The Kingsmen Quartet

**The Kingsmen Quartet** (better known as **The Kingsmen**) is an American Christian music group.

## Musical career

The Kingsmen are a Southern Gospel vocal quartet based out of Asheville, North Carolina. Many legends of Southern Gospel (Jim Hamill, Squire Parsons, Anthony Burger, Mark Trammell, Ed Crawford, Ernie Phillips, and others have been members of The Kingsmen. The group is currently owned and managed by bass vocalist, Ray Reese.

The Kingsmen are one of the most awarded groups in Southern Gospel Music history. They've had fourteen Singing News Top 40 #1 songs, the second most of any group in the history of the chart, several Dove Awards and Grammy nominations, appearances at some of the nation's most prestigious venues including The Grand Ole Opry and The White House and are members of the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, Christian Music Hall of Fame and Southern Gospel Music Hall of Fame. They are the personification of a traditional male quartet with an attention to fast, driving songs as well as big, powerful ballads. The group's dynamic live performances and recordings, beginning with 1973's "Big And Live", set a standard for the genre and certainly for the group itself. The Kingsmen have come to be known for big, booming voices, high tenors and a low bass with tight, intricate four-part harmonies. They continue to produce hit songs and recordings, including 2014's "Battle Cry" which was nominated for album of the year and is the first recording in the group's rich history to produce multiple #1 songs. The Kingsmen still perform more than 200 dates per year across the nation and into Canada. They are also a staple on The Singing At Sea gospel cruise, which sails to places such as The Bahamas, The British Isles and the coast of Mexico, the National Quartet Convention and many of gospel music's other annual events including the Albert P. Brumley Memorial Sing, Memphis Quartet Show and Bill Bailey's Winter Convention.

In October 2008, long time bass singer; Ray Dean Reese joined former Kingsmen members (Eldridge Fox, Jim Hamill, Anthony Burger and Squire Parsons) in The Southern Gospel Music Hall of Fame in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

For a brief period from 2001-2004, they were known as The Carolina Boys Quartet. In 2009, Ray Dean Reese transferred The Carolina Boys Quartet trademark to a newly formed quartet from Anderson, SC.

## Awards

**Singing News Fan Awards**

* Favorite Group (1980, 1985)
* Favorite Traditional Male Quartet (1981)
* Favorite Horizon Group (2002, as Carolina Boys)
* Favorite Lead: **Jim Hamill** (1974, 1975, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985)
* Favorite Male Singer: **Jim Hamill** (1981, 1984, 1985)
* Favorite Tenor: **Johnny Parrack** (1976), **Ernie Phillips** (1980, 1981)
* Favorite Bass: **Ray Dean Reese** (1979, 1985)
* Favorite Baritone: **Wayne Maynard** (1981), **Parker Jonathan** (1992, 1993)
* Favorite Band (1978, 1981 to 1984, 1986 to 1997)
* Favorite Musician: **Anthony Burger** (1980 to 1989)
* Favorite Musician (non-pianist): **Tim Surrett** (2004, 2005)
* Favorite Horizon Individual: **Bryan Hutson** (1997)
* Song of the Year: "Sweet Beulah Land" (1981), "Wish You Were Here" (1992)
* Album of the Year: *Wish You Were Here* (1992)

Other

* Gospel Music Hall of Fame (Inducted in 2000)
* Christian Music Hall of Fame (inducted in 2007)
* Southern Gospel Hall of Fame (inducted in 2008)

## Members

### Line-ups

The group today is composed of Owner, Manager, and Bass Singer, Ray Reese; Lead Bob Sellers; Baritone Randy Crawford and Tenor Josh Horrell. Fill-in Tenor Ernie Phillips returned in 2016 while a full-time tenor was being sought. Former drummer Brandon Reese is now the group's sound technician.

### Tenor

(names in bold are current members)

* Charles Collier (1956–58)
* Frank Cutshall (1958–59)
* Jack Henderson (1959–65)
* Kermit Jamerson (1965–69)
* Jerry Redd (1969–71)
* Johnny Parrack (1971–77)
* Ernie Phillips (1977–83, 2011–12, 2016)
* Gary Sheppard (1984–93)
* Chris Collins (1993–98)
* Jerry A. Martin (1998-02)
* Derrick Boyd (2003–04) (only performed with Carolina Boys)
* Jeremy Peace (2004–07)
* Harold Reed (2007–2011)
* Chris Jenkins (2012-2015)
* **Josh Horrell (2016–present)**

### Lead

* Everett McKinney (1956–57)
* Louis McKinney (1957–59)
* Harold Bailey (1959)
* Frank Cutshall (1959–71)
* Jim Hamill (1971–76, 77-93, 95-96)
* Squire Parsons (1976–77)
* Tim Surrett (1993–95, 2003–04)
* Bryan Hutson (1996-01, (2010–2011)
* Randy Crawford (2001–03)
* Phillip Hughes (2004–2010)
* **Bob Sellers (2011–present)**

