The National Quartet Convention has posted their 2013 mainstage schedule, here.

They have added seven artists who weren’t on last year’s program. The Inspirations and The Torchmen return, and there are five new artists: 11th Hour, Keepers of the Faith, Old Paths, Providence Quartet, Wilburn & Wilburn. Two of the five (Wilburn & Wilburn and Old Paths) have an established national profile; 11th Hour is quickly building one. Providence Quartet primarily tours regionally in South Carolina. Keepers of the Faith, easily the most unique-looking group to have a mainstage slot this year, is a group of American Samoans based in Washington State. My West Coast sources have pointed them out as a rising and unique quartet.

Meanwhile, ten artists on the 2012 program won’t be returning to the mainstage: Bowlings, Browders, Chuck Wagon Gang, Down East Boys, Naomi & the Segos, Nelons, Paul’s Journey, Pfeifers, Sisters, Skyline Boys.

NQC has also posted a preliminary showcase schedule. There will be the familiar Song of a Lifetime, Bluegrass Jamboree, Gaither Sing-a-long, and Parade of Pianos showcases, as well as a Red-back Hymnal sing-along showcase and a Gaither Vocal Band / Gatlin Brothers showcase.

Worth Knowing

• Musicscribe found several more details about NQC 2014: It will be a two-venue event, with off-site showcases, and all the seating will be on a flat floor. [EDIT, 3/16/13: Broken link removed.]
• Southern Sound has hired a new tenor, Will Shaw.
• Paul Harkey has made his public debut with Ernie Haase & Signature Sound. Here’s a video (hat tip, Josh).
• Legacy Five has a post on “Getting to Know Matt Fouch” (among other things).

Worth Watching

David Crowder recently showed up at Gaither Studios to record “Because He Lives” with Bill Gaither. Here’s a video of Crowder doing the song live; beyond how cool his beard is, it’s also pretty cool to see his young audience get excited over the song.

Worth Discussing

It’s open thread Saturday—you decide!

Over the last week, a number of further details have filtered out about the 2014 National Quartet Convention:

• The Sevier County News reports that it will be moving to the end of the month—Sept. 21-28, 2014, and Sept. 27-Oct. 4, 2015. (Hat tip, DBM). [EDIT, 3/16/13: Broken link removed.]
• The NQC Board went to the still-in-construction LeConte Center earlier this week to sign the final steel beam of the structure before it was put into place. They also sang “Amazing Grace” for attendees and for local media.
• Pigeon Forge’s Mountain Press newspaper has an extensive story on the move. [EDIT, 2/22/13: Broken link removed.] Money quote: “Other venues are expected to get used as well, Downey said, for spinoff and related convention activities.”

The NQC Music Awards are scheduled to run from 2:30 to 4:30 this afternoon, in Freedom Hall at the National Quartet Convention. Right after they end, Dianne Wilkinson will be available for a book signing at the Kingdom Heirs booth to autograph copies of her new autobiography, Dianne Wilkinson: The Life and Times of a Gospel Songwriter (written by Dianne Wilkinson with Daniel J. Mount). More information about the book is here.

I am also heading up to Louisville today, to be there for the signing. See you there!

Our NQC live blog posts take shape through the evenings.

Highlights

Greater Vision. Rodney Griffin kicked off the set with “No Longer Chained.” By the discussion in the webcast’s live chat, it appears that the video feed cut out for most or all users for a good portion of the song. It had returned (for me, at least) by the second song, “When They Ring the Bells of Heaven.”

Gerald Wolfe introduced song three by saying that Jack Campbell’s widow was in the audience, and she came all the way from Mississippi or Louisiana to hear a song her husband wrote. He apologized to the team in the TV truck for changing the program on them, but he said he simply had to have Chris Allman sing “I Know a Man Who Can.”

Gerald Wolfe bought up a trio of a brother, sister, and another young lady who sang up sang a unbelievably amazing rendition of “Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow”—an arrangement at least inspired by the Martins.

Wolfe took his time setting up the final song, “Faces,” telling stories of people who had inspired him and helped him in his life.

