Last night, Brian Free & Assurance announced that Mike Rogers is their new baritone singer. Brian Free stated:

When I received the audition info for Mike I was very impressed with his vocal ability and the gift to deliver a song. After spending some time with him, his wife Bekki and daughter Coraline at my home, I knew he was the one God had sent to be a member of our family. I love his heart and the love he has for people. He will be a wonderful addition to BFA.

Having over 300 people apply for the job, it was a hard decision due to all the talent I heard. I want to thank each person who took their time and effort to apply for the position. I am truly honored that so many wanted to be a part of our ministry. I know God has a place and time for you to use your talent for him.

Mike Rogers added:

The warmth and humility from Brian and the guys when I auditioned made me feel this was truly a God-thing, and confirmed for me that I wanted to be a part of their ministry. BFA is very family-oriented, which means a lot to me. Ministry is important, but after God, family is top priority. Quartet music doesn’t get any better than BFA. They are top notch, and I am honored to join them.

Rogers is the latest graduate of Ed O’Neal University. He was introduced to Southern Gospel when he joined the Dixie Melody Boys, ten months ago. (The day his hire there was announced, we interviewed him, here.)

Dixie Melody Boys owner Ed O’Neal commented, “We wish Mike and his family the best.” Tenor/publicist Matt Felts added, “Change can be hard but also exciting. History has proven that every time a singer has left, God has brought us another great addition to the Dixie Melody Boys. We know God has someone coming that will be the right fit for years to come.” The Dixie Melody Boys are accepting auditions at dixiemelodyboys@yahoo.com.

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As multiple online sources have reported, Roger and Kirk Talley’s father R.C. “Red” Talley passed away this afternoon. He had been ill for some time. He was preceded in death by his wife, Connie Talley, in 2010. The visitation and funeral will be on Monday.

It’s never a good time for a parent to pass away, but some are decidedly worse than others. Debra Talley is currently in a Nashville hospital with a concussion. Her chair fell off the back row of the stage at yesterday’s Gaither Homecoming video recording.

Please keep the Talleys in your prayers!

UPDATE (5/23): Debra has been released from the hospital and is on the mend.

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Yesterday afternoon, The Perrys announced on their Facebook page that Joseph Habedank is leaving the group. Habedank offered this statement:

After 10 years of having the great privilege to serve with the Perrys, I have decided to step down as Lead Singer at this time. Libbi and I talked earlier this week, and while I would never want to abandon her in such a great time of need, sometimes The Lord has other plans. There aren’t enough words for me to express how truly grateful I am for both Tracy and Libbi giving me the opportunity that they have. They are like parents to me and I love them dearly. I will miss them. 

To the Gospel Music community, thank you all for loving and accepting me over the years. I never dreamed that The Lord would allow me to feel so loved by the fans of Gospel Music. From the bottom of my heart, thank you!

As for my future, only The Lord knows what He has in store. I am confident of this one thing tho; I am absolutely nothing without Him and I only want His perfect will for my life. My wife, Lindsay, and I both covet your prayers in this time of transition. We love you all. 

With a grateful heart,
Joseph Habedank 

Libbi Perry Stuffle added her own thoughts:

While it saddens me that Joseph is leaving, we definitely respect his and Lindsay’s need to reevaluate their lives and future. He has been like a son to me and Tracy. Although he is leaving our group, we will always consider him part of our family. 

As for the Perry’s, we will continue on. It is my plan to be back on the road as soon and as much as possible. I don’t have all the answers right now, but God is in control. Thank you for your love and prayers for me, Tracy, Jared, Bryan, and Leah; and your continued support of the group.

In His Grip,
Libbi

At the time of the stroke, Joseph Habedank was nearing ten years with the group. Besides the length of his tenure, his stature as a songwriter (multiple #1 hits and a Song of the Year) played a major role in audiences accepting the Stuffle-less Perrys. But at the time of the stroke, Bryan Walker was the rookie in the group; he’s now the senior member at the programs far enough from Nashville that Libbi can’t make it. So Bryan, Leah, and Habedank’s replacement face a steep road ahead and will need our prayers.

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Perrys bass singer / emcee Tracy Stuffle suffered a stroke on January 21. We’ve had several posts with updates on his condition—update 1, update 2, update 3, and update 4.

