I Played In The Band – Kingsmen

After my second post Tuesday on the potential irrelevance of Southern Gospel music and my plea to see the return of ‘live’ music at Southern Gospel concerts, I wanted to start this new series which will be weekly; highlighting Southern Gospel concert clips that feature only ‘live’ music (past and present).  If you’re not tired of me by the end of 2013 regarding this topic, you’ll at least see how Southern Gospel music sounds with ‘live’ music in the concert setting.  A movement starts with one….

Before we get to the video clip I needed to do a little house keeping.  Even though I had the voting polls for best and worst Southern Gospel album covers, I never officially announced the winners of each poll.  The Rebels Quartet was given the dubious honor of having the worst Southern Gospel album cover with the 1961 album What Then.  This poll had just under 100 total votes cast.

Signature Sound fans came out to support the group in voting the 2012 album, Here We Are Again, as best Southern Gospel album cover.  There was just over 250 total votes cast in this poll.  Thanks to all my readers for participating.

Now back to the new feature.  The Booth Brothers recorded a song out on radio now titled “I Played In The Band” (written by Bill Gaither and Larry Gatlin).  I’m not going to point out the irony of the Booth Brothers recording a song with this title.  Instead I will show the first ‘live’ music clip featuring the Kingsmen from 1983.  This YouTube clip showcases one of the best bands in the history of Southern Gospel music.  The Kingsmen band won many awards during this era and always added that musical punch that made attending Kingsmen concerts in the 1980′s a one of kind experience.  Enjoy!

SWOT Analysis – Kingsmen

With the new year here, I am easing back in to regularly scheduled programming.  This week sees the return of one of the most read features of 2012, the SWOT analysis.  Working in the business world, the SWOT analysis is used to determine the strengths and weaknesses of an organization while also looking at opportunities and threats the organization could face.

I thought this would be a good idea to apply to current Southern Gospel touring artists and the feature was born.  This first SWOT analysis of 2013 will take a look at the strengths and weaknesses of the Kingsmen.

Another group in Southern Gospel music with a 50+ year career.  The Kingsmen are best known for their ’3 chords and a cloud of dust’ days of the 1980′s.  How does the current group stack up?  Let’s take a look.

STRENGTHS

• History:  The Kingsmen legacy in Southern Gospel music still garners the group attention.  Many who were around to hear the group in their prime will still hear the group in concert in for nothing else than nostalgia.
• Kingsmen Hits:  Building on the Kingsmen legacy, the group has a catalog of hit songs that they still perform, adding to the nostalgia.  ”The Judgement”, “Old Ship Of Zion”, “Stand Up”, “Traveling Home”, “When My Feet Touch The Streets Of Gold” are a few that come to mind.
• Ray Dean Reese:  Ray has been with the Kingsmen over 45 years.  He’s carried on the Kingsmen tradition with class.
• High tenors:  The Kingsmen have always been known for their high soaring tenors (see Johnny Parrack, Ernie Phillips, Garry Sheppard, Jerry Martin).  They found another one in current tenor Chris Jenkins.

WEAKNESSES

• Personnel turnover:  The Kingsmen aren’t the only group to suffer personnel changes, but they have been hit hard the last several years.  At least the current line-up is working on a year together without a personnel shift.
• Always in the shadows:  Any current line-up of the Kingsmen will always be in the shadow of the 1970′s/1980′s greatness the Kingsmen created.  Even though the group has released some strong albums the last several years, will they be remembered when the final chapter of the Kingsmen is written?  Only time will tell.

OPPORTUNITIES

• Another live album:  The Kingsmen were known for their great live albums.  It is time for the current line-up of the group to record a live album that can stand up to the caliber of some of their most well-known (see Chattanooga Live and Live…Naturally).
• Another reunion video:  I understand Eldridge Fox and Jim Hamill are no longer with us but there are plenty of Kingsmen greats that could be brought together to do another reunion video.

THREATS

• Ray Retiring:  Can there be a Kingsmen if Ray Reese decided to retire?  There is always Brandon to carry on the legacy but it would be a tough sell.

***NEXT SWOT ANALYSIS:  CRIST FAMILY***

The Fab Five – December 2012

The final look at radio singles for 2012.  The following five current radio songs piqued my interest over the preceding month.  One of my all time favorite songs covered by the Sneed Family tops the list for December.  You will also find new artists the John’s River Quartet and Shannon Knight.  The Kingsmen and Bledsoes round out the five songs.  Enjoy!

Album Covers To Rank – Set 15

This week finds set 15 in the album covers to rank.  In the comments section rank each album from 1 to 6 (1 being best, 6 being worst).  Click on thumbnail for larger image.