Jason Crabb. Jason started his set with a classic, “Who Am I,” before launching into the first Crabb Family single that featured him, “Still Holdin’ On.” He kept the Crabb Family theme going with “The Lamb, The Lion, and the King.” He switched to his solo repertoire on his fourth song, “Sometimes I Cry.”

National Quartet Convention or not, it’s not NQC unless Jason and his sisters break out “Through the Fire” at least once! Talk about ending a set on a high note!

Whisnants. Susan Whisnant introduced “I’ll Trust The Potter’s Hand” by talking about how much she loves the Lesters’ song “He Doesn’t Throw the Clay Away,” and how this song is in a similar vein. They launch into their second song, “I’m in the Gloryland Way,” by noting that Gerald Wolfe is filling in on piano.

The Whisnants have been through an incredibly tough year! Jeff’s father is in his fourth week of chemo, and they got a call this week that his brother has been hospitalized. She introduced their third song, “All is Well,” by sharing how her mother was facing a cancer diagnosis last year.

They wrapped up their set on an uptempo note, with “New Day Dawning.” Members of the Mark Trammell Quartet came up on stage to join them for an encore.

Tribute Quartet started with two up-tempo to mid-tempo songs, “Thank the Lord” and “Homesick Angel,” both from their new album, Our Anthem. Tenor Riley Clark was featured on a passionately powerful rendition of “Homecoming Day.” They wrapped up their set with “Good News From Jerusalem, featuring Josh Singletary. This is the most animated and enthusiastic I’ve ever seen Singletary during a vocal solo; he has come into his own as a quartet vocalist.

Booth Brothers. They lined up a special treat for the audience, getting legendary pianist and producer Nick Bruno to fill in on piano. Song 1: I’m Free.  Turns out that wasn’t the only special treat they’d lined up; they brought Bill Gaither on stage as a guest bass vocalist for their second song, “Joy in the Camp.” He introduced their third song, “Let the Healing Begin,” before walking off stage. He came back onstage for the third and fourth encores of their closing song, “Played in the Band.”

Live Blog

10:41: Kingdom Heirs. Song 1: “Ever Since That Wonderful Day.” Song 2: “Hit the Ground Running.” Song 3: “He Locked the Gates.” Strong response from a tired but enthusiastic crowd. Song 4: Jerry Martin sang his signature song, “I Can Pray.” Song 5: “I Never Shall Forget the Day.” This late at night, it makes sense to end the set on an uptempo note. The ending on the encore is classic Kingdom Heirs—exactly what Southern Gospel is supposed to be. 

Sorry the notes are cursory at this point. I’m heading for Louisville early tomorrow morning, and I’ll have to call it a night within a few minutes. I had to stay up late enough to catch the Kingdom Heirs’ set, even with how far behind schedule I am. After all, I’ll be at their booth for the signing tomorrow—4:30, right after the NQC Music Awards—and I dare not tell the host group that I slept through their set! That would be like apologizing to a preacher for sleeping through his sermon!

10:19: Talleys. Song 1: “Surely.” Brian Alvey is back on stage with the group tonight. Song 2: “Broken World,” their current radio single. Strong, strong, strong song. Alvey introduced the third song, “That’s Why I Love Him So,” by talking about his time of running away from God, and how Gerald Wolfe’s witness was part of what brought him back to God. Song 4: “Great Love,” featuring Debra and Lauren. They close with a quick chorus of “He’s Alive.”

10:11: Mark Bishop. Song 1: “Listening for the Call.” Song 2, after a well-spoken introduction, “God Builds Churches with Broken People.” He only did two songs; not sure if that was scheduled or if he gave up some time since the program is twenty-five minutes behind (after only two songs!).

9:27: Isaacs. They started with the energetic “It’s Gonna Rain.” Sound issues persisted through the first song or two. Song 2: “Why Can’t We.” Interestingly for a bluegrass group, they took the stage with a pianist (Matthew Holt) and drummer. Song 3: “Four Men Walking” (guess on title). Becky Isaacs Bowman testified before her solo on “Waiting in the Water.”

9:25: Sisters sang an incredible acapella rendition of “It is Well With My Soul.”

