About Unknown (Selah Jubilee Singers)
The Selah Jubilee Singers were an influential American gospel quartet active mainly from the late 1920s through the 1940s, but the phrase “Unknown (Selah Jubilee Singers)” in hymn databases usually refers to songs where:
the composer or lyricist is not known, but the earliest or notable recording/arrangement is by the Selah Jubilee Singers.
Who they were
The group was founded around 1927 by Thermon Ruth and became one of the major gospel harmony groups of the early recording era.
They were known for:
- Tight jubilee-style close harmony singing
- Early radio gospel broadcasts
- Mixing sacred gospel with early recorded popular influence
- Being among the first gospel groups to gain wide commercial recording success
Why “Unknown” appears with them
Many traditional gospel and spiritual songs:
- Were passed down orally in Black church traditions
- Had no single identifiable author
- Were later recorded by groups like the Selah Jubilee Singers
So in catalogues like Hymnary or hymn databases, you often see:
- Text/Tune: Unknown
- First popular recording or arrangement: Selah Jubilee Singers
For example, they were among the earliest recorded gospel groups for songs like “Just a Closer Walk With Thee” (1941 recording), where the song itself predates the recording and has no confirmed author.
In simple terms
“Unknown (Selah Jubilee Singers)” does not mean they wrote the hymn. It means:
- The original writer is unknown
- The Selah Jubilee Singers helped preserve or popularize it through recording