### Baritone

* Raymond McKinney (1956–65)
* Eldridge Fox (1965–75, 1976, 1979)
* Squire Parsons (1975–79) (also lead in 1976)
* Mark Trammell (1979–80)
* Wayne Maynard (1980–83)
* Ed Crawford (1983–88)
* Arthur Rice (1988–89)
* Parker Jonathan (1989-02)
* Tim Surrett (2002–03, 04-05)
* Jason Selph (2003–04)
* Tony Peace (2005–07)
* Bryan Hutson (2007–2010)
* **Randy Crawford (2010–present)**

### Bass

* Reese McKinney (1956–63)
* Calvin Runion (1963–67)
* Ray Reese (1967–68)
* Calvin Runion (1968–70)
* Jim McCallister (1970–71)
* **Ray Dean Reese (1971–present)**

### Pianist

* Charlie Matthews (1956–57)
* David Young (1957–58)
* Martin Cook (1958–59)
* Eldridge Fox (1959–60)
* James N. Ward (1960–61)
* Ray Talley (1961–64)
* Eldridge Fox (1964–65)
* Ray Talley (1965–71)
* Charles Abee (1971–73)
* Nick Bruno (1973–78)
* Anthony Burger (1978–93)
* Randy Matthews (1993–96)
* Tim Lovelace (1996–97)
* Andrew Ishee (1997–2001)
* Nick Succi (2001–2008)
* Cody McVey (2009–2011)

### Additional Musicians

* John Dalton (Drums, 1964–65)
* Jim Kirby (Guitar, 1964–69)
* Jim McCauley (Bass guitar, 1964–67)
* Otis Lynn Dillon (Bass, 1980–81)
* Tommy Hensley (Bass guitar, 1969–71)
* Jim McCauley (Bass guitar, 1971–78)
* John Broome (Drums, 1971–74)
* Leonard Hollifield (Guitar, 1971–73)
* Eddie Trent (Steel Guitar, 1971–73)
* Bob Conley (Guitar, 1976)
* Chester Arms (Drums, 1974–76)
* Gary Dillard (Steel Guitar, 1974–80)
* Greg Fox (Drums, 1977–99)
* Mark Trammell (Bass guitar, 1978–80)
* Wayne Maynard (Bass guitar, 1983–84)
* Sam Crowe (Steel Guitar, 1980–83)
* Jim McCauley (Bass guitar, 1980–81)
* Ed Crawford (Bass guitar, 1981–83)
* Gary Dillard (Steel Guitar, 1983–93)
* Arthur Rice (Bass guitar, 1984–89, also sang lead)
* Tim Surrett (Bass guitar, 1989–96)
* Randy Miller (Guitar, 1993–98)
* Rory Rigdon (Bass guitar, 1995–97)
* Jason Selph (Bass player, 1999-07)
* Colby McClatchey (Bass player, 1998)
* **Brandon Reese** (Drums, 1999-08)
* Tim Surrett (Guitar, 2003–06)
* Grant Barker (Bass guitar, 2007–08)
* **Brandon Reese (Sound system, 2008- )**

## Discography

### 1950s and 1960s

* 1959 What Love (Henderson, Cutshall, McKinney, McKinney, Talley)
* 1960 New Jerusalem (Henderson, Cutshall, McKinney, McKinney, Talley)
* 1962 Closer To Thee (Henderson, Cutshall, McKinney, McKinney, Talley)
* 1963 That Kingsmen Sound (Henderson, Cutshall, McKinney, McKinney, Talley)
* 1963 From The Land Of The Sky (Henderson, Cutshall, McKinney, Runion, Talley)
* 1964 A Visit With The Kingsmen (Henderson, Cutshall, McKinney, Runion, Fox)
* 1965 Carolina's Favorite Quartet (Henderson, Cutshall, Fox, Runion)
* 1966 Songs and Spirituals (Jamerson, Cutshall, Fox, Runion, Talley)
* 1967 Sing Out! (Jamerson, Cutshall, Fox, Runion, Talley)
* 1968 Kingsmen Kountry (Jamerson, Cutshall, Fox, Reese, Talley)
* 1968 Daddy Sang Bass (Jamerson, Cutshall, Fox, Runion, Talley)
* 1968 Crown Him King (Jamerson, Cutshall, Fox, Runion, Talley)
* 1969 Try A Little Kindness (Jamerson, Cutshall, Fox, Runion, Talley, Hemsley)
* 1969 Standing Room Only (Jamerson, Cutshall, Fox, Runion, Talley, Hemsley)

