Sacred Steel- In Church And On Video

 We've all heard the biblical quote "make a joyful noise unto the lord" but to see that quote come to life just step into The House of God Church in Rochester, New York on a Sunday morning. There you'll find the Campbell Brothers raising the rafters with their brand of sacred steel music.

 The sacred steel tradition has been going strong since the 30's but it hasn't been until the 90's that the music is being heard outside the church. In the late 1930's musicians of the House of God Keith Dominion Holiness-Pentacostal Church began playing their worship music on electric steel guitars. Willie Eason introduced the steel guitar to church services by in the late 1930's. His single string passages that imitated the African-American singing and shouting voices remain the main sound of the Keith Dominion steel guitar style. The goal of a good steel player in the church is to use the guitar to mimic voices, to sing lines of the hymns, and to provide praise music that pushes the congregation closer to feeling the Holy Spirit.

 It's one thing to hear the music on record but seeing it performed in the church is a whole different experience. The Campbell Brothers are one of the best proponents of this music and it's hard to believe that something like this was going on in my own backyard. The Campbell Brothers consist of Chuck Campbell on pedal steel guitar, Phil Campbell on electric guitar, Derick Campbell on lap steel guitar and Carlton Campbell on drums.

 I visited their church a few weeks ago and let me just say that if my church was anything like this I'd be going to church as much as I could! Almost the entire service is filled with music, singing and testifying in the name of Jesus. The Campbells are outstanding musicians as they make their steel guitar talk, sing and wail along with the congregation. The Campbell's role is important as they keep a close eye on the crowd and control the tempo. It's not long before the everyone starts getting happy as the congregation is filled with the Holy Spirit and all of a sudden everyone erupts into dancing and shouting. This goes on throughout the entire service often overshadowing whoever is speaking or singing upfront. It's not uncommon to see people get so overcome that they need to be helped back to their seats!

 During the course of the service people are encouraged to come up front and tell everyone what Jesus has done for them. This particular time someone came out and recited how he fell asleep at the wheel on the trip into town and how Jesus had saved him. The Campbell brothers had a similar story and before you know the Campbell's are wailing and the congregation is once again filled with the Holy Spirit. This is something you really need to see in person. The only thing I can say there's a feeling of joy that sweeps over everyone and those incredible steel guitars push everything to a whole new level.

 For those who can't make it to church you can bring the music right into your living room with the Sacred Steel video which has just be released by Arhoolie Records. The video is a documentary of the sacred steel tradition featuring some amazing live footage of some of the best players in the tradition. During the nearly hour program you'll get a good understanding off what the tradition's all about and witness great performances by The Campbell Brothers, Willie Eason, Henry Nelson, Calvin Cooke, Aubrey Ghent and Robert Randolph.

-For information about ordering CD's or the video visit the Arhoolie Records website

-For more about the Campbell Brothers visit their website: http://www.campbellbrothers.com/online.html