Instrumental Music 

From the time Levoy and Tim Dewey were in grade school, they played in the band.  Since the town of Big Springs, Nebraska, only had 535 people, you can imagine every student participated in every activity the school offered.

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Levoy was extremely gifted, and over the next few years, he learned to play every instrument in the band.  From stringed bass, to brass horns such as trombone, to woodwind horns such as clarinet and even the grand-daddy of them all... the double-reeded bassoon.   His favorite was, and still is, the Alto Saxaphone.  If you are fortunate enough to see The Dewey Family on stage today, you will be amazed that Levoy, while over the age of 80, still plays his horns everywhere he goes.

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When Susie and Cindy were middle school age, he began teaching them to play instruments as well.  This addition to their musical repertoire would prove to be a vital part of the Deweys' reputation.  In the height of their career, they were preforming 5-7 times per week.  Being able to play instrumental music for every engagement saved their voices from extreme fatigue.

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In the early 1970's as The Deweys ventured into what would be two decades of oversees missionary work.  Their ability to play instrumental music allowed their non-English speaking audiences the chance to sing along with the classic hymns and spirituals and connect in their own language.  There were times when the electricity would go out as the sun was setting in the remote jungles of Central America.  Levoy, Cindy and Susie would grab their 3 saxophones, (being the loudest instruments) and they would begin playing to signal to the folks walking through the bush countryside ... as if to say,

"We are still here, and the music continues...keep walking."

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The first Instrumental album was dedicated to the San Blas Indians, of Panama.  They met in a thatch roof building and dirt floors when the Deweys first came.  The sales from this album paid for them to build a cinderblock church that stood for 50 years.  In 2020, when a hurricane destroyed it, Levoy, sprang into action and helped to raise the money to rebuild the destroyed church.

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Initially, these long play albums featured slow songs on one side and fast song on the flip side.  By the time vinal albums were not being produced and CD's took their place, that model didn't hold the same distinction. 

 

Eventually, Levoy combined all of the slower songs into one project called Sweet Hour Of Prayer.  The up-tempo songs have been re-released as Old Fashion Hand Clappin' Toe Tappin' Camp meeting Music.  

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