Mr. JohnCBoy, I hope I'm not walking upon sacred ground here. I hope my question in this thread is ok to post . . .

I know there are a lots of folks on here who are much more knowledgable about quartet music than me. I don't proclaim to know much, but I've heard quartet singing in my house since I was in the womb.

I've seen post about singers, both good and bad, ever since I've been a member here.

That being said, I have a question:

If you had to pick a bass singer that was second to none, who would you pick?

I know I might stand alone, but I would pick George Younce. :)

Hey, LTR, you post your questions whenever you'd like. I know folks get tired of my simple little questions. It would be nice to have a discussion once in a while.

As for me, I have many "favorites". However, if I had to pick my favorite bass singer throughout the time I've followed gospel music, I'd pick James "Big Chief" Wetherington.

I saw him sing many times when I was a child (he died when I was either 15 or 16), and he talked to me whenever he saw me in the wings of a Statesmen concert.

I've watched many great bass singers in my years, but nobody "taken the stage" like the Big Chief. He had it all. Rhythm, soul, solo voice, low notes, high notes. . . you name it.

As far as I'm concerned, a large piece of gospel music died when he joined the Heavenly choir.

I shall never forget the day he died. I was working in a local restaurant. I was kinda "in charge" of things at the restaurant. The phone rang and I said "Huey's BarBQue! May I help you?"

My dad said, "Son, have a seat, for I have some sad news for you."

Yes, I cried when he told me the news.

Chief was my favorite bass and one of the best I've ever heard sing.

Thank you for asking, LTR.

I've posted a reply to this three times and the internet has kept me from hitting the "send" button each time.

That being said, I respect your opinion, Daniel. I know you are a historian of this music.

A few years ago, another site did a survey of the top 40 bass singers of all time. Younce ranked #1.

Do I agree? NO. However, in this day of internet information, it doesn't surprise me. The great bass singers of the 40s-70s have been forgotten.

Chief is still the best IMHO.

I would have to say JD Sumner...I love to hear him sing and I really enjoyed his humor!

It depends on what style of Bass singing you prefer. I believe JD Sumner and George Younce were the best at their prime. Their styles were completely different but loved them both. If I had to pick one it would be JD "George" Sumner

PB :smiley wave:

I loved JD. He could say things that nobody else in gospel music could get away with saying. He was also quite versatile. He could sing a lead line and then go into the cellar for some of those low notes.

IMO in the 55+ years I been attending gospel concerts "Big Chief" Wetherington has no equal.

I'm going to surprise all of you. I have seen them all.....well, most of them.....
and while Big Chief and JD are considered the best, and a lot of people loved
George Younce, if I had to choose one that I really think is as good as any I
have seen..............

I would choose Harold Gilley. He was flat out good, in my opinion. Harold's
problem is that he just doesn't like the road life, so he never stayed with anyone long. I think if he had picked a quartet and stayed with them, he would be considered one of the best. Unfortunately, not many know who I am even talking about.....lol.


Edit- By the way, London Parris is still my favorite.... :)

I know who you're talking about. :) I have one (only one, but at least it's one) recording he did with the Palmetto State Quartet.

Mr. Crenshaw, if I had ever seen Big Chief and the Statesmen in person, I may well name him as my favorite. But all I have is old, scratchy records. I shouldn't complain; that's much more than even most Southern Gospel fans have nowadays.

But, even though it was only via recordings, George Younce was my introduction to Southern Gospel.

Thank you for not taking offense.

I couldn't disagree with anyone's choice here. Unfortunately, I never got a chance to see Big Chief. Not that I could disagree that Younce was great, but I always thought that a lot of his appeal came from the fact that he was the master emcee. As for JD, what more can be said.

However, the bass singer that I think is the best for range, tone, control and the ability to sell a song is Tim Riley. I had thought that for many years, but when I heard him sing Under Control a few months ago, just after Doug passed away ... no doubt!

I'm fortunate enough to have seen all the bass singers named in person and to own a number of records by all of them. I didn't see the Chief in his prime but he still was an impact performer in 1972 and 1973.

Younce was also a great MC as well as a singer and so was JD who was also an innovator and songwriter.

Strictly as a bass singer (in person but especially on recordings) I would select Armond Morales of the Weathefords and Imperials as my favorite. I love that distinctive velvet sound. He couldn't hit the low notes like the other fellows but boy was he smooth and could he ever blend.

I agree with John in his first post -- Big Cheif.

Dean

[QUOTE=danielmount,Sep 26 2006, 07:49 PM][QUOTE=VirginiaJoe,Sep 26 2006, 07:41 PM] I'm going to surprise all of you. I have seen them all.....well, most of them.....
and while Big Chief and JD are considered the best, and a lot of people loved
George Younce, if I had to choose one that I really think is as good as any I
have seen..............

