Format 10" 78rpm single Length 3:02 | ||
A-side "I Had a Good Father and Mother" Recorded December 2, 1929; Dallas, TX | ||
"The Church Needs Good Deacons" is a gospel blues song written by Washington Phillips (1880–1954) and recorded by him in 1929 (vocals and zither).
A deacon is a Christian minister associated with service of some kind, which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Phillips refers to the great example of St. Stephen, one of the seven deacons appointed to distribute food and charitable aid to poorer members of the community in the early church. He goes on to say:
He condemns deacons of his time who "won't put up with one honest woman, but tries to live with two or three", and concludes with a reference to the description of what the character of a deacon should be in the First Epistle to Timothy (traditionally attributed to St. Paul) at 3:8–13.
One Allmusic page attributes authorship of the song to Stephen Foster. There seems to be no evidence for that assertion.
As of 2015, the song does not seem to have been recorded by any other artist.