An obituary honoring one of the best-known members of the Chuck Wagon Gang was released today, highlighting all the contributions he made in his time with the group. Eddie Carter passed away on Monday morning at the age of 91. While I’m not all that familiar with the Chuck Wagon Gang’s body of work, I feel this is worth noting, especially since Carter was the replacement for one of the Gang’s original members.

Eddie Carter, the last living son of Dad and Mom Carter, passed away on Monday morning, December 6, 2010 in Texas from complications from pneumonia. He was 91 years old.

He was born Nov. 15, 1919 in Noel, MO, and was the middle child of the Carter sibblings. He met his wife, Carrie, in 1940, and recently the couple celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary. He retired in 1984 as service manager for Maynard Foods. He was preceeded in death by his daughter, Rebecca Ann (Becky) Stout, and son, David Parker Carter III.

After D. P. “Dad” Carter retired from active participation with the Chuck Wagon Gang in 1955, Eddie became his replacement. In the mid-50’s, the Chuck Wagon Gang headquartered in Knoxville, TN for a couple of years, and were promoted and booked by Rev. and Mrs. J. Bazzel Mull of Knoxville. Prior to this time, all recordings by The Chuck Wagon Gang were recorded in Texas. With the move to Knoxville, the Chuck Wagon Gang began recording all sessions in Nashville.

On October 6, 1956, Eddie recorded his first eight songs with the Gang, along with his sisters Rose and Anna, his brother Roy, and his brother-in-law Howard Gordon, guitarist and husband of Anna. Songs recorded were: I’ll Walk and Talk With My Lord”, “When I Looked Up and He Looked Down”, “Sing On The Way”, “I Know (Yes, I Know)”, “He’s My Lord and King”, “Inside the Gate”, “There’s Gonna Be Singing”, and “I’m Headed for the Promised Land.” While the songs were of the old-time flavor, they were different with the “new” Nashville Sound. They were released as singles to gospel and country music stations, and the songs dominated the airways.

Eddie’s time was short lived with The Gang at this time, but he later returned for some tour dates in the early to mid 70’s, and recorded on all Chuck Wagon Gang Columbia Records sessions from 1971-1975. The 1975 sessions marked an end to a 39-year association with Columbia Records. Eddie, along with his sister, Anna, made their final recordings with The Gang, on February 13, 1978, as “Old Fashioned Singing,” This was a collection of 20 greatest recorded for TV on an independent label, Tame Records.

Eddie made some later special appearances at Grand Ole Gospel, National Quartet Convention in Nashville, and other events. He was on tour again for some special appearances in 1993-4 with Ruth Ellen Carter Yates, Roy Carter, Shaye Smith. He was present for The Chuck Wagon Gang’s induction into the GMA Hall of Fame in Nashville in 1998.

Survivors include his wife, Carie; son, Clyde (Buster) Carter; daughter-in-law, Sheri Carter; son-in-law, Jerry Stout; grandchildren, Eddie III and wife, Vicki, Danny Stout, Jonathan Stout and wife, Ashley, Nicole Carter Hawthorne and husband, Matt, Aaron Carter and Alayne Hollis and Jake Carter; great-grandchildren, Carley, Kelsey, Madison Carter, Merek and Maddox “Peanut” Hawthorne, Evan Stout, Zoey and Parker Carter and Gaige Carter; and sisters, Ruth Ellen Yates and Betty Goodwin

Funeral arrangements: 10 a.m. Wednesday, December 8 at Victory Baptist Church (2910 Layton Ave., Fort Worth, TX 76117 – 817-834-1502). Interment will be at Mount Olivet Cemetery. Visitation: 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, December 7 at Mount Olivet Funeral Home.

There has been talk lately of the new version of the Gospel Caravan tour that traveled in the early 1960s, which included groups like The LeFevres, The Prophets Quartet, The Blue Ridge Quartet, and The Johnson Sisters. At the 100th Anniversary Celebration at NQC 2010, the new Caravan troupe debuted, featuring the LeFevre Quartet, The Blackwood Brothers, and the Chuck Wagon Gang. A tour is slated to begin in Spring 2011 and the groups are currently at work on a studio album, but in the meantime, here’s a video press release discussing the Caravan:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sbt5y9rYsPI

Fans that are familiar with the Liberty Quartet will know that when baritone Jordan Cragun first joined the group, he had several ties in the Southern Gospel industry already; his father sang bass in a group called the Celebration Quartet, and Jordan’s aunt, Kim Collingsworth, was pianist for the group. The quartet only released one project, and the vocalists were all called to the pastorate, so they split up. Jordan talks about them here, and says they were “an amazing quartet.”

