Brother Love's Travelling Salvation Show (song)
Encyclopedia
"Brother Love's Travelling Salvation Show" is a 1969 song written and recorded by Neil Diamond
. It hit number 22 on the U.S. pop singles chart
.
who travels from town to town preaching. In the middle of the song, Diamond gives a sermon
in typical evangelical style.
Some evangelical groups in the American South encouraged the boycotting of this song and of Diamond as they thought that this song denigrated and insulted evangelists and the evangelical movement. When Diamond explained in an interview that it was, contrary to their understanding of it, a celebration of Gospel music
and the evangelical style of preaching and worship, the controversy subsided.
The original 45 mix of the title cut differs from the album version. Aside from being in mono, extra reverb is used throughout the whole song. Neil Diamond's voice was overdubbed onto the lead vocal, creating a harmony. A tubular bell part were added following the phrase "Take my hand in yours...". The fade-out of the song is longer, with a louder horn section and a rattling tambourine part. All of Diamond's CD compilations have used the album mix.
Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond is an American singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades from the 1960s until the present....
. It hit number 22 on the U.S. pop singles chart
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
.
History
The song tells the story of Brother Love, an evangelistEvangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
who travels from town to town preaching. In the middle of the song, Diamond gives a sermon
Sermon
A sermon is an oration by a prophet or member of the clergy. Sermons address a Biblical, theological, religious, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law or behavior within both past and present contexts...
in typical evangelical style.
Some evangelical groups in the American South encouraged the boycotting of this song and of Diamond as they thought that this song denigrated and insulted evangelists and the evangelical movement. When Diamond explained in an interview that it was, contrary to their understanding of it, a celebration of Gospel music
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
and the evangelical style of preaching and worship, the controversy subsided.
The original 45 mix of the title cut differs from the album version. Aside from being in mono, extra reverb is used throughout the whole song. Neil Diamond's voice was overdubbed onto the lead vocal, creating a harmony. A tubular bell part were added following the phrase "Take my hand in yours...". The fade-out of the song is longer, with a louder horn section and a rattling tambourine part. All of Diamond's CD compilations have used the album mix.