UPDATE, 5/23/13: Last night, Libbi posted:

I went today to search out a skilled nursing / rehab facility for Tracy to be moved to within the next few days. I think I found one in Lebanon, TN. Just waiting to see if they are able to accept him. I went to several and I just prayed for God to show me the one where He wanted Tracy to be. If this one takes him, I will be 15 miles closer to the house!! And this facility WILL let me stay with him at night some!!! PRAISE THE LORD!! So, help me pray they will accept him.

Tracy tonight has been making noises like he’s trying to hum like. I told him he could talk if he wanted to! I think he’s discovering that he can make noises. I am just waiting for the day he just takes off talking or singing!!! :0)

He has started winking at me!!! Yes, I bout shouted the first time he did it!! I have it on video. He’s back to blinking twice for yes. Rubbing his lips together after putting chap stick on his lips. A lot of this we have not seen since the shunt was put in. The speech therapist has been impressed with his progress this week!! He is holding his head up better when the PT therapist sit him on the edge of bed. He tried to kick me again in the leg! :0) His fingers on the right hand have been moving some. Yeah, it’s coming back!!!!!!!!!!! It may be slow, but it’s happening!!! GOOOOOOO GOD GOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

Lord willing, I will be in Ringgold, GA this Friday night with the group. Also, Lord willing I will be with them next Wednesday in Salina, KS and Thursday in Guymon, OK. Leah my fill in has a graduation on Thursday night in Florida so she can’t go the first two days. So if nothing happens, I will be with the group those two days and then I will fly back to Nashville on Friday morning. PLEASE, PLEASE PRAY FOR ME, because this will be the first time I will have been away from Tracy for this long. My heart hurts every time I think about it, but I know God will take care of both of us. My brother Randy will be staying with him during this time.

Remember to thank God for all your blessings tonight!!!! HE’S GOOD ALL THE TIME!!!!!

UPDATE, 5/18/13: Libbi posted:

YES, YES I know I haven’t updated in a couple of days. Tracy is doing good. He’s rested most of the day today, but that’s what his brain needs to heal. THANKS TO RONNY AND DIANNE REID from S. Alabama for the healing player by Rev. John Hagee!! It’s taped to the side of Tracy’s bed and plays almost 24/7!! Great for Tracy, but also great for me and great for those that may not be believers!!!!! You will never know how much this means to us!!!

Last night I went to Huntsville, AL to sing with the group. My Pastor’s wife Alisa Grubb went with me for company. I think she’s gonna become my roadie when I have to drive to some of the dates!!! Eat and talk!!! Any ways, Tracy must have missed me pretty bad because his blood pressure stayed up from about 7pm to I got back to his room about 12:30 am. When I walked in and started talking to him, his heart rate went down immediately and then in just a few minutes his blood pressure went down. Made me feel good that he may have missed me!! :0)

Tracy will be moving from Kindred Hospital here to a Skilled Nursing/Rehab facility in the next couple of weeks. He will need more time for his brain to heal and be on the trach a little longer. With 5 bleeds, it just takes time. Not for sure yet which facility he will be going to yet. JK and I will be checking one out in Lebanon and one is Mt Juliet, TN on Monday. Only down side to this is I will not be able to stay with him at night! I wouldn’t worry so much about him if he could talk. But, I pray God will give me a peace about it and Tracy too!!! Not sure how long he will be there, but probably for a little while. Please, pray for me during this transition!! I’m a protector!!!

UPDATE, 5/15/13: Libbi posted:

Tracy did good with the blood transfusion he received Monday night at midnight. Fever elevated tiny bit, but nothing major. He seems to be staying awake a little more off and on through the day and night. Yesterday evening he lifted his head off the pillow about 3 times and tried to turn his head. That’s a great thing. PRAISE THE LORD.

Working on trying to get him on a schedule of some sort with his sleeping and staying awake so when the therapist come in he will stay awake for them. So far…….well I still have some tweaking to do! :0/ PT and I set him up on the edge of the bed again yesterday and he did well with holding his head up, but it just really tires him. He set up for about 15 mins with me holding his back. Therapist kinda got on to him because he felt like he wasn’t really putting forth a lot of effort. Just praying that this will improve!!! He may be discouraged I don’t know. I am trying everything I know to encourage him and cheer him on (even have pom poms)! :0)

He did great yesterday on the speaking valve. He was on it for probably 4 hours. He’s already been on it for 2 hours today and still going. The doctor said his lungs sound soooo much better. The speech therapist is teaching me some more things to work with Tracy on being he responds more to me than them. We will see how this goes. …

Please continue to pray for Tracy’s strength, that it will improve each day! Pray for me to have patiences and not try to rush things that can’t be rushed. Sometimes I am a pusher and want things to happen NOW!! I am learning, IN GOD’S TIME, things will happen!