Recently, they held a reunion concert (minus Kim) in Roanoke, VA, about 45 minutes from my hometown. The baritone for the group, Jeff Keaton, pastors the Parkway House of Prayer there, and the tenor, Mark Dubbeld is the minister of music there. Lead singer Dan Coy is the youth pastor. Ray Cragun, the group’s bass singer, came up from Lousiana, where he pastors a church, for the event. I was unable to attend, but my friend Andrew Graham went and got several video clips of the concert. Keep in mind that the group traveled about twenty years ago, when the guys were in their twenties, and none of them have sung professionally otherwise.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMnSzsgR05k

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBeeQYGrUw8

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRfVPtPyOUE

(more…)

It’s been making the rounds around Southern Gospel blogs, but there is a petition to get a Weatherfords recording, In The Garden, released on CD. The request comes from The Netherlands, and though it may be a long shot, it’s worth signing: http://www.gopetition.com/petition/38572.html

Ever since it had been let out of the bag that Ernie & crew would be doing “We Shall See Jesus” on their Cathedrals tribute project, speculation ran wild as to what the arrangement would sound like and who would be featured, as Haase did a good job of keeping both under wraps. Since the recent video taping, it was revealed that the featured soloist is none another than lead singer Devin McGlamery, in his first major project with Signature Sound.

Although it’s been said that a video of Glen Payne taking the third verse was shown at the taping, this Youtube clip shows McGlamery taking the song all the way through. This is the first time I’ve heard Devin really let loose with this group, and he does an incredible job of both doing justice to Payne’s performance and making it his own.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6dYH28AkTg

Props to Clarence Grigsby for this upload. Although Ernie Haase apparently sung this Danny Funderburk signature many times during his tenure with The Cathedrals, it has not hit the Internet yet. Although it was originally uploaded to Facebook only, it is now available on Youtube:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ndyNxZKmrs

What I like about Haase’s take on it is that he did not merely scream out high notes trying to match Funderburk’s power tenor. Rather, he takes the song and makes it his own, while staying within his range. Some of the points at which Funderburk would hit higher notes (“I’d be covered in trouble, There’d be no place to go..”), Haase wisely opted to go lower, rather than straining to match those notes. Going that route probably did two things to make it possible for the group to still effectively stage the song: it saved Ernie’s voice quite a bit, and putting his own spin on it made it unique to him and still delivered, rather than sounding like a cover group tenor trying to replicate Danny’s every note.

Although Ernie Haase & Signature Sound did not do this song in their Cathedrals tribute, this video gives a fair glimpse into what Ernie’s take would sound like.

From a press release from the group:

Morristown, TN - Chris Allman has been anounced as the new tenor for Greater Vision. Many people will remember Chris as the trio’s original tenor, joining the group in December of 1990, and remaining until the end of 1995. “I can’t tell you how excited we are that Chris has chosen to come back on the road. I’ve always said he’s one of the greatest tenors I’ve ever heard, and his passion to share the Gospel is absolutely contagious,” Gerald Wolfe said.

Chris is very excited to be coming back to Greater Vision, as well. “To say that I am thrilled about the opportunity to travel and minister with Gerald and Rodney again would be an understatement. Over the past twenty years, my family and I have sincerely sought God in regards to His perfect will for us and, at times, this is a path that seems to be indefinable. I am very careful when it comes to mentioning the Lord synonymously with a decision I am making but I am sure that this is a door that He has opened to us. While returning to the ministry of Greater Vision finds us excited it also serves as a bittersweet experience regarding our departure from the church we’ve served over the past seven years. As you pray for the future of this great ministry of music please also take the time to pray for The Church @ Burlington. The days ahead will find the leadership there making very important decisions, but as their ears are tuned toward Heaven, I’m sure the way will be made clear for them.” Chris said.

Rodney Griffin said, “We feel very blessed to have the opportunity to travel with Chris again. We’ve kept our friendships strong over the last fifteen years, while he’s been involved in another ministry, so having him back on the bus brings us full circle.”

Several close friends have already expressed their excitement as well, including Scott Fowler, of Legacy Five, who said “I am very excited that Chris is coming back! He is one of my all-time favorite tenors, and I always loved hearing him sing with Greater Vision”. Michael Booth, of the Booth Brothers also commented, “I’m so happy about this! Chris Allman is a man of God who has proven his commitment to the Gospel through the years. Now he returns to Greater Vision, and they will, no doubt, produce music that will raise the standard of how the Gospel should be presented in the form of music. “.

“We are always amazed at how good God is to us, and for Him to allow Chris, Rodney, and me to travel together again is just another example of the Lord blessing us more than we deserve. We are so blessed!” Gerald said.

Chris said, “I am looking forward to seeing many of your familiar faces once again and, along with Gerald and Rodney, thank you for your continued support of this ministry. We believe that our best days are ahead of us!”

