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Gerald Williams’ Melody Boys Quartet announced a new lead singer, Terry Robertson. Robertson follows in the steps of several noted Melody Boys Quartet lead singers, including Ryan Seaton, Jonathan Sawrie, and Johnny Minick.

Gerald Williams is the longtime bass for the quartet, but has seen quite a bit of turnover in the other positions recently. Terry Robertson’s joining was announced yesterday; tenor Scott Baker joined the group in September, while baritone/pianist Caleb Matheny joined in July. In the last two years, there have been at least three different people have filled each of these parts. If I am not mistaken, Williams now has a completely different group than the group which appeared on his last project.

XM Satellite radio announced its special Christmas programming in this press release:

Beginning at 8:30 PM ET on Sunday – New Year’s Eve, enLighten is presenting more than seven hours of “live concert” recordings, calling it a New Year’s Gospel Jubilee. Preceding it, beginning at 5 PM ET, Paul Heil’s Gospel 2006 In Review will be heard.

Groups to be featured on the New Year’s Gospel Jubilee include the Kingsmen, Cathedrals, Perrys, Bill Gaither Trio, Downings, Ernie Haase & Signature Sound, and Greater Vision … plus a couple of  “surprises.”

On Monday, New Year’s Day, enLighten 34 will air a repeat broadcast of its four-hour Singing News Fan Awards production beginning at 3 PM ET, to be followed by the weekly Daniel Britt & Friends program and, at 8 PM ET, a repeat of Paul Heil’s Gospel 2006 In Review.

XM Radio’s enLighten 34 can also be heard via XM Radio OnLine on Channel 34, as well as on DirecTV Channel 828 and AOL Radio.

Southern Gospel dramatized? That’s what you’ll find in this Southwest Florida News-Press article:

…entertainment writer Nicole Hamill gets a surprise visit from her estranged grandfather. Nervous and troubled by the unannounced visit, Nicole struggles to find common ground with the old man she remembers as a stern, aloof figure from her childhood.

But her grandfather starts weaving stories about his short tenure with a high-octane Southern Gospel quartet, and she becomes intrigued in spite of herself.

Evidently Mark McClellan, who wrote the musical, not only managed to base a play on “Southern gospel music made famous by The Statesmen, The Blackwood Brothers, The Stamps, The Blue Ridge Quartet and more,” but he also managed (whether intentionally or not) to pick a famous Southern Gospel last name for his main character.

(This one’s for you, AVFL!)

If I had the power to give anyone any Christmas gift, my twelfth and final gift would go to Greater Vision. I would give them Glenn Dustin. While Dustin blends fine with Legacy Five, he had a near-perfect blend with Greater Vision on the song they recorded together, “He is To Me.” Many people think Greater Vision would be better with a bass, but not just any bass will do; Glenn Dustin would, in my opinion, be a perfect fit for Greater Vision’s sound.

Legacy Five fans need not fear; I have something good in mind for your group, too. Should Glenn Dustin ever leave Legacy Five, I’d be rooting for Randy Byrd to get the job. Byrd, who currently sings with the Blackwood Brothers, has a sound that I think would really complement Legacy Five’s blend.

Now I could keep going! I think David Hester of the Dove Brothers would be a good fit for the Blackwood Brothers’ sound. Who better to sing with the Blackwood Brothers than a bass who sounded like J.D. Sumner? Then, of course, I’d send Burman Porter back to the Dove Brothers.

This is just a snapshot of the chain reaction that happens when a major group hires a singer!