The fourth Gospel Music Association (GMA) Music Awards were held in 1972 for accomplishments of musicians for the year 1972.

Background

An indication that gospel music was fast approaching professionalism was a bona fide scandal over GMA's 1971 Dove Awards. The incident involved one of gospel music's premier groups,

The Blackwood Brothers The Blackwood Brothers are an American southern gospel quartet. Pioneers of the Christian music industry, they are 8-time Grammy Award winners in addition to winning 7 Gospel Music Association Dove Awards. They are also members of the Memphis M ...

, who had captured nine out of fourteen awards. They were accused of having conducted an extensive campaign to enlist new members to the GMA and to encourage members to vote for particular award nominees in the Dove Award balloting. Though no specific bylaw of the organization had been broken, the tactic created an industrywide concern over "voting irregularities and ethical ballot influence and solicitation." The GMA Board voted to nullify the entire process, thereby invalidating all the awards that had been presented at the October 8, 1971, banquet held in Nashville. Also, a committee was formed to adjust the voting process with "safeguards to prevent any future irregularities in Dove Awards balloting."

James Blackwood James Webre Blackwood (August 4, 1919 – February 3, 2002) was an American gospel singer and one of the founding members of legendary Southern gospel quartet The Blackwood Brothers. He is the only person in any field of music to have been nomin ...

issued a statement in support of the organization's decision and strongly urged all other participants in the Dove Awards to subscribe and adhere to the code of ethics to be set forth by the Gospel Music Association.

Compilation album

Canaan Records of Waco, Texas, issued a long play album of nominated recordings titled ''The Gospel Music Association's Dove Awards Nominations for the Gospel Song of 1972'' (CAS-9732-LP Stereo). Tracks on the recording are given in this table:

Award recipients

Song of the Year *"The Lighthouse"; Ron Hinson; Journey Music (BMI) Songwriter of the Year * Bill Gaither Male Vocalist of the Year *

Female Vocalist of the Year * Sue Chenault Male Group of the Year *

Oak Ridge Boys The Oak Ridge Boys are an American country and gospel vocal quartet originating in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The group was founded in the 1940s as the Oak Ridge Quartet. They became popular in Southern gospel during the 1950s. Their name was change ...

Mixed Group of the Year * Speer Family Most Promising New Gospel Talent * London Parris and the Apostles Album of the Year *''

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'';

; Bob MacKenzie,

Heart Warming Heart Warming was a gospel record label started by John T. Benson Jr. Heart Warming and their chief rival Canaan Records (owned by Word Records) were arguably the two biggest and best gospel labels in their time. The Oak Ridge Boys, Jd Sumner an ...

Instrumentalist * Tony Brown Backliner Notes *

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

; ''Light''; Oak Ridge Boys Cover Photo or Cover Art *

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; ''Street Gospel''; Oak Ridge Boys Graphic Layout and Design * Ace Lehman; ''L-O-V-E Love''; Blackwood Brothers Television Program *''Gospel Jubilee'', Florida Boys D.J. of the Year *

J. G. Whitfield Jesse Gillis Whitfield (1915–2006), also known as J.G. or Whit, was a gospel musician, music promoter, and member of the Southern Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame. Biography After serving in the Air Force, Whitfield worked in the grocery ...

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20111114195042/http://www.doveawards.com/history.php {{DEFAULTSORT:Dove Awards Of 1972 GMA Dove Awards 1972 music awards GMA Dove Awards 1972 in American music GMA