Chris Allman’s first concert with Greater Vision will be on Wednesday April 21 in Myrtle Beach, SC.

For more information, visit greatervisionmusic.com .

This is quite an announcement; Chris has always been one of my favorite tenors, and his era with Greater Vision gave it one of the greatest sounds it has had. Jacob Kitson’s vocal style is very reminiscent to that of Allman’s, so Allman coming back on the road will continue that stellar sound.

Here are several clips of Chris’ tenure with the group:

Master Builder
I’m Too Near Home
When The Home Gates Swing Open
Take Him At His Word
Who Moved
Blessed Assurance
I Could Never Praise Him Enough

And finally, the most recent clip of him: an acoustic clip of “God On The Mountain” in early 2009.

The end of 2009 brought the beginning for two new lineups of two different groups: Gold City and Legacy Five. Legacy Five videos are hopefully coming soon, but for now, our friend DinanaSN had her camera ready last night for the first song of the first concert for the Gold City lineup featuring Josh Cobb on tenor, Bruce Taliaferro on lead, Daniel Riley on baritone, the return of Tim Riley on bass, and Roy Webb as piano player. They hit the stage and started this new chapter in GC history with a classic: “One Scarred Hand.”

If this is how the group does on three hours of practice, they’ll be a force to be reckoned with in a couple months’ time.

Be sure to go to Youtube later to see more videos of that concert! I’ll post a video of Gus Gaches’ debut on tenor with Legacy Five as one becomes available.

Update: Here’s a video of Gus Gaches taking Frank Seamans’ solo on “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” I think he’ll do just fine! There is also a clip of Legacy Five singing with only piano accompaniment on “Life Will Be Sweeter Someday.”

Youtube is a truly amazing thing, but especially in the world of Southern Gospel Music. Such technology allows us to go back in time to see our favorite groups and singers from yesteryear; and sometimes, it allows us to see how our favorite current singers have improved over the years.

When you think of singers in SG that have worked their butt off to improve themselves and become dynamite singers, Steve Ladd almost immediately leaps to mind. Take a look at this clip of Steve singing with The Anchormen. Judging by the lineup, this is probably around 1999. Steve is the one singing the second verse. You may want to turn up your speakers, because the clip is not loud at all.

Now, fast forward to the year 2009. Here, Steve Ladd is featured as tenor for Gold City, and he gets the solo pretty much all the way through.

Can you hear the difference? When Steve left Gold City, he went out a better singer than he came in. Like I said before, he worked hard to improve as a singer, and those two clips are solid proof.

I wish I’d found these two clips around the time Steve left GC, but consider this my belated tribute to Steve Ladd. I can’t put it better than Doug Harrison at Averyfineline did: “Gospel music could stand more of that sort of work ethic.”

From the press release on SGN:

Atlanta, GA, June 16, 2009 — In a bold move, the LeFevre Quartet announced their decision to retire the family name with the recent passing of matriarch Eva Mae LeFevre. The group will be known as “Priority”.

A partnership, forged barely four years ago, established a sound and set in motion a number of unprecedented milestones. Within months of forming, fans voted them Horizon Group of the Year at the 2006 Singing News Fan Awards because of what they heard and saw in them. The following year came Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award. Next came television appearances on Dr. Charles Stanley’s popular In Touch program, a 2009 Dove Award nomination and recordings along the way that simply raised the bar for an entire genre.

This move comes in response to a request by some LeFevre family members to discontinue the name when Eva Mae was no longer able to travel. In a statement, Priority (Stacy Bragg, Gus Gaches, Mike LeFevre, and David Staton) said:

“We were able to honor a name that had such an influence on gospel music in America. On nearly every recording we’ve done, we re-recorded a classic LeFevre tune as a sort of tribute.”

Recognizing that now is the time for them to impact this generation of gospel music fans and the twenty-first century church, the group hopes to solidly establish their identity as “Priority”. The name is a reflection of who they are, what they’re about, why they do what they do, where they’re headed, and how they’ve gotten this far.

“Life is about relationships and priorities. God has blessed so much, and certainly not because we’ve done anything to deserve or earn His favor. So we want our relationships to take priority—with Him, our families, our churches, and each other.”

There are no personnel changes and no changes in musical style, just a new name. The group will still travel with a live band consisting of Jordan LeFevre and Trey Ivey. Audiences will continue to hear the trademark harmony and talented musicians.

In light of the recent passing of Eva Mae LeFevre, this is a very classy move. It honors the memory of one of Southern Gospel Music’s finest ladies, while still allowing the group to establish their own identity.

The group has already shown us they are capable of awesome things, producing one of 2008′s best projects with Nothin’ But Good. I am certainly looking forward to hearing more from Priority.