Ray dean reese biography of christopher columbus

Sellers says that listeners will hear many of the same qualities today that were present in the early live recordings. We want the couple of hours they spend with us to be a time of refuge, or an escape if you will, from the every day burdens that this life can sometimes deal. I learn more and more about this industry and music in general every day, there is always something to learn.

However, some aspects of a typical concert have not changed and this is how the group holds on to their older fans while attracting a new fan base.

Ray dean reese biography of christopher columbus

Long-time Kingsmen fans expect a live concert to help them put everyday cares aside and they also expect to hear vocal acrobatics that leave them astonished. Sellers notes that the growth of the group is also revealed in their choice of songs. All the singers are focused on blending and shining as an entire unit, or team as Ray likes to call it, more so than as individuals.

Nobody on stage is trying to out-shine the other. The Kingsmen team works hard together and also enjoys a lot of laughter together. Ray Reese has more stories than would fill a book, but he says some of the most memorable occasions are not necessarily the funny ones. We took a private plane and after several tries, Jim Hamill could not get his door shut on the plane!

During his brief absence Jason Selph served as baritone. However, he left the group in and Philip Hughes joined the group in at lead. Surrett left the group in and was replaced by Tony Peace who would also serve as emcee. The group experienced even more change beginning in with the departures of tenor Jeremy Peace and baritone Tony Peace. Harold Reed joined the group in the tenor position and blew fans away with his three octave supersonic classic Kingsmen tenor sound.

Nick Succi also left a year later and was replaced at the keys with young pianist Cody McVey who remained with the quartet until Also at this time, Bryan Hutson announced his departure from the group. Chris Jenkins of the Vintage Quartet was hired as the new tenor in After tenor singer Kermit Jamerson and Hensley both left the group inJerry Redd returned to sing tenor.

Later inbass singer Calvin Runion left the group again. This time he was replaced by Jim McCallister. The lineup with McCallister recorded one album. Pianist Ray Talley stopped traveling with the group in December to accept a Music Minister position. Eldridge Fox continued to fill the same role when the group appeared at other venues, but Fox was restricted from appearing on television due to the fact that he was a candidate for a spot on the Asheville City Council.

By this point, Fox was also managing the Kingsmen. They could not know it at the time, but the names Fox and Reese would become synonymous with the Kingsmen over the decades that followed, along with one more individual who would soon join just a few weeks later. Jim Hamill joined the Kingsmen Quartet for the first time in the Spring of He had also pulled two stints with the Rebels prior to joining the Kingsmen.

In his later years with the group, Hamill would often sing a few songs and then step aside to allow one of the musicians to sing in the lead spot while he otherwise ran the show. Hamill officially retired in September at the National Quartet Convention. Inthe Kingsmen released what would become for them a trend setting recording titled Big And Live.

On this project, they introduced fans to their exciting brand of singing. Unlike the more polished and choreographed Statesmen and Blackwood Brothers of the previous two decades, the Kingsmen emphasized an exuberant energy. Big And Live also showcased a number of songs that would go on to become classics. The success of " Big and Live led to many more live projects, including "Chattanooga Live" and "Live The Kingsmen of the s continued to combine high energy, up-tempo music with an exciting brand of showmanship.

They recorded more live projects than the average Southern Gospel group, because a concert setting was where they excelled. Burger was so popular during his extended stint with the group, he won the Singing News Fan Award in the Favorite Musician category ten years in a row. For several years after that, the award was named after him. In the s, the Kingsmen joined forces with Gold City to record a series of live recordings titled KingsGold.

Parker Jonathan was singing baritone for the group by this time. The multi-talented Randy Miller played guitar, harmonica, and was featured on selected songs as a vocalist. This team of young men likely had no idea what they were beginning. By the early s, the Kingsmen had ascended to the peak of the gospel music industry with their Dove Award-winning record, Big and Live.

Since then, the momentum has never stopped.