Headrick Chapel Singing

Headrick Chapel
Wears Valley, Sevier County, Tennessee
Sunday, September 26, 1993

Larry Olszewski contributed an article “Diary of an Old Harp Singing” to the Old Harp Newsletter, Spring 1994. Here it has been massaged to fit our minutes format.

All selections from New Harp of Columbia, 1978.

Getting there early to do last minute touch up. Lois Luebke had made the effort to see about most things with her parents. Had been working long hours and been remiss in my duties as elected official to keep this Singing in good order. Took the liberty of mailing out 95 flyers to those who might forget about this affair.

Sharee Rich and her grandparents are the only ones there at 10:00 AM. She has grown so much since she first started and is an inspiration for us older singers. I get my much wanted and needed hug and traded happenings since the last meeting.

Two vans pulled up. They carried 12 or so people from Ohio who caught the Tuckaleechee Singing in the spring and were having an outing this weekend to include the Singing here today. They were even so good as to bring a covered dish, though claiming to be just spectators. I went into my spiel that it was not a spectator sport but a community sharing of voice, song, and heart. Also suggested that they stay until at least after dinner before trekking back to the North. Maybe half of the people here don't show up until after their own morning worship service.

Ernest Headrick, whose grandpa had donated the land for this "Union Church," drove up to open the doors. He is one of the three trustees and I have grown fond of him while we were working on fixing the leaks in the steeple last year. (Must remember to take up a collection for repairs.) Ernest and his wife still live in grandpa's log cabin on the other side of the Chapel Cemetery.

For a while there it seems that the contingent from Ohio might make up half the choir had they chosen to sing. But, as usual, people start to wander in. I ask Sharee to ring the bell to start the service.

Mr. Abbott, who is the preacher here once a month, leads us in a prayer. Sharee is asked to lead us off and she chooses as a surprise, 16, Greenfields (“How tedious and tasteless the hours”) The youngster must have read some anxiety in my waiting for more people to show. Only one in the treble section, four altos, a bench and a half of leads, and the same for the bass. Sharee also leads 107, Holy Manna, another song that she has never lead before. I am proud of her.

To pick up the pace, I chose to lead 51, Mount Olivet, a simple but swiftly moving fuging piece. Lena Headrick takes up 183, Long Ago, with that old well-known tune. Carroll Ross, Steve Stone, Bruce Wheeler, and Bruce Helton now have arrived and bulk up the voices in the bass and treble section. Lois leads 60, Importunity, another that Burl Adams, who was a local Harp Singing Patriarch, used to call a lot. Carroll calls the fuging tune 42, Lenox, which is a nice way to pick up the pace.

Steve Stone then picks out 46, Concord, a favorite of many of the traditional singers. The tune skips up and down around the scale. At one time this must have been a good Singing School tune for practicing jumping in the scale and timing. Lois Luebke reminds me it is getting close to lunch and I ask Kathleen Mavournin to lead a song and she chooses 117, Coronation, a powerful tune to what the appetite for the dinner. Class dismissed. Ann Strange has wandered in just before the break along with Toby Koosman. I greet Odis Abbott and his wife, who sits alongside us in the Alto. Rhonda Lubke has taken up residence alongside her with Sara Baskins.

I seem to miss Paul Clabo and his two daughters, Janet Whaley and Teresa Wiley. Paul usually leads "Morality," John Dunn and a couple of other Townsend singers are also in attendance. The singing is holding true to form. Starting out slow and building up after the local church services let out.

Mr. Abbott had set up the horses and connected the numbered pieces of plywood over the top before the Singing started to make a table about 50 feet long beside the chapel. Within 20 minutes the spread is just about complete as I put my 3-cheese goulash down and ask Brother Abbott to lead us in prayer.

Allan and Sharon Hjerpe, Liz Webb, Tom Taylor, Eleanor Patty, and about 20 more singers join the fold. Some of Charlie Clabo's kin are also represented. Don't see "Uncle" John Clabo either. Hope he is well. Probably a good thing that I don't get much to eat while talking to everyone. Always nervous that I would forget something or forget a name. Talking to Ernest, learn that the Building Fund is getting down to about $44 for the upkeep of Headricks Chapel. Also informed of efforts to get Headricks Chapel on the National Register of Historical Places. Believe the Ohio people will stay for part of the afternoon session.

Lunch is about over and I get Sharee to ring the bell in the steeple to call the Singing back to order. Lena pulls me aside and reminds me about taking up a collection for the building fund. I ask Mr. Abbott to open with a prayer after Reford leads 107, Holy Manna.
Reford declines to lead a second time and everyone in the front row of the Bass section declines. Don't wish to slow the singing so I call 30, Sion's Security, a powerful minor tune. The pace is rapid, but stately and demanding. I spend my time leading the tune by heart and capturing individual's eyes as I keep time, wandering around the "Choir," listening to the feet keeping time, watching smiles grow as everything, everyone is as one. This is a good singers' Singing. The old wooden Chapel was made for this. John Wright leads 98, Liberty, at a good pace.

