford Smith, and usually performed in a distinctive long white robe with a rope cross.[2]
As one of the Specialty label's most successful artists, the company tried to persuade him to record more secular material, but May refused, although he acknowledgedblues singerBessie Smith as a major influence. His records often used anorgan-dominatedrhythm section as well as a fullchoir, and he was sometimes described as a male equivalent ofMahalia Jackson, with whom he sometimes performed.[2] He was cited as a musical inspiration byLittle Richard.[3]
However, his success in the gospel field was not translated intocrossover success in the white record market. He left Specialty in 1958, and began recording his own compositions for theNashville-basedNashboro label. He also performed and made recordings with his daughter, Annette, and with singerJackie Verdell. After returning to the South, May's popularity continued to grow in that region. In the early 1960s, he starred withMarion Williams in the musicalBlack Nativity inNew York City, and toured the U.S. and Europe with the production.[1]
He continued to perform widely in the Southern states despite health problems, and recorded a series of gospelalbums for the Nashboro label through the 1960s and early 1970s.[4] On his way to a performance inThomasville, Georgia, he suffered a massivestroke, and died in 1972 at the age of 59.[1]
In 2000, he was posthumously inducted into the International Gospel Music Hall of Fame inDetroit.[2]
Brother Joe May atFind a Grave
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