Paradise Island – Blackwood Brothers Quartet (1959)

New Point Of View – Gaither Vocal Band (1984)

Refreshing – Happy Goodmans (1978)

Pure Vintage – Inspirations (2001)

The Game Of Life – Kingsmen (1984)

Stand Your Ground – Three Bridges (2004)

Album Covers To Rank – Set 12

You know the drill.  Rank the following set of album covers from best to worst in the comments section (1 being best, 6 being worst).  Also, if you didn’t get a chance, go back and rank set 11.  Click on thumbnail for larger image.

From Out Of The Past – Kingsmen (1979)

Serenade – Kirk Talley (1995)

Beside Still Waters – Nelons (2010)

No Trace Of Rain – Paid In Full (2009)

The Unseen Guest – Rebels Quartet (1964)

Hymns II – Ricky Atkinson & Compassion (2006)

Album Covers To Rank – Set 8

Here is another set of album covers to rank to kick off the weekend.  In the comments section, rank each album from 1 to 6 (1 being the best, 6 being the worst).  Click on thumbnail for larger image.

The Call – Mike Bowling (2001)

Heavenly Sunrise – Hoppers (1991)

Live In Dayton – Kingsmen (1990)

We Believe God – N’Harmony (2002)

Oasis – New Hinsons (1995)

Gospel Gold – Oak Ridge Boys (1974)

More Singing In The Foothills And Free Music Give-Away

I decided to attend the last night of the 2012 Singing In The Foothills in Wilkesboro NC on Saturday (06/23/12).  Six artists capped off this event to a large crowd of Southern Gospel enthusiasts.  On this particular night Jonathan Martin was recording some social cam videos.  I will also be providing some audio sound bytes of each set to give my readers a small taste of the event.  Here are highlights in order of appearance.

Kingsmen – The Kingsmen kicked off the event to a crowd ready to hear some great music.  This was my first opportunity to see the group with Chris Jenkins (tenor) and Bob Sellers (lead).  They sounded great.  Chris was a great addition to the group.  He is reminiscent of the classic high tenors the Kingsmen were known for in the past.  Here is a social cam clip from Jonathan Martin and some sound bytes for you to enjoy.

Nelons – This was the third time in a two month time span that I’ve seen the Nelons.  Similar set, but I am still in awe at the vocal talent that Amber possesses.  Enjoy these audio sound bytes of their set.

Talleys – It was great seeing the Talleys in a four-part harmony mixed group.  They did quite a bit of material from the new album (Love Won), most notably “Make Way For The Master” and “Broken World”.  But the song that caused that crowd to come unglued was their closing number, “He’s Alive”.  Wow!  Here are some sound bytes of their set.

Karen Peck & New River – New River is a favorite among the Singing In The Foothills crowd.  It was evident from the first song.  It was great hearing “On The Banks Of The Promised Land”, but the crowd would not let them leaven the stage after performing “Four Days Late”.  Jonathan Martin picked up a social cam video here.  Enjoy sound bytes from New River’s set.

Primitives – Bluegrass Southern Gospel artist the Primitives delighted the crowd with their brand of mountain flavored music.  A favorite of folks in North Carolina, the Primitives highlights included “I Don’t Have To See The Tomb” and “Walking In The Highway”.  Another social cam video of the Primitives picking here.  Also, sound audio sound bytes of their set.

Martins – I can’t tell you how great it was to see the Martins again.  It has been several years since I had the chance to catch up with these folks.  They have never sounded better.  ”The Promise” and “Unredeemed” knocked my socks off.  Jonathan even got a social cam video of the group on stage, here.  Enjoy sound bytes from the Martins set.

As a result of the great time I had at Singing In The Foothills, there is some free music to give away.  I have two brand new, unopened copies of the Talleys newest album Love Won.  Easily one of the best Southern Gospel albums released so far in 2012.  The first two individuals to email me (swea215@yahoo.com) the answer to the following trivia question will win.

***Question:  Name the group Debra Talley was a member before marrying Roger and joining the Hoppers.***

UPDATE:  Congratulations to Charles and Justin for being the first two to answer the Songmasters correctly.  They won a copy of the Talleys new recording Love Won.  Thanks for the continued readership and more free music to continue through the summer.

The Fab Five – June 2012

Time to turn the page on another month and start a fresh.  It is June 2012 and time to highlight five current radio songs.  Southern Gospel radio has plenty of strong material to play, some stations just need to find it.  The five radio songs that have piqued my interest over the course of the last month include two Dianne Wilkinson penned tunes performed by Wilburn & Wilburn and the Kingsmen.  You’ll also find a career record for Tribute Quartet, another soon to be #1 song from Karen Peck & New River and another strong singer/songwriter tune from Michael Wayne Smith.  Enjoy!