8:37: Producer Phil Brower introduced David Jeremiah by showing a video with photographs and discussion of Jeremiah’s little-known college basketball career. He mentioned that there was going to be a basketball challenge between a team led by Jeremiah and a team led by Gerald Wolfe next year. It’s not entirely clear if he was joking!

8:11: Collingsworth Family. It’s been a while since Phil Collingsworth has brought out the trumpet on the main stage! He kicked off the set with “O Magnify the Lord,” while Kim played piano. After one uptempo vocal song, “I Know,” the lights dimmed and Olivia Collingsworth recited the Christmas story before Phil Jr. launched into “Silent Night.” As that track ended, they did an immediate segue into “What Child is This?”

After a moving video about how Phil Sr.’s father won a Silver Star in the Korean War, and how many servicemen the extended family has sent into the military, they sang a stirring acapella rendition of “God Bless America.”

Kim Collingsworth followed with a piano solo, “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” that got one of the biggest responses of the night.

7:50: Jeff & Sheri Easter. Jason Crabb brought Jeff & Sheri Easter on stage by starting into a chorus of “Thank You, Lord, For Your Blessings on Me.” They joined him on the chorus before launching into their own first song, “A Little Bit of Sunshine” (? on title). Jeff Easter said that their second song, “I’ll Take It,” was written by Joseph & Lindsay Habedank. Their third song was a sad love song, “Sitting On Top of the World.” Son Madison’s wife Shannon joined Madison and Morgan for “Does it Make Him Cry?” Jeff Easter brought another guest—his father, James Easter—onto stage for “I Won’t Have To Worry Anymore.”

7:04: McKameys. The McKameys are introduced with a classic two-decade-old clip of them singing “God On the Mountain.” When they walk on stage, though, they’re a little more subdued, singing the convention-style song “Some Morning I Shall Stand.” Song 2: “Nothing But Grace.” After a track mis-cue, they moved into their third song, “Unspoken Request.” Peg sets up the fourth song, “Finish Well,” by noting that it’s the first time there has ever been a McKameys male trio. They end on a high note—literally and figuratively—with “I’ve Won.”

6:22: Lesters. They begin with “Revive Us Again.” Second: “I’m One of His Redeemed” (guess at title). Their third song, “Rocks Dropping,” had a cool concept and was well executed (lyrically and vocally). The high point of the set was their signature song, “He Didn’t Throw the Clay Away.” They closed with style and class, with a simple arrangement of “God Be With You Till We Meet Again.”

6:17: Kim, Brooklyn, and Courtney Collingsworth play “The Prayer.” They got a rousing standing ovation from the artist circle, and a partial standing ovation from the rest of the audience. (Worth noting: NQC audiences will almost never unanimously stand until later in the evening.)

5:58: Mark Bishop takes the stage as emcee. He’s off to a great start with some timely humor. He walks up as a choir walks off stage, commenting that he’s surrounded by Johnny Cash impersonators! He also wishes himself luck and mentions that he listened to rap music on the way over. He paused long enough for the crowd to gasp in horror—before clarifying that it was blaring from a jeep two blocks away!

5:44: The Hoppers come on stage to sing one song, “I Just Feel Like Something Good Is About to Happen.”

5:39: Penny Loafers. This inimitable group offered a highlight of the showcase spotlight segment, singing their signature song—their a capella  take on the Mosie Lister classic “Goodbye, World, Goodbye.”

Our NQC live blog posts take shape through the evenings.

Moment of the Night

It’s hard to pace a four-song set at NQC. Start fast? Start slow? Finish fast? Finish slow?

The Mark Trammell Quartet’s set was perfectly paced. They started with the peaceful, relaxed “Gentle Shepherd.” They picked up the pace with “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah,” sung as a tribute to the Couriers (whom Mark saw at his first National Quartet Convention, 35 years ago). Then Mark introduced Pat Barker. It’s clear that the NQC audience loves him; he just had to say Pat’s name, and the audience let out a cheer.

Now, we’re talking about a song that’s a recent #1 hit. It’s the most successful radio single the group has to date. It’s also huge for them live. Pat conveyed the song with passion and confidence, and the audience responded in such a big way that two encores seemed like too little, not too much.