### 1970s

* 1970 The Kingsmen (Redd, Cutshall, Fox, Runion, Talley)
* 1971 Then and Now (Redd, Cutshall, Fox, McCallister, Talley)
* 1971 Suddenly There's A Valley (Redd, Hamill, Fox, Reese)
* 1971 America's Favorite Hymns (Redd, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, Hollifield)
* 1971 Presented by Colonial Mobile Homes (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, Hollifield)
* 1972 May Day (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, Hollifield, McCaulley)
* 1972 Turn Your Radio On (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, Hollifield, McCaulley, Trent)
* 1972 It's Time To Ring The Bell (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, Hollifield, McCaulley, Trent)
* 1972 Johnny Parrack Out Front (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, Hollifield, McCaulley)
* 1972 Hymn Time in the Country (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, Hollifield, McCaulley)
* 1973 High and Low: Johnny Parrack and Ray Dean Reese (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, Hollifield, McCaulley)
* 1973 Sing A Lot of Gospel (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, Hollifield, McCaulley)
* 1973 Reverend Everett Beverly and Anna Laura (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, McCaulley)
* 1973 Just Plain Singin' (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Abee, Broome, McCaulley)
* 1973 Just As The Sun Went Down (same album as above)
* 1973 Big and Live (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Bruno, Broome, McCaulley, Dillard)
* 1974 1686 lbs. of Gospel (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Bruno, Broome, McCaulley, Dillard)
* 1975 Jubiliation (Parrack, Hamill, Fox, Reese, Bruno, Arms, McCaulley, Dillard)
* 1975 The Old and the New: Jim Hamill and Squire Parsons (Parrack, Hamill, Parsons, Fox, Reese, Bruno, Arms, McCaulley, Dillard)
* 1975 24 Carat Gospel (Parrack, Hamill, Parsons, Fox, Reese, Bruno, Arms, McCaulley, Dillard)
* 1976 It Made News In Heaven (Parrack, Hamill, Parsons, Fox, Reese, Bruno, Arms, McCaulley, Dillard)
* 1976 Just In Time (Parrack, Parsons, Fox, Reese, Bruno, Arms, McCaulley, Dillard, Conley)
* 1976 Golden Gospel (Parrack, Parsons, Fox, Reese, Bruno, Arms, McCaulley, Dillard, Conley)
* 1977 Just A Little Closer Home (Phillips, Hamill, Parsons, Fox, Reese, Bruno, McCaulley, Dillard)
* 1977 Chattanooga Live (Phillips, Hamill, Parsons, Fox, Reese, Bruno, McCaulley, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1978 The Upper Window (Phillips, Hamill, Parsons, Fox, Reese, Bruno, McCaulley, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1979 From Out Of The Past (Phillips, Hamill, Fox, Parsons, Reese, Burger, Trammell, Dillard, G. Fox)

### 1980s

* 1980 Ring The Bells Of Freedom (Phillips, Hamill, Maynard, Fox, Reese, Burger, Trammell, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1981 Live...Naturally (Phillips, Hamill, Maynard, Fox, Reese, Burger, McCaulley, Crowe, G. Fox)
* 1982 Your Ride Is On The Way (Phillips, Hamill, Maynard, E. Crawford, Fox, Reese, Burger, Crowe, G. Fox)
* 1982 With Grady Nutt (Phillips, Hamill, Maynard, E. Crawford, Fox, Reese, Burger, Crowe, G. Fox)
* 1983 Live From The University of Alabama (Phillips, Hamill, Maynard, E. Crawford, Reese, Crowe, G. Fox)
* 1984 The Game of Life (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Crawford, Fox, Reese, Burger, Rice, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1984 Kingsmen Silver (Compilation album plus two original featuring Sheppard)
* 1985 Better In Person (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Crawford, Reese, Burger, Rice, E. Fox, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1986 Stand Up At Opryland USA (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Crawford, Reese, Burger, Rice, E. Fox, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1987 Mississippi Live (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Crawford, Reese, Burger, Rice, E. Fox, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1988 Anchors Aweigh (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Crawford, Reese, Burger, Rice, E. Fox, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1989 The Judgement (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Fox, Reese, Burger, Surrett, Dillard, G. Fox)

