Elder Roma Wilson (December 22, 1910 – October 25, 2018) was an American
gospel
Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...
harmonica player and singer. A clergyman, Wilson discovered he had a degree of notability later in his life, having previously been unaware of interest in his work.
Muscogee
The Muscogee, also known as the Mvskoke, Muscogee Creek, and the Muscogee Creek Confederacy ( in the Muscogee language), are a group of related indigenous (Native American) peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands Wilson was a self-taught harmonica player in his early teens, using the discarded
instruments
Instrument may refer to:
Science and technology
* Flight instruments, the devices used to measure the speed, altitude, and pertinent flight angles of various kinds of aircraft
* Laboratory equipment, the measuring tools used in a scientific lab ...
of his elder siblings (he had five brothers and four sisters). He developed an unusual "choking" style, derived from the difficulty of soliciting sounds from his well-worn instruments. By the age of fifteen, he was working on the railroad. He later worked at a sawmill. Wilson married at the age of nineteen. He became an ordained minister in the
Pentecostal church
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement
in 1929, and he joined the self-styled Reverend Leon Pinson, who played the guitar, in traveling across north Mississippi, both playing and preaching. They developed a strong church following.
Wilson moved to
Michigan
Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
in 1940 and later to
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
. He continued his musical interests, playing on street corners. In 1948, he played in a record store on Hastings Street in Detroit and was recorded by the shop owner. The owner subsequently allowed the tracks to be released, and students of Wilson's style of playing were intrigued. Wilson was unaware of the attention. Following the death of his first wife, he moved back to Mississippi. He remarried in 1977. By 1989, following a chance telephone call, Wilson reactivated his musical partnership with Pinson. He became aware of global interest in his recordings, which he heard for the first time in 1991. Capitalizing on the notability, he and Pinson played at music festivals, including the Chicago Blues Festival and the
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (commonly called Jazz Fest or Jazzfest) is an annual celebration of local music and culture held at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, Louisiana. Jazz Fest attracts thousands of visitors to New ...
.
In 1994, Wilson was a recipient of a
National Heritage Fellowship
The National Heritage Fellowship is a lifetime honor presented to master folk and traditional artists by the National Endowment for the Arts. Similar to Japan's Living National Treasure award, the Fellowship is the United States government's ...
from the
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...
, which is the highest honor in the folk and traditional arts in the United States. In that year he also recorded the bulk of the music included on his debut
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...
. Most of tracks on his 1995 LP ''This Train'' were recorded when Wilson was in his early eighties. The sides contained a mixture of solo efforts, some accompanied by his wife or with a church choir, and included " Ain't It a Shame", "This Train Is a Clean Train", and "
Amazing Grace
"Amazing Grace" is a Christian hymn published in 1779 with words written in 1772 by English Anglican clergyman and poet John Newton (1725–1807). It is an immensely popular hymn, particularly in the United States, where it is used for both ...
". The album also included six harmonica-dominated pieces unwittingly recorded with his children in 1948. Wilson was still preaching, singing and playing harmonica in Detroit in 2015, at the age of 104. Wilson died in Detroit, Michigan, on October 25, 2018 at the age of 107. Roma Wilson Clora Funeral Home, Retrieved October 29, 2018
Discography
See also
*
List of gospel musicians
This incomplete list is specifically for Christian music performers in the gospel music genres who have either been very important to the genre, or have had a considerable amount of exposure, such as in the case of one that has been on a major ...