You might think that would be the highlight of their set. But you would be wrong.

“The King is Coming” was the moment of the night.

I have many versions of the song, including the Speer Family’s landmark live 1972 version on Jesus Sound Explosion—a version so powerful that it got the strongest response of the album in front of a Jesus Music audience, surrounded by the strongest Jesus Music artists at the time. Of course, the Bill Gaither Trio’s rendition was also incredible—and many others have been, too.

Despite all that, I suspected that I would eventually make the following conclusion. After seeing the Mark Trammell Quartet’s version live, I am ready to state that theirs is the strongest version ever recorded.

Other Highlights

Kingdom Heirs. The Kingdom Heirs’ set was solid. All four songs—”I’m Not Worried About Forever,” “Tell Me Why,” “Just Preach Jesus,” and “We Will Stand Our Ground”—come from their latest recording, We Will Stand Our Ground. (In fact, they’re the two opening and closing songs, in exactly that order!) The set captured exactly what quartet night is supposed to be.

Brian Free & Assurance. They started their quartet night set with a classic, “What a Beautiful Day (For the Lord to Come Again). They then went progressive with their second song, “When the Lord Says Do It.” Their third song, “Guard Your Heart,” was more mellow musically and put the spotlight solidly on the message. “No one is invincible / you gotta watch and pray / every hour of every day / guard your heart…”

They went from the serious to the fun with their next song, “Looking For a City.” By the final key, he sang the lines “where the sainted millions / never sing this high”!

The set was well-balanced for a night honoring quartet music. They portrayed the progressive side of what they do accurately, but was still something that traditional quartet fans can love.

Triumphant Quartet. They kicked off with some welcome energy with “When the Trumpet Sounds.” They slowed the pace down with the second song, “He Loves Me.”

Jeff Stice introduced his piano solo by talking about his mother’s recent battle with breast cancer, and how he played for her on the piano he learned to play on during her recovery. He said she asked him to make his next piano solo CD just-piano, and that she asked him to include the first song he ever learned to play—”Mansion Over the Hilltop.” It would have been a special moment on its own musical merits, but the story made it a highlight.

They made a smooth pivot from tears to smiles with their next song, “Old White Flag.” They then ended their set blazing with “Almost Home.”

Finale: Gerald Wolfe: “You would think they wouldn’t have to call in a trio man to end a quartet program.” He says he’s sat there all night, and not a single quartet has sung the greatest quartet song of all time! So he has Triumphant Quartet, the Mark Trammell Quartet, and Legacy Five sing it “Just a Little Talk with Jesus.”

The vocalists and band stumble over the transition into verse two, and the rendition grinds to a halt. A priceless comedic exchange follows:

Gerald Wolfe: “Guys! How long have you been playing quartet music?

Scott Howard: “Evidently longer than this band’s been playing quartet music.”

Gerald Wolfe: “You know as well as I do that it’s tradition that after the turnaround, there’s a 1-7-4 chord, and the tenor takes the lead.”

David Sutton sings verse 2. Then the bass singers shine on a chorus. By this point, a fourth bass singer (Paul Harkey of the LeFevre Quartet?) has joined the ensemble.

After the big ending, Gerald Wolfe says “That’s quartet night!” And, ladies and gentlemen, that’s a wrap for the night.

Live Blog

9:56: Gold City. After a presentation honoring Gold City for having a #1 song in each of the last four decades (1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s), they started their set with “I Cast My Bread Upon the Water.” They continued in a similar vein with their second song, their recent #1 hit “Peter, James and John.” Third up was “When I Get Carried Away.”

The presentation at the start of their set made specific mention of “Midnight Cry,” in such a fashion that they practically had to include it. They did, and got a standing ovation.

They cut out almost all talking from their set, and so were able to fit in five songs. They closed with “Get Up, Get Ready.”

9:34: Legacy Five. The set began with the first major technical difficulty of the week; Scott Fowler’s microphone was off, at least in the live feed mix, for most of his featured verses. But the group soldiered on through the technical difficulties and came back for a strong ending.

The Scotts (lead singer Scott Fowler and baritone Scott Howard) were up next, with “Living in the Palace.”