 

UPDATE, 5/12/13: Libbi posted:

Today has been a great day!!! Such a beautiful blessed day!!! I got up this morning and went to church with JK, my Mom, my sister Debra and Bro in law Chris. The nurse Tracy had this morning was soooo sweet and told me she would watch Tracy while I was gone if I wanted to go to church. Then, the cleaning lady came in and we started talking about going to church, being saved and stuff and she told me the same thing, that she would watch Tracy while I was gone to church. It was great being in my home church and able to worship with my family!!! My Pastor, Mark Grubb did some incredible preaching on End Times!!

When I got back to the hospital, I ask Tracy if he missed me and he blinked his eyes twice to tell me yes! :0) I missed him too!!! But, felt good to take a little break to go to church. Then all the family came to the hospital and brought food for Mother’s Day lunch! It’s always great when we can be together. JK brought me a Peanut Butter Pie, Amish Peanut Butter and bread from Blue Gate Amish Rest. in Shipshewana, IN!! My FAVORITE!!!!! And he brought me beautiful flowers! He’s such a great son!!! Blessed to call him son!!

Tracy has got settled in now I think. He seems to be resting well. His secretions seems to be better. He’s been awake a good bit today. I worked him out some when I got back from church. Talked to him a lot. I have about got his facial expressions figured out. He watched a little bit of Tiger Woods golfing and then fell asleep. It’s amazing how watching golf does me the same way!!! :0)

Lord willing tomorrow he will begin his therapies here at Kindred. I am praying that God will gird him with a supernatural strength to do what he needs to do! I’m gonna get my pom poms out that someone sent me and cheer him on!!!

Please pray specifically this week for God to move Tracy toward a great progressive week!! Pray for strength that will totally amaze the doctors, nurses and therapists! I BELIEVE!!!!

If all goes well Friday and it’s the Lord’s will, I may be with the group in Huntsville, AL that night with The McKameys. I will update y’all closer to the date. I have to line up people I trust and that he knows to stay with Tracy that afternoon and that night til I would get back about 11pm.

UPDATE, 5/11/13: Libbi posted:

Good morning!!!! It’s a great day to be a live!!!! A brand new day is here, filled with new mercies and new miracles!!!! I praise the Lord for ALL His goodness, grace, mercy and love!!!!! Hope you find the blessings, mercies and miracles throughout your whole day!!!!

Tracy is being moved back to Kindred sometime today. The doctors feel that he has improved greatly in the past couple of days and that he’s ready to head back and start back on the road to recovery!!! And yes……I am trusting God and expecting nothing less than a full recovery, in God’s time!!!! I know there’s a lot of doubters out there who will say, I just don’t know about that. Well, it’s your choice to be a doubting Thomas!!!! I choose to BELIEVE AND TAKE GOD AT HIS WORD!!!! The world has always been filled with doubting Thomas’ from the beginning of time and will be til the very end of time!! What a miserable life to live always doubting God. It’s been a 111 days and we are still here, a live and breathing!!! That’s a miracle within it’s self!! I hope and pray that if you are a doubting Thomas, that God will show you just as he did Thomas himself, that HE IS WHO HE SAYS HE IS!!!! AND “NOTHING” IS TOO HARD FOR HIM OR IMPOSSIBLE!!! I’ve already experienced one major miracle this week that to man looked totally impossible, but to God it wasn’t nothing!!!! Don’t go through life always doubting, start trusting God and see how different life can be.

Thank you again to everyone who has prayed a prayer, sent an email, text, cards, love gifts, bought a motel room, hosted a benefit concert, requested prayer, had prayer vigils, have sent prayer cloths, prayer shawls, blankets, bought a lift chair and sooooo much more!!!!! I may not have been able to thank each one of you in person or personally, but I am doing it now, because I DO appreciate everything!!! I will be forever grateful for all the love, prayers and concern you all have shown our family over the past 111 days. My prayer is God will “richly” bless each one of you!!!!!

To all the Moms out there, let me take this time to say “HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY” tomorrow!!!! I pray it is a very blessed day!!!! I am happy that my sweet mom is in town for the weekend!!! God has given me the greatest Mom ever!!!!

