Lonnie Farris
(1924 - 1988)
Lonnie Farris was born June 1924 in Charlotte, North Carolina. He was a very charismatic and entertaining steel guitar performer. The dynamic Hawaiian guitar of Reverend Lonnie Farris should be proof enough of the resilience and adaptability of modern gospel music. Lonnie Farris released 16 songs under his own name between 1962 and 1964.
His recordings are incredibly eclectic and draw from all sorts of musical influences. Within this body of work, you’ll find booting saxophone solos, syncopated washboard percussion, and soulful vocalists.
The one element holding all of these recordings together is Farris’ accomplished Hawaiian steel guitar. He plays with an ease and freedom that is sometimes smooth as silk and sometimes bold and fiery.
Lonnie Farris was robbed and murdered November 24, 1988, in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 64. He was laid to rest at the Rose Hill Memorial Park in Whittier, California.
FAQS
What is Sacred Steel?
Sacred Steel is an African-American gospel tradition that features the steel guitar in religious services. It originated in Pentecostal churches in the 1930s
Where did Sacred Steel originate?
It developed in the Church of the Living God, particularly in the Keith and Jewell Dominions.
How did Sacred Steel gain popularity?
Sacred Steel gained wider recognition through performances by artists like Robert Randolph, Calvin Cooke, Aubrey Ghent and the Campbell Brothers, who brought the genre to international fame.
God Bless Sacred Steel!