Scott Fowler introduced their third song, “Life Will Be Sweeter Someday,” by saying he wasn’t sure he had even set the song to Matt Fouch to learn, and asking him if he knew it. Then, amusingly, it was Scott who forgot a line—whether intentional or not, nonetheless turning it into a fine comedic moment.

They finished with “I Found Grace.”

8:53: Paul’s Journey. There was a track malfunction just as Paul’s Journey walked onstage. It has to be unnerving for a group to walk onstage for their first set, but even more so when the track won’t play. The tenor did a remarkable job filling the dead time, with some audience banter and humor. He referred to a Statesmen video which had just been played, and said, “Now you know why they never sang with tracks, because it’s just a pain. Instead, they traveled with their own band.”

They started with “This is Just What Heaven Means To Me,” featuring their tenor. Their baritone was featured on their second song, “You Better Get Ready.”

5:41: Tim Lovelace is doing Fan Cam. More updates to come after church; consider this an NQC-related open thread till then.

5:15: Showcase Winners. The showcase winners of the day kick off the evening’s program. Revelation Trio from McKenzie, Tennessee was up first. They were a mixed trio—regrettably, not the Northern Irish trio that records with Crossroads. But they were good. The Mark Dubbeld Family was up next, singing an original song, “Inside the Gate.” It was a solid performance. The Diplomats were up third; they had a mainstage slot last year, but only appeared in the showcases this year. Thankfully, they at least got this song this year. They sang “I’ll Soon Be Gone,” from their latest album (reviewed here).

Then—fittingly for quartet night—they picked the strongest quartet from the day’s showcases, Union Street. Members are tenor Toby Hitchcock, lead singer Ryan Seaton (formerly of Ernie Haase & Signature Sound), baritone Andrew Goldman, and bass Aaron McCune (Palmetto State Quartet, Gold City). All members except McCune had a solo.

Moment of the Night

About halfway through the evening, there was a ten-minute preview of tomorrow’s hymns and hymn stories showcase. After a video telling William Cowper’s story, a ladies’ trio of Kim Hopper, TaRanda Greene, and Kim Collingsworth sang “There is a Fountain”; Kim Collingsworth played piano.

TaRanda Greene and Kim Hopper are recognized as the genre’s two strongest soprano vocalists. Kim Collingsworth’s rich contralto provided a strong counterpoint. The only reason she isn’t recognized as one of our genre’s strongest altos is because her piano solos can overshadow her vocal solos.

Was it a perfect rendition? No, it wasn’t. But its beauty lay in those very imperfections, those spontaneous improvisations. There were points where TaRanda Greene or Kim Hopper would take the lead on a little vocal run, and the others would improvise around it—including even a vocal answer-back part at one point!

When you put together three voices that strong singing trio harmonies, it is sure to be vocal dynamite—either in a good way or a bad way. This combination was definitely vocal dynamite in a good way.

Highlights

Greater Vision. Greater Vision had the often unenviable position of closing out the evening’s program. But they rose to the occasion. Their set was preceded by the “That’s My King” sermon clip and video. It’s sometimes awkward to transition out of that clip, but NQC producer Phil Brower had a wise suggestion—transitioning from the clip into “Champion of Love.” The transition worked perfectly.

They picked up the pace with their next song, “He’d Still Been God,” before Chris Allman raised the roof with “I Know a Man Who Can.” They transitioned into another uptempo song, “He Didn’t When He Could Have Passed By,” before closing their set with their “In Times Like These/Jesus is Coming Again” medley.

Brian Free & Assurance. Of all the new radio singles debuted on the mainstage this week, “I Wanna Be That Man” is the strongest so far. Brian set the song up perfectly by discussing how deeply the song moved him before he even realized that his son co-wrote it with Lee Black.  They sang it with conviction and passion.

Bowlings.  After two opening songs that were well-done, the set moved into “highlight moment” category on song three, ”Your Cries Have Awoken the Master. Kelly Crabb Bowling introduced it by testifying to the healing God had brought to their family since their July 2010 bus crash. Mike Bowling delivered a passionate encore. They closed their set with “I Still Glory in the Cross,” another strong performance.

