Five YouTube Eamples Of The African American Gospel Song "We've Come This Far By Faith" (with lyrics & information about its composer Albert A. Goodson)

 

Come This Far By Faith

1CNLT, Mar 9, 2014

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWiCeB2yMhs
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Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/01/celebrate-new-life-tabernacle-choir.html for a 2021 pancocojams post "Marching Into The Church Sanctuary Singing "We've Come This Far By Faith" (2014 YouTube video of Celebrate New Life Tabernacle Choir from Tallahassee, Florida). That post showcases this video and includes selected comments from its discussion thread.

Also, click  https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2015/01/nine-examples-of-gospel-song-weve-come.html for the 201r pancocojams post "Nine Examples Of The Gospel Song "We've Come This Far By Faith" (with lyrics). 

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Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post showcases four YouTube examples of the African American Gospel song "We've Come This Far By Faith".

This post also presents the lyrics for that song and information about its composer Albert A.Goodson.

The content of this post is presented for historical, religious, inspirational, and aesthetic purposes. 

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Albert A Goodson for composing this song and for his religious legacy. Thanks to all those who are featured in these YouTube videos and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to the publishers of the examples of these songs on YouTube.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE COMPOSER OF THE GOSPEL SONG "WE'VE COME THIS FAR BY FAITH"

From https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/articles/history-of-hymns-weve-come-this-far-by-faith

History of Hymns: 'We've Come This Far by Faith' 

By C. Michael Hawn, February 12, 2020
..."Albert A. Goodson (1933-2003), a Los Angeles native, and his twin brother were born to Arthur and Clara Goodson, who reared them in the Pentecostal tradition. According to an interview, Albert stated, “I started my interest in music as a child. However, my parents were too poor to buy a piano, so I would take a wooden board and pretend to play on it as if it were a keyboard” (Terry, 2016, n.p.). He received his only formal music education from musicians at Los Angeles’ St. Paul Baptist Church from age twelve including gospel music legends “Prof.” J. Earle Hines (1916-1960), the congregation’s minister of music, and pianist Gwendolyn Cooper-Lightner (1925-1999). The 200-voice choir was an inspiration. Goodson lived just down the street from St. Paul and could hear their rehearsals during the week:

'I enjoyed listening to the singers at the Baptist church so much... I learned everything the pianist would play. I could “hear” it during the week, and I would play it again and again in my mind (Terry, 2016, n.p.).'

Cooper-Lightner formed the Echoes of Eden choir at the church, a group that helped establish the congregation’s reputation in gospel music. Weekly broadcasts each Sunday reached an estimated audience of one million people in seventeen states. These financed recordings of the choir.

Goodson’s experience as the assistant pianist for the Echoes of Eden Choir and Hines Good Will Singers prepared him to be the choir director at Grace Memorial Church of God in Christ and the Opportunity Baptist Church. He moved to Chicago in 1955 to assume the position of minister of music at Fellowship Baptist Church. At the invitation of Thomas Wyatt (1891-1964), founder of Pentecostal “Latter Rain Movement,” Goodson returned to Los Angeles in 1961 to lead the interdenominational Wings of Healing Faith Choir. This choir complemented Wyatt’s Wings of Healing Ministry. Following this, he formed the Albert Goodson Singers. His skills as a pianist were recognized by requests for him to accompany some of the gospel legends such as the Sallie Martin Singers, the Simmons-Akers Singers, the Sky Pilot Choir, Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972), and Thurston G. Frazier (1930-1974), director of the Voices of Hope Choir.

In the mid-twentieth century, Chicago was a major hub of African American gospel music with the presence of composer and publisher of African American gospel music Kenneth Morris and gospel performers Sallie Martin (1896-1988), Thomas A. Dorsey (1899-1993), Roberta Martin (1907-1969), Mahalia Jackson, James Cleveland (1931-1991), and others. During this time, Los Angeles was viewed as a place of opportunity for African Americans, but it was beginning to find its gospel voice. In addition to those mentioned above, Doris Akers (1922-1995), composer of “There’s a Sweet, Sweet Spirit in this Place,” played a major role on the west coast (See Djedje, 1993, pp. 412-457). Goodson was one of the gospel artists that established Los Angeles as a center of gospel music in the African American tradition.