UPDATE, 5/9/13, 8 PM: Libbi posted:

Sorry I haven’t updated in the past 24 hours but been waiting on test results and blood cultures to come back on Tracy’s pneumonia and his latest CT scan this morning.

The CT scan this morning from Tracy’s brain shows that the shunt is doing it’s thing. The old blood from the ventricles from the last bleeds he had several weeks ago has decreased!! PRAISE GOD ALMIGHTY!!!!! It will take several more weeks and maybe months for all the blood to dissolve. The little pocket of spinal fluid near the shunt is better! So, everything with the brain is improving! Gooooo GOD Goooooo!!!!!!

The pneumonia shows sign of clearing up. Tracy has been more awake today than he’s been in several days. He’s been trying to watch ESPN. Sometimes he just tires out and falls back to sleep. Dr. Ulm said anyone with pneumonia would be sleepy, tired and not feel good. He said give him time to get over this and we should see some progress. The secretions are not all yellow and green anymore, but a white color. So, we may be heading back to Kindred tomorrow. I just want him to be better before he goes anywhere!! . . .

I will try to update again tomorrow if we get to go back to Kindred. Thanks to everyone who has prayed so hard for my Sweet T!!! Y’all have been so faithful to keep praying and lifting him up. I will never ever be able to thank y’all enough!!!!! I love y’all and y’all are the greatest friends ever!!!!! I pray God richly bless you all!!!!!!

UPDATE, 5/7/13, 8:30 PM: Libbi posted: 

Well, Tracy was admitted back to the hospital last night after having CT scan and X-ray. He has pneumonia, which I found out this evening from Kindred where he was at, that he came there with pneumonia. Surprised me! No one told me anything about it! Ugh!!! So, they have him on 3 different kinds of antibiotics to make sure they have good coverage in case there’s infection somewhere else. Should have cultures back in next 48 hrs.

CT scan showed a little pocket of fluid on the right side of brain, that was there after putting the shunt in had a little more fluid than 3 weeks ago on last CT scan. Not a significant amount, but more than before. Dr. Darice Spackmen (Dr. Ulm’s PA) came in this evening and opened up the shunt pressure to let more fluid be released. He will have another CT scan done tomorrow to make sure it’s doing the job.

Tracy’s temp is back to normal tonight!!! Praise God!!!!

PT worked with him this morning by sitting him on edge of bed and he did very well considering him being tired from a long night of getting settled in. He even balanced for a few seconds on his own.

Speech and OT will be by to work with him tomorrow. Praying he has strength from God to do great!!

Don’t have a clue as to how long we will be here, praying not long!! Ready to move forward in the name of Jesus!!!!

Thanks to everyone for praying extra hard for my sweet man!!!! I am forever grateful!!! Please keep it up!!!

None of this caught God by surprise!!! He is all knowing and all seeing!!! His Will be done, not mine. I just pray for more grace to keep fighting on this journey He has laid before us!

Thank You God for Your sustaining grace!!! I love You!!!

For more updates, click “read more.”

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Worth Knowing

• Monroe Hopper, one of the original members of the Hopper Brothers and Connie, passed away yesterday morning.
• Little Jimmy Taylor passed away late Wednesday evening. He was pianist for the Rebels Quartet from 1952-1969 and from 1972-1974. He also wrote the song “Dear Jesus, Abide With Me,” cut by the Rebels Quartet in 1960, the Blackwood Brothers in 1961, and numerous other groups in the early ’60s.
• On Tuesday, Beyond the Ashes baritone vocalist Kellan Monroe announced his departure from the group on his Facebook page. He said that he is “very excited about this new season and direction in my life and thankful for all God is doing,” but did not specify his future plans. A video was posted to Facebook of former Freedom baritone Tyler Vestal filling in at a concert last weekend—intriguing given that Freedom and Beyond the Ashes are on polar opposite ends of the Southern Gospel spectrum.
• A new Homecoming video recording will be taped next Tuesday. It is being billed as “our first-ever all-women’s Homecoming!” This, however, refers only to the vocalists; Bill Gaither will be there to host, and current Boxcars / former Isaacs member John Bowman mentioned on Facebook that he will be part of the live band, playing fiddle and mandolin. A 90-minute selection of what will ultimately result in a two-DVD taping will be aired live for www.gaither.tv members.

Worth Watching

Here’s a video of Inspirations bass singer Mike Holcomb singing tenor:

(That’s a B-flat above middle C at the end—a note that most lead singers don’t even try to hit!)

