What are some of the essential qualities of a good gospel singer?
MR. DOYLE: The first thing you look for is the heartfelt emotion and belief in what you’re singing about, its very essence. You can feel the real deal. That pretty much sums it up. Gospel music has to be from the heart, more than just words on a piece of paper with a melody to it. For me gospel music has always been about the song itself and what have you to say. You do it the best you can and then let the people decide. I always did. I let them decide just how much they liked it and I always hoped that they would like it as much as I did. NEA: You play both religious and secular music, correct? MR. DOYLE: I started off playing just bluegrass music. But gospel music has always been an integral part of bluegrass as far back as the man we call the father of bluegrass, Bill Monroe. He had the Bluegrass Boys and the Bluegrass Quartet and they always played a fair amount of gospel. And that carried right on down through the Stanley Brothers, Flatt and Scruggs, all the early bluegrass pionee