### 1990s

* 1990 Live in Dayton (Sheppard, Hamill, Jonathon, Reese, Burger, Surrett, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1991 *Wish You Were Here* (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Burger, Surrett, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1992 Singin' in the Sun Live (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Burger, Surrett, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1992 Walking With Jesus (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Burger, Surrett, G. Fox)
* 1992 Singing News Hits (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Burger, Surrett, G. Fox)
* 1992 Living By Faith (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Burger, Surrett, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1993 Kingsmen Band (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Burger, Surrett, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1993 27 Great Gospel Songs (Sheppard, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Burger, Surrett, Dillard, G. Fox)
* 1993 New Life (Collins, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Matthews, Surrett, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1994 Ridin' High (Collins, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Matthews, Surrett, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1994 Live From The Alabama Theatre (Collins, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Matthews, Surrett, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1994 A Kingsmen Christmas (Collins, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Matthews, Surrett, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1994 30 Great Gospel Songs (Collins, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Matthews, Surrett, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1995 Georgia Live (Collins, Hamill, E. Fox, Jonathon, Reese, Matthews, Surrett, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1996 40th Anniversary Reunion: Perfecting The Crown
* 1996 Beyond The Clouds (Collins, Hamill, E. Fox, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Lovelace, Rigdon, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1997 You're Not Alone (Collins, Hamill, E. Fox, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Ishee, Rigdon, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1997 Kingsmen Klassics (Collins, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Lovelace, Rigdon, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1998 The Old Time Way (Martin, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Ishee, Mclatchy, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1998 Kingsmen Klassics 2 (Martin, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Ishee, Selph, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1999 Southern Standards (Martin, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Ishee, Selph, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1999 Shelter (Martin, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Ishee, Selph, Miller, G. Fox)
* 1999 Not Quite As Big, But Just As Live (Martin, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Ishee, Selph, Miller, G. Fox)

### 2000s to present

* 2000 *Proven Time And Again* (Martin, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Ishee, Selph, G. Fox)
* 2001 *I Will* (Martin, Hutson, Jonathon, Reese, Ishee, Selph, B Reese, G. Fox)
* 2001 *Honoring the Heritage 1* (as Carolina Boys)
* 2002 *Good News!* (as Carolina Boys) (Martin, R Crawford, Jonathon, Reese, Succi, Selph, B Reese)
* 2003 *Ready (as Carolina Boys) (Boyd, R Crawford, Surrett, Reese, Succi, Selph, B Reese)*
* 2004 *Born Again* (Peace, Surrett, Reese, Succi, Selph, B Reese)
* 2005 *My Past Is Past* (Peace, Hughes, Surrett, Reese, Succi, Selph, B Reese)
* 2006 *Good, Good God* (Peace, Hughes, T Peace, Reese, Succi, Selph, B Reese)
* 2007 *I'll Not Turn Back-Live* (Reed, Hughes, Hutson, Reese, Succi, Barker, B Reese)
* 2007 *Honoring The Heritage 2- Live* (Reed, Hughes, Hutson, Reese, Succi, Barker, B Reese)
* 2008 *When God Ran* (Reed, Hughes, Hutson, Reese, B Reese)
* 2009 *Missing People* (Reed, Hughes, Hutson, Reese, McVey, B Reese)
* 2010 *Honoring The Heritage 3* (Reed, Hughes, Hutson, Reese, McVey, B Reese)
* 2010 *Live Performances From The National Quartet Convention* (Reed, Hughes, Hutson, Reese, McVey, B Reese)
* 2011 *Grace Says* (Reed, Hutson, Crawford, Reese, McVey, B Reese)
* 2012 *Once Again* (Jenkins, Sellers, Crawford, Reese, B Reese)
* 2013 *Front Row Live* (Jenkins, Sellers, Crawford, Reese, B Reese)
* 2014 "Battle Cry" (Jenkins, Sellers, Crawford, Reese, B Reese)

## External links

* http://www.sghistory.com/index.php?n=K.Kingsmen\_Quartet Southern Gospel Music history: Kingsmen Quartet
* www.kingsmenquartet.com The Official Kingsmen Quartet web site
* http://www.gospelvinyl.com/kingsmen.html illustrated discography

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Template:Cite web
2. ↑ http://www.sgma.org/inductee\_bios/jim\_hamill.htm Jim Hamill biography (Southern Gospel Music Association)
3. ↑ http://www.sgma.org/inductee\_bios/squire\_parsons.htm Squire Parsons biography (Southern Gospel Music Association)
4. ↑ http://www.sgma.org/inductee\_bios/anthony\_burger.htm Anthony Burger (Southern Gospel Music Association)
5. ↑ http://www.sgma.org/inductee\_bios/ray\_dean\_reese.htm Ray Reese at the Southern Gospel Music Hall Of Fame
6. ↑ http://www.gmahalloffame.org/site/year-of-2000 Gospel Music Hall of Fame 2000
7. ↑ http://hallmuseum.com/induction.htm Christian Music Hall of Fame inductions
8. ↑ http://www.sgma.org/inductee\_bios/ray\_dean\_reese.htm
9. ↑ http://www.metrolyrics.com/1979-dove-awards.html 1979 Dove Awards for *From Out Of The Past*
10. ↑ http://www.southerngospelblog.com/archives/3125 Southern Gospel Blog: CD Review: Missing People