Mark Trammell Quartet. Though they’re probably saving some of their most special moments—paying tribute to departing member Dustin Sweatman—till later in the week, it was still, vocally, the strongest moment of the first two hours or so of the program. They started with three songs from their new Lifetime project (reviewed here), “I Sing the Mighty Power of God,” “‘Tis So Sweet,” and “A Wonderful Time Up There.”

Then, Mark requested prayers for Clarke Beasley, Executive Vice President of the National Quartet Convention, and had the audience send their well wishes via the webcast. After introducing his grand-daughter Tessa, and recognizing the veterans in the audience, he closed the set with “Statue of Liberty.” It received the strongest response of the night, so far.

During the set, Nick Trammell sang lead, and outgoing lead singer/pianist Dustin Sweatman played piano.

Live Blog

10:03: Greater Vision. For the last several years, a video featuring a sermon clip about Jesus, titled “That’s My King,” has been played a number of times between sets.  This time, though, it did more than just fill time; it set up Greater Vision’s first song, “Champion of Love.”

They picked up the pace with their second song, “He’d Still Been God.” Then Chris Allman delivered an incredibly strong performance of “I Know a Man Who Can.” They closed with an uptempo song, “He Didn’t When He Could Have Passed By.”

9:51: At this point in the night, 981 people are signed into the NQC live chat. That’s not necessarily everyone who is watching the live stream, either, since some are logged into a separate Facebook chat. It appears that at least half of the seats in the auditorium (which seats about 19,000) are empty. This means that the live stream audience is probably at least 10% of the total audience watching tonight—and it may well be 25%.

9:41: Gold City. They started off featuring Jerry Pelfrey on “I’ve Got an Anchor.” Danny Riley stepped forward for “It Won’t Be Long.” Tenor Dan Keeton was up third, with “God’s Building a Church.” It is a good pick for his voice type. Jerry Pelfrey turned in a strong vocal performance on “Lord of Life.” Probably pretty much everyone was waiting to see Tim Riley step forward and shine; they got their wish at the end of the set, when Gold City closed with “When He Blessed My Soul.”

9:20: Triumphant Quartet. They began their set by singing “Sweet, Sweet Spirit” acapella around one microphone. It was a perfect transition from the high energy of Brian Free & Assurance’s set-closer, “Long As I Got King Jesus.” Then they picked up the pace with “Saved By Grace.” David Sutton and Jeff Stice did their harmonica/piano duet on “Goodbye, World, Goodbye.” They closed with “Let’s All Stand For America.” This set didn’t have any huge, breakout moment, but it was very well paced and well received.

8:48: A showcase featuring hymns and their stories is tomorrow. To promote the showcase, several groups sang hymns. Greater Vision and Sisters sang “All Creatures of Our God and King” together. Kim Hopper, TaRanda Greene, and Kim Collingsworth sang  ”There Is a Fountain.”

8:32: The Browders. They sang “The Message Of the Cross” and “Land of No Goodbyes.”

8:22: Clayton Inman led the audience in a sing-a-long of “You’re a Grand Old Flag.”

8:03: Primitive Quartet. They sang “I Don’t Have to See the Tomb,” “When He Beckons Me Home to Stay,” “This Old Wreck of Mine,” “Let Me Be More Like You,” and “He Included Me.” (guesses at titles). They closed with a salute to the trips.

7:58: Sisters. They sang one acapella song, “Come On, Let’s Go To That Land.”

7:40: Jason Crabb. He started his program with “When He Was On the Cross (I Was On His Mind).” He introduced a medley of “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms,” “Meeting in the Air,” and “I’ll Fly Away” by saying that if he ever pastored a church, this would be the sort of music they would sing. He then told his live band that he was going to switch up his program, and started playing “Sometimes I Cry.” He wrapped up his set with a strong performance of “I’d Rather Have Jesus.”

6:35, Dixie Melody Boys: The Dixie Melody Boys started their set with “Go To the Well” and “Oh, What a Savior.” When introducing their third song, tenor Matt Felts asked the audience how many of them remember when God had the Israelites put the blood over their mantles. I didn’t see any hands over the live feed—but then, Ray Dean Reese might not have been in the room. Aside from that unintentionally funny moment, it was a touching moment in a story he used to introduce “God Will Hear Your Prayer.”

