“Great Day” was written by Billy Rose, Edward Eliscu and Vincent Youmans for a 1929 Broadway musical play (also titled Great Day!). Metro Goldwyn Meyer (MGM) purchased the rights to make a musical film based on the play. Joan Crawford, Anita Page and Johnny Mack Brown were to be the stars. Most of the film was shot in 1930, but Crawford was not happy with the result. Due to her objections, the film was never released. The title song has survived, though. The Statesmen introduced “Great Day” to their circle of Gospel fans in 1960 on their record titled Peace Oh Lord.
In 1999, Friends IV’s One Voice CD included a sophisticated version of “Great Day” arranged by Lari Goss. Since then, several variations on the Friends IV arrangement have been released including versions by Old Friends Quartet (Feelin’ Fine/2003), the Gaither Vocal Band with Ernie Haase & Signature Sound (Together/2007) and most recently by Legacy Five (Great Day/2014).
Because the arrangements are rather similar, the choice mostly comes down to your preference of who is singing.
What better way to settle it than a Smack Down? With four groups in contention, this is an every man for himself free for all type of battle.
In this audio clip, you’ll hear a verse and chorus by each group in this order: Friends IV/Old Friends Quartet/Legacy Five/Gaither-Haase.
Who wins this Smack Down?