My Music Mentor

In the mid-1990's, my parents moved from Texas to Hot Springs Village, Arkansas. They bought a condo from an older couple who were very active in gospel music. When I went for a visit to see their new location, Daddy mentioned that he wanted me to meet Curtis and Norma Doss, the previous owners.  They had been singing gospel music for many years. It turned out that Curtis was a prolific gospel songwriter. We found several of his songs that we had sung in the singing convention books used in singing schools and local gospel singings. One of his songs, "Come and Meet Me," had even been featured on one of the Gaither Homecoming specials.

One afternoon, Daddy took me over to the house where they had moved after selling my parents their condo.  The door was opened by a little old man who had a full thick head of grey hair and hands that were gnarled with arthritis. Daddy made the introductions, and this is my memory of the rest of the visit: Curtis asked me if I sang, to which I answered, "yes I do." Then he said, "follow me." We followed him back to the den, where he had his piano.  He picked up some hand-written sheet music from the piano, and passed copies to Daddy and me. It was a new song he was working on. I felt a bit like I was in a classroom. As I was looking over the song, Curtis said, "Suzan, you will sing the first verse," and, somehow with those gnarled old fingers, he began playing an introduction.  At that moment, I was so glad for my years in singing school and it's emphasis on sight-reading.  So, he played and I sang the first verse of a song that no one had ever seen before. Curtis and Daddy joined in as we sang the chorus. Then he told Daddy to sing the second verse, and we all sang the chorus again.  

I had never had someone I just met tell me to sing a solo on a song I had never seen before. But it was Curtis' manner that made me do it without questioning. He was very quiet, but I could tell that he expected people to just do what they were told. So I sang. Afterwards, he explained that he was trying a new style of song, and he wanted to see how singers would interpret it.  That is one thing I learned about Curtis: he wanted his songs sung the way he wrote them.  

We had a discussion then about what he had intended for the song, because neither Daddy nor I had sung it the way he "heard" it in his head. He asked me for suggestions that he might write so that future singers would know how he intended for the song to be sung.  Later, when the song was published, I was pleased to see that he used my suggestions.

From that day forward, my heart was forever joined with Curtis.  I told him that I had been thinking about writing a song, and asked him to look at it and give me his thoughts. He very graciously looked at my hand-written, first time efforts.  He talked to me very openly, giving honest critique.  He was never one to mince words. He told me what he liked about the song, and he told me what he thought should be changed.  He also gave me some very good advice. He told me never to let another person's opinion override what I felt.  If I felt that God was giving me a certain message in song, I should write it that way, no matter what someone else thought.

Curtis encouraged me to finish the song and let him submit it to Marty Phillips and jeffress/phillips music company for their annual songbook.  I worked on it for a couple of years before I finally submitted it.  I actually submitted 2 or 3 others songs for publication before I was satisfied with the first song I showed him. The first song I published, "Rainbow of Grace," came out in the 2001 songbook, and I have had a song in their book every years since then. Every year, Curtis and Norma made a point to let me know that they had seen my new song and liked it.  I was so honored to know that he was following my work.  After wanting my music to be pleasing to our Lord, I wanted Curtis to like it.

In January 2011, in the same week, my Aunt Jean Watson and Curtis Doss moved from this earth to Heaven.  I saw the goodness of God in the timing.  Because I live in the Chicago area, I would have never been able to attend both funerals if they had been spaced farther apart.  God took them home one day apart, which allowed me to pay my respects to them both.

I had one last "Curtis" moment when I arrived a few minutes early for Curtis' funeral.  The singers were practicing for the special music and they were singing Curtis' songs as was a fitting tribute.  His sweet wife Norma was observing the practice.  I had already noticed that they were singing the song much faster than Curtis would have liked, and so had Norma. She did not hesitate to tell them that Curtis would want that song much slower.  And I just smiled, because that is exactly what Curtis would have done.

Beginning with my next post, I plan to take each song that I have written and tell the story behind it.  Until then, sing for Him!


Psalm 30:4  Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.