I would choose Harold Gilley. He was flat out good, in my opinion. Harold's
problem is that he just doesn't like the road life, so he never stayed with anyone long. I think if he had picked a quartet and stayed with them, he would be considered one of the best. Unfortunately, not many know who I am even talking about.....lol. [/QUOTE]


Harold Gilley has more talent in his pinky than most bass singers have in their entire body!! ;-)

Although I loved Chief and was certainly a trendsetter for others to follow, IMHO George Younce was the best to ever grace a stage. He was the total package.

The best pure low note bass singer ever was Arnold Hyles of the Rangers Qt. of the 40's and 50's. Not a beautiful voice and not a "blow tone" ala JD, just powerful, natural voice, low note bass singing.

Jake Fanatic

Everyone has mentioned some truly great bass singers. I have to go with Big Chief becuase he could sing low (lower than many give him credit for being able to do). He could also sing a high bass lead and could sing other harmonies besides the bass line. He had no problem with modern harmony. It is my desire to get the album that has "When My Master Walks with Me". I know that on the Showers of Blessing album the Chief sings a modern harmony bass line on "Choose You This Day." Many of our present low note specialists would have trouble with such harmony lines.

Another bass singer that others have not mentioned is Buddy Liles. I like him because he could sing very low, but he was also versatile and could sing other harmony lines. I prefer for my bass singers to be the complete package and do other things than sing extremely low all the time.

J.D. Sumner was a complete package bass singer during his time with the Sunshine Boys and the Blackwood Brothers.

Well folks, I will take this post in a different direction. I realize that there are a lot of different qualities that everyone looks at in a bass singer, ie: stage presence, humor, personality, etc. However, when you look at the voice alone, Rex Nelon has to be at the top of the list IMHO. Tone, pitch, ability to mix with a group, etc. He always put the group's overall sound ahead of seeing how low he could go. Don't get me wrong he could go low, but rarely did. I spent some time with Rex in his office in Smyrna, GA one day and learned so much about singing, even though I am not a bass singer. He was one of the best. IMHO God hasn't made any bass singers lately, like Rex, George Younce, J.D. Sumner, Big Chief & Jimmy Jones.

That's all I'm gonna say about that. :beach:

John, you got it right. Chief was the best. Sumner, Waits, Swoard, Younce, Simmons and a few others were great but Chief was the total package. Gospel music has never been the same since he died.

Ya know, DSQ1, unfortunately there aren't many folks that share your opinion of Rex Nelon as a bass singer. However, I am one.

He had a very melodic voice and was one of the few bass singers that could sing a melody line and sound good doing so, much like Gerald Williams who is one of my favorite active bass singers.

IMHO, had Rex Nelon spent his career with a male quartet, I think he would be a major part of the "best bass singers" conversations we have today.

I saw Rex sing with the Statesmen Quartet several times. In that situation, he was one of the finest bass singers I have ever heard on stage. You all know that I think the Big Chief was the finest bass ever to step on the stage, but with the Statesmen, Rex ran him a close second. Rex could sing rhythmically with precision, and he could sing "modern harmony".

Thanks to Rex, I got to see the Statesmen with Jake, Rosie, and Doy do several songs that they did with Chief (like Get Away Jordan) so I relived many Statesmen memories that way.

I can't help but wonder how gospel music may have changed if Rex had joined the Statesmen instead of continuing with the fledgling (at that time) Rex Nelon Singers.

By the way, I heard George Younce and London Parris both sing with the Statesmen, and there was no comparison. Rex was the best by far.

When did George Younce sing with the Statesmen?

(By the way, I agree to a point; George Younce was not a Statesmen-style bass.)

Daniel, I saw the Statesmen several times singing as a trio. Twice I saw them in concert with the Cathedral Quartet. George joined them on stage for a few songs.

The Statesmen actually had a program worked out with Rex.

I'm not sure I agree 100% about George not being a "Statesmen Style" bass. George could sing a melody, had a rhythmic voice, and could sing modern harmony.

By the way, any guess as to where George learned "Led Out of Bondage"?

I also use to enjoy hearing John Gresham sing...he had a smooth bass voice although he didn't sing as low as some bass singers.

John was an excellent bass singer that we lost much too soon.

I will never forget seeing John at a concert many years ago. I must have been about 12. It was an outdoor concert, it was raining, and John was singing with the Rebels. He was dressed in a suit and tie and the rest of the quartet was dressed in jeans. I asked him to autograph an album. He looked at the other Rebels (Jim Hamill, Ronnie Booth) and said, "If ya'll had worn a suit, somebody might ask for your autograph, too!"

I want to thank Lauren Talley Rocks for starting this thread! Great responses, folks. I appreciate each and every one of them.

Yes...we did lose him too soon. He was a character in his own right. I got to see him several times with the Rebels and then many times with the Thrasher Brothers.

Seems like everyone has already mentioned my favorites. I never got to see Big Chief in concert live but I have seen him on video and my albums, but he is my all time favorite. Nobody could touch him in my opinion. Also, like it has already been mentioned, Rex Nelon was a very underrated bass singer. He is one of my favorites as well as JD and George. I also like London Parris. He hasn't been mentioned yet, so I want to mention Brock Speer. Brock was not a low bass, but you can't deny he had longetivty and was a solid and consistent bass even in his later years. Also, Herman Harper did some fine singing with the Oaks.

