Editor Benjamin Burke Beall (1874–1945) began publishing gospel songbooks like the successful Joyful Lays series in 1900. When this compilation emerged in 1907, Beall likely envisioned it as the anchor for another series. However, no further issues were printed after Beall dissolved his Douglassville, Georgia publishing company. A graduate of the Texas Musical Institute, Beall then gained employment with influential regional publisher A. J. Showalter while also teaching at that company’s Southern Normal Institute. Beall’s Gospel Songs combines popular turn-of-the-century gospel songs with new compositions by Beall and other members of his circle. These compositions’ complex rhythms, independent parts, and layered textures prefigure the style of professional quartet music that transformed the practice and performance of gospel music across the US South. Beall began performing as a member of Showalter and Company’s house quartet in the 1910s.

—Erin Fulton