The first publication of the song ["We've Come This Far By Faith] was as a choral octavo in 1956. The first album released by Voices of Hope in 1960 included Goodson’s “We’ve Come This Far by Faith” under the direction of Thurston G. Frazier. Though Frazier is listed as the arranger of the music as found in Songs of Zion, one will recognize his influence only on the choral parts. Compared with the musical score, the accompaniment on the first recording is much more developed. This recording with Gwendolyn Cooper-Lightner on piano and Goodman on the Hammond organ is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=89&v=VNVSZ338nmQ&feature=emb_logo. *

African American gospel music scholar Horace Clarence Boyer indicates the significance of this hymn in African American worship by observing that many congregations in this era began worship with “We’ve Come This Far by Faith” as the processional and concluded worship with Thomas A. Dorsey’s “God Be with You” (Boyer, 1995, p. 206). The song was composed during the brief time after Goodson moved from Los Angeles to Chicago:

'I was living in Chicago, alone. I was never married, and I didn’t have a relative or a close friend in that city. I became very discouraged. One day, during a depressed state, I sat down at the piano in a friend’s home and began to play a melody running through my mind. As I played the Lord seemed to speak to me saying, “We’ve come this far by faith. . .” (Terry, 2016, n.p.).'

A composer of other songs, Goodson was surprised at the song’s success:

'I never thought my song would be a hit, because it sounded like a Sunday School song to me. But it just seemed to take immediately. People started singing it everywhere. I just couldn’t believe it. . . . And I’ve written other songs but they have never done what that song has done (Djedje, 1993, p. 421).'

The song was first performed in 1956 by the Radio Choir of the Fellowship Baptist Church in Chicago. Goodson found solace in 1 Peter 1:7: “...the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ . . .” (KJV) (Terry, 2016, n.p.). One is also reminded of I Samuel 7:12, “Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the Lord helped us” (KJV). The famous reference to the Ebenezer stone is also cited in stanza 2 of “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing” by Robert Robinson (1735-1790). In addition, see I Chronicles 17:16b: “Who am I, O Lord God, and what is mine house, that thou hast brought me hitherto?” (KJV)

Stanza 1, beginning with “Don’t be discouraged . . .,” offers encouragement with the assurance that “He’ll bear your burdens.” Stanza 2 offers a personal testimony, beginning with a spoken recitation, “Just the other day I heard a man say he didn’t believe in God’s Word . . .”. The response of the witness is, “He’s never failed me yet.”...
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*This song file is given as YouTube Example #2 immediately below.

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OFFICIAL LYRICS FOR "WE'VE COME THIS FAR BY FAITH"

(by Albert A. Goodson)

We've come this far by faith
Leaning on the LORD
Trusting in His Holy Word
He never failed me yet
Oh' can't turn around
We've come this far by faith

(Repeat)

Don't be discouraged
when trouble comes into your life
He will bear your burdens
And remove all our misery and strife
And that's why

Chorus

Just the other day
I heard a man say
He didn't believe in God words
But I can truly say the lord will make a way
because He, He's never failed me yet.

Chorus

Online Source: https://www.elyrics.net/read/c/carlton-pearson-lyrics/we_ve-come-this-far-by-faith-lyrics.html

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MORE SHOWCASE YOUTUBE EXAMPLES OF THIS GOSPEL SONG

These examples are given in no particular order.

Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.

YouTube Example #2 - Voices of Hope singing "We"ve Come This Far By Faith"

Gospellin, April 13, 2009

Wonderful choir from Los Angeles under the direction of Thurston Frazier

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNVSZ338nmQ&t=89s

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YouTube Example #3- Bishop Carlton Pearson - We've Come This Far By Faith | Live At AZUSA 4

WY Music '95, Nov 22, 2023  #azusa #carltonpearson

Ⓒ 2001 Azusa Music Group, a division of Higher Dimensions, Inc.

ORU Mabee Center - Tulsa, Oklahoma

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2xJlXpHBPQ

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YouTube Example # 4- Rev. Milton Biggham - We've Come This Far By Faith

Malaco Gospel, October 17, 2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81a7V0MhJpg

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YouTube Example #5 - Troy Ramey - We've Come This Far

malacomg, Apr 2, 2014  #ClassicGospel #SoulGospel #SouthernGospel

Experience the uplifting power of "We've Come This Far" by the legendary Troy Ramey. This timeless gospel classic delivers a message of resilience and faith through powerful vocals and soulful  arrangements.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0jW7ELHuZM

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