Ann Strange calls 61, Leander.
A slight pause while we negotiate the pitch and we are off again with a strong beat. Ann could be a little awed at herself and the song as a smile is trying to break her face in half. As Nancy Olsen comes in and takes a place in the Alto Section, Lois leads us in 159b, Ocean.
She knows what she wants and gets the choir to follow her and not lose their place. We fly through it. Kind of hard to top it, but her mom Lena Headrick leads 180, Whitestown, and the vibrations just keep flowing from everyone. Henry Lawson leads 112, Humility, and Sharee Rich leads 99, Morning Trumpet—her favorite —at a fast clip. She also leads 18, Windham, which surprises me, but the little gal increases her store of tunes to lead. Sharee also took my suggestion of looking out at the audience and sharing of the touching of the eyes.

Nancy Olsen leads 139, Meditation.
She has always been a favorite leader in any Singing. Allan Hjerpe does not look well and is near the back of the church. He said that he would probably leave early. I ask him if he would like to lead. I don't recollect what he was leading, but he was standing erect and a smile stretched as far as it could go. The tune was uplifting to the body as well as the soul. His wife Sharon declines to lead.

Kathy Jones trips off 56b, Warrenton and Toby Koosman and Reford Lamons co-operate on 163, New Topia.
Toby and Dean Turley, singing bass, are scheduled to get married next year. Martha leads 181, Boylston.
Mary Beth McGee leads 120b, Martyn, which I have not heard at the Old Harp Singings but it has been sung at the Sunday evening Singings held at Helen Hutchinson's. I make a point to ask her name as I don't remember if I have met her before. Nan Taylor leads 14, Mear, and Steve Stone leads 81, ('t'op or 'b'ottom of the page?), which has some wonderful harmonies. Steve stops us and repeats the shapes a second time.

Bruce Wheeler gets flying again with 115, Northfield.
Carroll Ross from Athens leads 23b, Duke Street.
Reford overcomes his shyness and leads 43, Pleasant Hill.
Mitch Martin tackles Gideon Fryer's tune 35, Ninety-Fifth, a fuging piece.
Tom Taylor asks if anyone has led 60, Importunity.
The retort from the choir members was that it was called in the morning, but had not been ripped out of the book when we did so, and that those words were good enough to repeat.

Eleanor Patty leads us through 21b, Mendon.
I ask if we can repeat the notes again, and it turns out to be a wonderful tune. Sharee wants to sing 21t, Rockingham, on the same page, as that tune was a part of the Singing School, so I get up to lead it for her. As I sit down Lois Lubke, the co-chairperson of the Singing, whispers for me to pass the hat for the Headricks Chapel building fund.

As the Singing moves along and different organizers get up to lead, I ask them to announce the upcoming Singings. Done this way, it gives a short breather between songs but doesn't slow the affair down by having one long list of announcements. Since we have had everyone lead who wanted to, it is time to open the Singing to requests. The first is from Bruce Wheeler and he is asked to lead 124, The Saint's Adieu.
The way he leads it, it is the most powerful song and poetry in the book. Bruce has indicated that in four or five places the chords send shivers down the spine.

Since Russell Whitehead had lead that song (The Saint's Adieu) many times in memory of his father, Liz Webb requests 75t, Anticipation, which she and Reford lead in memory of Russell, since it was one of the other songs that he would lead.

We are winding up now. I think 159, ?Not Sure? was called.
I don't remember, as my notes stop here. My guess is the song that Mr. Helton led was 206, Western Mount Pleasant.
Martha, in her wisdom, suggests that we stand. He is a joy to watch lead as his delivery is sharp, crisp, and exuberant. As we are getting a bit ragged at the end, Lois suggests that it is time to wind it up. I ask for 69b, Middleton, and on the third verse we slide into Amazing Grace, and Martha caps off with "When the Battle's Over."

In the middle of this, many of us are wandering around to old and new faces, shaking hands and exchanging hugs. When the last note is sung I ask Brother Abbott to close with a prayer. It was an emotional finish, as the preacher was filled with the spirit of the singing.

I dismiss the class until next year. I move out of the way and start trying to collect my loaner books—the last of the hard-cover books with gray duct-tape on them for easy spotting. I talked to David Puryear, who has moved into the Nashville area with his wife. (He found an 1868 edition of the New Harp of Columbia.) Martha Graham walks up to me and said I should have passed the hat for the building fund. (Despite all the reminders, I forgot.) Grace Clabo gives me $5 for the Newsletter as do Martha and David. I meet Virginia Tindell of Maryville, and Darrell Billingsley of Eaglesville, Tennessee. Mrs. Wiley thanked me for the book I sent her last week. Toby gives me three dollars for the newsletter. I sell two or three other books. I guess that is why there is an extra $24 in my pocket to go into the revolving book fund.

Different people are wandering up and down the pews picking up the trash and a loose book or two—checking out whose name is in them—and we get the building locked up for the night. I greet the few people who are left, exchange a few warm words and hugs and take a few deep breaths. It was a good Singing, and it was the place I most wanted to be. Time to relax, and we get back to the car and load up. OK, that was enough. Off to Bruce Wheeler's place to get time to talk to some old friends, finish up the left-over potluck dishes, have something cold to drink, and sing some more if so inspired. Old Harp Singers really don't fade away. They just get hoarse for a while.

Larry Olszewski
Epworth Old Harp Singer