DANCING IN THE DEEP:

Of the thousands of gospel songs recorded in the early 1960s, how did "Peace Be Still" come to define its era? Was it a case of being the right song at the right moment? Were embers of emotion from the Birmingham blast hovering over the recording session that evening?

That was my personal theory--that the song's raw power was prompted by the terrorist attack. But when I interviewed Angelic Choir members, I discovered they saw things differently. They insisted that the bombing and other violent acts against African Americans did not govern their lives, nor their singing, that night. "We weren't so disturbed that we couldn't serve the Lord. We knew the Lord, and we were there to praise and lift up His name. That was the purpose," one chorister, now in her 80s, told me. "So anything that happened anywhere else, we were just there to praise the Lord and thank Him that we were able to make it."

Thank Him that we were able to make it. Therein lies the key to decoding "Peace Be Still"--gratitude to Jesus for helping his people overcome the winds and waves of oppression right there in Newark. In many ways, this sentiment speaks to gospel music writ large, which expresses the unflinching refusal of African Americans to surrender to life's injustices, especially those incited by racial prejudice, and gratefulness to God for being their ultimate protector.

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