Bill Lyles was also one of the greats.

When listing great bass singers, I hope folks never forget Brock Speer. Thank you, Scotty for calling our attention to him.

Brock was always a solid vocalist, always on pitch, and his enunciation was stellar. Brock followed his father's teaching and was one of the best in the business for many years. Like Rex, had he sung with a male quartet, folks may have considered him to be one of the best to ever sing gospel music.

I also agree that Herman Harper was one of the forgotten legends among the bass singers. I have a live concert with Herman singing "I Know My Savior Is There", and I don't know of anyone that has ever performed it better.

. . . and Bill had a great surrounding cast, too Ben.

Ben, I can remember it like it was about a month ago, although it has been 55+ years. There in Tulsa, Ok. was Bill Lyles with James, RW,Dan Huskey and Jackie Marshall, The Statesmen had Hovie,Big Chief, Doy Ott,Jake Hess, and Cat Freeman. Wally Fowler and The Oak Ridge Quartet was there, The Tulsa Trumpeteers had Rosie Rozell, Norris Wing, Charley Hutton, Jack Smith and "Little" Joe Winf (Norris' brother)on piano, Rosie was great then but I would say The Statesmen and The Blackwoods were the main drawing cards that night.

All of the above mentioned bass singers are certainly deserving of recognition, but there are some other considerations that maybe have been overlooked. Jay Simmons (Prophets, Harvesters, Plainsmen) MUST be thrown into the mix. His solo voice matched any previously mentioned. He was the poster boy for being a "quartet" bass singer. He wasn't a "talker", he was a singer. Next, Ken Turner comes to mind as a GREAT quartet man. His silliness overshadowed his abilities as a value to that quartet sound. Old recordings of the Dixie Echoes and the Blackwood Bothers shold make my point. We probably have one of the greatest of ALL TIME around singing today. Does Gerald Williams come to mind. I would really put Gerald in the top two when character is also introduced into the qualifacations. Gerald is so humble that he slips through the cracks,but deserves more recognition than he receives. While I truly live in the past, I must also make mention that there are some guys TODAY doing some singing that are going to make our list in the future.

I have to agree with this. Having sung with Brock, I remember how solid the chord always felt when he anchored it.

One night we were in concert with another group, and they were going to adjust the sound system for us (maybe it was their system, thus they were helping, or something like that). The group's bass singer was doing the adjustments, and the look on his face when he was told that the bass mike for the Speer Family would not be hotter than the other singers' mikes was priceless!

Brock has always been one of my favorite singers. I have always liked Mike Holcolmbe of the Inspirations. He has a good tone and is a good balance to the country delivery of Archie Watkins.

The bass singer for the Vanguards did not possess a super low voice, but he could sing modern harmony. He was a good fit for that group.

I don't think anyone has answered this question yet............

You folks have some great stories. I hope you will continue to share them with us.

I would guess that George learned how to sing it from Big Chief. Did I get it right?

I would also like to add that I am enjoying this discussion. I have been missing these wonderful times of talking about this wonderful music.

I like all of the singers who have been listed. JD had many, many recordings over the years. There was a lot of groaning on those "show off" endings, but I guess he was just doing what he thought that most of us wanted; and he was right. If you listen to his quartet bass singing he almost always did a solid job. In the years with the Blackwood Brothers, with Bill Shaw going up and JD going down, there were some great sounds.
I don't have many of Gerald Williams earlier recordings, but his singing with Melody Boys of the last several years is about as high a quality as I can imagine.
To me, the best overlll, considering the ability to sing soft, sing solos, blend with the group, sing ryhthm, and sing low, with low solid endings was Jay Simmons. With Thurman Bunch on tenor and Jay on bass, along with some fine arrangements, the Plainsmen Quartet was second to none. Of course they had some other good singers and some fine piano playing. On the Prophets album "Relax", his "He Whispers Sweet Peace to Me" is an example of the soft, solo singing. Another is "How Beautiful Heaven Must Be" with the Plainsmen on the album "Wonderful Time Up There." That same album has several faster songs, including JD's "God Made a Way," that show that he could handle speed also. Jay occasionally put his own touch into a song that would make a song you have heard a hundred times sound a little different. I haven't been able to come up with the words to describe it, but examples are on "Standing By The River", "Lilly Of The Valley", and "A Beautiful Life," with the Plainsmen Quartet. To me, Jay Simmons was the best quartet bass singer.

I thought a lot of Brock, he was a wonderful singer and a real fine gentleman. I guess I first saw Brock with Mom, Dad, Ben and Ginger Smith, and I believe the year was about 1959. Larry (my brother )can remeber I believe the first 3 songs they sang that night-If I remember right the first was 1.-"I See Jesus", and Brock was their fine M.C.and he sure sang that night in Neosho, Mo. on "Crossing Chilly Jordan."