Jason Crabb made a guest appearance on that song. He’s a vocal hero to DMB lead singer Mike Rogers, and it was cool to watch Rogers’ face light up brighter than a Christmas tree in that moment!

Their set closed with ”Jesus in My Boat.”

6:33: Jeff Easter is telling road stories. Either this wasn’t announced, or they need to fill some of the open time left by Naomi Sego’s cancellation or the program’s overall running early.

6:22, Sneed Family: Unnanounced on the schedule: The Jeff Sneed Family. They have a live drummer and piano player. Their drummer’s looks almost as young as Jeff & Sheri’s drummer. Their first song was “Victory is Sweet.” On the live feed chat, the NQC Staff stated that the Naomi & the Segos set feel through at the last minute, and the Sneed Family was given their slot.

Jeff Sneed announces Naomi Sego’s absence in the classiest way possible—while dedicating the second song of their set, “Hallelujah Square,” to her. The young lady with the solo seems to have been significantly influenced by Kim Hopper. Corey Pearson of the Diplomats also filled in here.

6:21: NQC Producer Phil Brower recites the Gettysburg address. 

6:01: Jeff & Sheri Easter set: “Anything But Happy,” “Like My Mother Does,” “A Good Old Gospel Song,” “Hear My Heart,” “I Get To.” Whoever wrote “Like My Mother Does,” it’s a perfect autobiographical song for daughter Morgan. The drummer is 14-year-old Landon Smith. Corey Pearson of the Diplomats was filling in on bass guitar. They had a 14-year-old drummer, Landon Smith. He’s not just a good drummer for his age—he’s a good drummer, period.

6:14: Any guesses as to the percentage of sets today that will incorporate a patriotic song? There are twelve full mainstage sets, and I’ll guess 5 of 12.

6:01: Mike Speck introduces “Sheff and Jerry” Easter, and quickly corrects himself. He turns it into a joke, a great move, and Jeff Easter does a similarly strong job playing along. The mark of a true stage professional is not that he never makes mistakes—everyone makes mistakes. The mark of a professional is ability to recover from an embarrassing moment, and Speck hit the curveball out of the park.

5:48, Opening Ceremonies: Things are under way! After Tim Lovelace finished his fan camera segment, Mike Speck led the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance, the “Star-Spangled Banner,” and a salute to each branch of the armed forces. He did something unusual, calling on servicemen and women, their spouses, and their children to stand.

Is there any contest that, all issues of pride in a branch aside, the Marines have the best branch song?

Our NQC live blog posts take shape through the evenings. Highlights and newsworthy tidbits are noted. There is also a live blog; click the post title or the “read more” link to see it. 

Moment of the Night

Matt Fouch’s mainstage debut with Legacy Five. It wasn’t Fouch’s first time on the main stage; he sang on main stage several times during his eight years with Soul’d Out Quartet. But it was the first time that many in the audience were paying attention to him—and their reaction showed that it was love at first sight.

He walked on stage with Legacy Five during the Jubilee set and was featured on three of the four Jubilee songs—”Sing Me a Song About Jesus,” “Wedding Music,” and “Beautiful Home.” The middle song, “Wedding Music,” though, was the show-stopper. When introducing him, Jubilee emcee Gerald Wolfe noted that he was the new guy on stage. It took him all of one line to win the audience over; at least judging from the live feed, the line of applause between the first and second lines of his verse was one of the heartiest of the night.

The reception Fouch received wasn’t lost on Legacy Five manager/emcee Scott Fowler. When Legacy Five’s own set began, he introduced him by quoting George Younce: “When you’ve got a good horse, ride him. And it’s obvious who our good horse is tonight!” He moves into Fouch singing “I Have Been Changed.” 

Even that wasn’t all! The show-stopper that Legacy Five used to close their set was “We Shall See Jesus,” featuring Fouch on bass. At least to the best I could tell from the live feed, it was easily the biggest response of the night.