Worth Discussing

It’s open thread Saturday—you decide!

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The Mark Trammell Quartet just announced that Dustin Black has accepted the position of tenor. Black grew up in Saginaw, Michigan, and is the first Yankee the group has ever hired. When he started filling in, he was so new to the genre of music that he underwent a ninety-day trial period so that both Black and the group could be certain he was the right fit before the hire was finalized.

Mark Trammell comments: “We are SO excited about Dustin coming on board and we look forward to what is in store for both Dustin and MTQ. I am still convinced that God knows exactly what we need and when we need it. … He is a brand new face to gospel music and has already made many new friends across the country with his winning smile and warm personality. He has proven to be a true Christian Gentleman in every way. I was immediately impressed with this young man and his ability to just be one of the boys. Dustin had only been to one gospel concert prior to walking on our bus. It was a Gaither event in California a few years back while he was finishing his Masters degree in music at West Coast Baptist College.”

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For a Southern Gospel song to be considered “good,” its melody must be singable and memorable, and its lyrics must be coherent, Biblical, and generally well-crafted all around. This is a reasonably quantifiable threshold. 

It’s a little harder to tell what sets the great songs apart. Any number of factors contribute, of course. These would include a particularly well-crafted lyric, a particularly fresh main idea/hook, a particularly memorable or singable melody, and the absence of weak rhymes, unclear lyrics, a few too many lines you’ve heard dozens of times before, bad doctrine, and monotonous melodies. Of all these factors, which is the most important?

What is the most important thing that sets the great songs apart from the ones that are merely very good?

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Yesterday evening, Singing News announced the top 5 nominees in the Singing News Fan Awards (). Here’s a list breaking down changes from 2012:

Favorite Artist

• Unchanged: Booth Brothers, Greater Vision, Perrys, Triumphant Qt
• 2013: Collingsworth Family
• 2012: Brian Free & Assurance

Favorite Traditional Quartet

• Unchanged: Kingdom Heirs, Legacy Five, Mark Trammell Qt, Triumphant Qt
• 2013: Brian Free & Assurance
• 2012: Inspirations

Favorite Mixed Group

• Unchanged: Collingsworth Family, Hoppers, Isaacs, McKameys, Perrys

Favorite Trio

• Unchanged: Booth Brothers, Greater Vision, Jeff & Sheri Easter, Karen Peck & New River, Whisnants

Favorite Soloist

• Unchanged: Mark Bishop, Jason Crabb, Ivan Parker, Guy Penrod
• 2013: TaRanda Greene
• 2012: Squire Parsons

Favorite Male Singer

• Unchanged: Ronnie Booth, Joseph Habedank, Ivan Parker, Arthur Rice
• 2013: Eric Bennett
• 2012: Gerald Wolfe

Favorite Female Singer

• Unchanged: Sheri Easter, Karen Peck Gooch, Kim Hopper, Libbi Stuffle
• 2013: TaRanda Greene
• 2012: Susan Whisnant

Favorite Young Artist

• Unchanged: Morgan Easter, Trey Ivey, Amber Thompson, Jordan Wilburn
• 2013: Olivia Collingsworth
• 2012: Phillip Collingsworth

The Collingsworth Family has had a completely unprecedented streak of three consecutive wins for three consecutive siblings – Brooklyn, Courtney, and, last year, Phillip. Will they manage a complete run with Olivia this year?

Favorite Tenor

• Unchanged: Chris Allman, Michael Booth, Brian Free, David Phelps, David Sutton

Favorite Lead

• Unchanged: Ronnie Booth, Joseph Habedank, Clayton Inman, Arthur Rice
• 2013: Gerald Wolfe
• 2012: Scott Fowler

Favorite Baritone

• Unchanged: Jim Brady, Rodney Griffin, Scott Inman, Mark Trammell
• 2013: Mark Lowry
• 2012: Scott Howard

Favorite Bass

• Unchanged: Pat Barker, Eric Bennett, Mike Holcomb, Tim Riley
• 2013: Tracy Stuffle
• 2012: Glenn Dustin

Favorite Soprano

• Unchanged: Lauren Talley Alvey, Brooklyn Collingsworth, Karen Peck Gooch, Kim Hopper, Sonya Isaacs Yeary

Favorite Alto

• Unchanged: Courtney Collingsworth, Sheri Easter, Connie Hopper, Libbi Stuffle, Susan Whisnant

