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Other
artists began to sing her songs at their performances,
and many included them on their recordings. Governor
Jimmie Davis of Louisiana, had his attention captured by
the stirring melody and simple, but profound and
inspirational lyrics, he made inquiries concerning the
composer. The fact that Dottie was only a teen-ager at
the time did not dissuade the governor from signing her
to a writer's contract, and Dottie's professional career
began to reach meteoric proportions.
Although
she was married at the age of sixteen and a mother
eighteen months later, Dottie's schedule was hardly
interrupted. In fact, her career was enhanced when three
year old Reba joined her parents to form a singing trio.
Over the years the Rambos gained increasing popularity
that spanned the globe, and they reached the pinnacle of
the gospel music world.
Dottie's
distinctive voice and affecting delivery won her legions
of fans and her career soared through the early '80s.
But health problems sidelined this magnetic, amazing
woman for almost two decades; preventing her from
sharing the songs she wrote, accept by the voices of
others. This all changed with the release of Stand By
The River, her first solo project in 18 years. The
project included some of her favorite songs from the
past combined with brand-new compositions. The title
cut, "Stand By The River", a duet with Dolly Parton, has
garnered massive airplay and has already been nominated
in three categories, including the 2003 Song Of The Year
by The Christian Country Music Association.
The
timing couldn't be better for another groundbreaking
recording from Dottie Rambo. In the summer of 2002 her
friends and family surprised Dottie with a special
concert in her honor at the historic Ryman Auditorium in
Nashville. Barbara Mandrell hosted the evening as she
recounted memories along side Dottie and stories behind
the great songs of her career. With performances by some
of Country and Gospel music's most beloved artists,
Dottie joined in song with the likes of Larry Gatlin,
Dolly Parton, Crystal Gayle, Vestal Goodman, The Crabb
Family and many more. The outcome is an amazing new
video and DVD capturing the evening entitled More Than
The Music Presents - We Shall Behold Him - A Tribute To
Dottie Rambo and audio recording releasing
simultaneously on September 9th, 2003.
Dottie
has been the recipient of numerous awards, beginning in
1968 with a Grammy for her solo album 'It's the Soul of
Me.' Billboard Magazine named her Trendsetter of the
Year for the same album. In recognition of her prolific
songwriting ability, the Christian Country Music
Association honored her in 1994 as the Songwriter of The
Century and in 2002 presented her with the Living Legend
award. She is a member of the Southern Gospel Music
Association Hall of Fame, and she has been inducted into
the Gospel Music Hall of Fame twice, as a soloist and as
part of the Rambo trio.
Dottie
received a Dove award in 1999 for her song, 'I Go to The
Rock," sung by Whitney Houston in the hit motion picture
'The Preacher's Wife." Houston's soundtrack recording of
the song went double platinum. The multitudinous awards
bestowed on Dottie culminated in 2001 with the ASCAP
Foundation's Lifetime Achievement award.
Over the
years Dottie has been associated with a host of secular
and gospel music performers. She has recorded with such
notable artists as Dolly Parton, Barbara Mandrell and
Dickie Betts. Among the many personalities with whom
Dottie has appeared are Donna Summer, Mahalia Jackson,
Pat Boone, CeCe Winans and Ricky Skaggs. She has
appeared on the legendary Grand Ole Opry on numerous
occasions.
Besides
Whitney Houston, many others have recorded Dottie's
songs, including Elvis Presley, Dolly Parton, Barbara
Mandrell, Dottie West, Crystal Gayle, Larry Gatlin,
Johnny Cash, Sandy Patti, Jerry Lee Lewis, Tom T. Hall,
Vince Gill, Larnelle Harris, Bill Monroe, George Beverly
Sheas, Vestal Goodman, Bill Gaither, Connie Smith, dc
talk, Aarron Jeffrey, Andrae Crouch, Commisioned, Vickie
Winans, Ray Boltz, Steve Greene and scores of others.
For many
years Dottie has enjoyed far-reaching television
exposure, having made frequent appearances on all the
major Christian networks, countless local stations, and
on TNN, PAX and GMT. During the 1980's TBN featured
Dottie in one of it's most successful series, a
christian variety show called Dottie Rambo Magazine. The
network still shows reruns of the series. In addition,
Dottie has been a fixture in the Gaither Homecoming
television and video series.
Having
written over 2,500 published songs, Dottie ranks with
the beloved Fanny Crosby among the women who have had
the greatest impact in the field of gospel music. Hardly
any modern hymnal fails to include one or more of her
songs, and movies and television specials around the
world have featured songs by Dottie Rambo. A feature
film has been planned about Ms. Rambo's life as well.
Dottie's
biggest hit song, and probably the best known, is the
inspirational 'He Looked Beyond My Fault and Saw My
Need, ' a song that continues an upward spiral and one
that she sings at all her performances. Other well-known
titles include 'We Shall Behold Him,' 'If That Isn't
Love,' 'The Perfect Rose,' 'Behold The Lamb,' 'Build My
Mansion Next Door To Jesus,' 'To Much To Gain To Los,'
'Remind Me Dear Lord,' 'Tears Will Never Stain The
Streets Of that City,' 'I Will Glory In The Cross' and
'I've Never Been This Homesick Before.' She also
composed the delightful 'Down By the Creekbank, which
became the most successful children's musical in
Christian music history, with sales well beyond a
million units. |