Expect to see Matt Fouch welcomed with open arms—and expect to see him named Horizon Individual of the year in next year’s Fan Awards.

Other Highlights

The Booth Brothers. They didn’t close their set fast. They didn’t close it big. They closed with a song, “Let the Healing Begin,” that left the spotlight on the message. It might not have been huge or exhilarating, but it was fitting.

The Hoppers. Though my feed crashed for the first eleven minutes of their set, the remainder of their set was particularly strong. After a touching story from Claude, they launched into a new song, and followed it with a show-stopping rendition of “Yaweh.”

The Collingsworth Family. You can count on the Collingsworth Family to bring the house down, and they did not disappoint. Their final three songs showcased their diversity—a tight ladies’ trio on “Ever Gentle, Ever Sweet,” a piano solo from Kim on “My Tribute (To God Be the Glory),” and a showstopping version of “At Calvary.” There would be a riot at NQC if the Collingsworth Family did a set at NQC without unleashing Kim on the piano!

Jim & Melissa Brady. Apparently the Rick Webb Family had to cancel their appearance at the last minute, after the program was printed. Jim and Melissa Brady might have been pinch-hitters, but they hit a home run. They started with a standing-ovation-worthy performance of “No Wonder,” the best-remembered song from Gerald Wolfe’s solo career. Melissa then moved over to the piano to play “Master’s Table,” while Jim sang it solo. Often the unplanned (or less-planned) moments are the best, and that truism certainly held here.

Karen Peck & New River. They kicked the convention off with a welcome energy, closing out their set with the one-two punch of “On the Banks of the Promised Land” and “We Shall Wear a Robe and Crown.” Matthew Peck Gooch, Karen’s son, played electric guitar on several songs—and ukulele on one. Surely there haven’t been many times a ukulele has been played on main stage!

Also Newsworthy

Soul’d Out stepped on stage with Christian Davis filling in on bass. This makes sense in a number of ways. First, he has the incredibly low range that their arrangements demand. Second, he’s with such a high-profile group in his genre that nobody will be speculating that he’s about to leave his group to join Soul’d Out.

The Talleys performed their set with Roger, Debra, and Lauren. Brian Alvey is back in college, and had classes today; they’re expecting him on Thursday.

In the webcast live chat, the NQC Staff confirmed that the 2014 NQC will be at the Leconte Center, a convention center currently under construction in Pigeon Forge. It will seat about 12,000.

Click the read more button to read the live blog comments.

This year, I will only be on site at Louisville for one day, Friday, for the Dianne Wilkinson book signing (4:30-5:30 at the Kingdom Heirs’ booth). For the rest of the week—Monday through Thursday, and Saturday—I plan to live-blog the evening’s festivities via the live video stream. The comments section each night will be somewhat of a NQC open thread, so if you’re also watching the live stream, or if you’re there in person and have Internet access on your smartphone or tablet, plan on joining the discussion each evening!

The National Quartet Convention announced this morning that next year’s convention in Louisville will be the final there. Starting in 2014, the event will move to Pigeon Forge. Here is the official press release:

Louisville, KY – The National Quartet Convention has announced the dates for the 2013 NQC. September 9 – 14 will be the dates for the 2013 NQC in Louisville, Kentucky. The event will be very special, as it will be the last year for the event to be held in Louisville. Many special and unique events are being planned for 2013, to celebrate the end of a wonderful era for the NQC in Louisville. Thousands of attendees from across the United States and Canada, as well as several countries around the world, will gather one last time in Louisville to relive great memories from two decades of gatherings at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center. Plans are already underway to make the 2013 NQC one of the biggest and best weeks of the event’s 55-year history. Many first-time attendees are also expected, as it will be their last chance to experience the NQC in this historic location.

In September of 2014, the National Quartet Convention will begin a new and exciting era as Gospel Music’s Largest Annual Event moves to one of America’s most popular, family-friendly vacation destinations… Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

Reserved seating can be purchased for the 2013 NQC during this week’s event, in the North Wing Lobby of the Kentucky Fair & Exposition Center, and will then be available at www.nqconline.com throughout the year. Attendees are urged to reserve seating and lodging early for the final year in Louisville.