Favorite Musician

• Unchanged: Kim Collingsworth, Gordon Mote, Jeff Stice, Kevin Williams
• 2013: Roger Fortner
• 2012: Stewart Varnado

Favorite Band

• Unchanged: Dove Brothers, Gaither Vocal Band, Isaacs, Kingdom Heirs, Primitive Quartet

Favorite Songwriter (Performing): 2013: Mark Bishop, Jim Brady, Rodney Griffin, Joseph Habedank, Scott Inman

Favorite Non-Performing Songwriter: 2013: Ricky Free, Marty Funderburk, Mosie Lister, Rebecca Peck, Dianne Wilkinson

The categories were split out from the combined 2012 category, Favorite Songwriter. Last year, the Favorite Songwriter nominees were Jim Brady, Rodney Griffin, Joseph Habedank, Scott Inman, and Dianne Wilkinson. Wilkinson was the only non-performing writer on the list; her move to the Favorite Non-Performing Songwriter category this year appears to have opened the door for Mark Bishop to make his way into the top 5.

Favorite Album

• Unchanged: Albums from Booth Brothers
• 2013: Hoppers, Brian Free & Assurance, Greater Vision, Perrys
• 2012: Legacy Five, Inspirations, Triumphant Quartet, Kingdom Heirs

Favorite Song

• Unchanged: Songs from Booth Brothers, Brian Free & Assurance, Greater Vision, Legacy Five, McKameys, Perrys, Triumphant Quartet
• 2013: Songs from Kingdom Heirs, Tribute Quartet, Whisnants
• 2012: Songs from Karen Peck & New River, Inspirations, Gold City

This year, the Horizon Group award was subdivided into four categories.

• Favorite New Traditional Quartet: Canton Junction, Carolina Boys, Old Paths, Paul’s Journey, Union Street
• Favorite New Mixed Group: Allen Family, Heaven’s Mountain Band, Mylon Hayes Family, Sneed Family, Taylors
• Favorite New Trio: 11th Hour, Beyond the Ashes, Freedom Trio, Hyssongs, Red Roots
• Favorite New Soloist: Chris Hester, Billy Hodges, Steve Ladd, Abby Paskvan, Angela Primm

Last year’s Horizon Group nominees were: Carolina Boys, Old Paths, Red Roots, Taylors, Wilburn & Wilburn. Of these five, WIlburn & Wilburn was automatically disqualified from eligibility this year by winning last year. The Old Paths, The Taylors, and Red Roots all make another appearance (one each in three different categories); the Carolina Boys do not.

Overall, there is very little change from last year’s top five. Other than a few changes prompted by personnel changes in the last twelve months, most of the changes are one familiar face for another. About the only two that might mark any significant shift in Singing News readers’ loyalties would be TaRanda Greene’s new top 5 nominations for soloist and female singer, and the Collingsworth Family’s top 5 appearance for favorite artist.

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Worth Knowing

• Congratulations to my younger brother (and occasional SouthernGospelBlog.com contributor) Michael on his homeschool high school graduation this afternoon!
• When the Gaither Vocal Band released their most recent mainline, Pure and Simple, there was some discussion over the fact that they had recorded several tracks listed in early listings that didn’t make the final cut. Two of these tracks, “On the Road to Emmaus” and a showstopping acapella rendition of “One Voice,” are now available in a Walmart-exclusive edition of Best of Homecoming 2013 (retailing for $10). The CD is available elsewhere, but without the two exclusive tracks.

Worth Watching

About a month ago, we embedded a video of the Collingsworth Family rehearsing “Burdens Are Lifted at Calvary” for their upcoming hymns album. Here’s a video of them doing it live in concert:

Talk about a moment that reminds you why we love Southern Gospel!

Also, here’s one of our first glimpses of David Mann’s Promise Trio with new baritone singer Matt Baker:

Worth Discussing

It’s open thread Saturday—you decide!

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Larry Strickland, Palmetto State Quartet bass singer/manager, has announced that the Palmetto State Quartet name will once again be retired. The group is running a contest and accepting replacement name suggestions at NameTheGroup@gmail.com. The winning entry will receive a $500 cash prize, the first copy of the group’s next CD, front row seats to any upcoming concert, and assorted other prizes. The group intends to announce the replacement name on June 3rd.

The quartet has been based out of Tennessee, not South Carolina (the Palmetto State), for a number of years, so the change only makes sense.

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