Drew Laney (left) sings with Southern Gospel Music Association Hall of Famer Ray Dean Reese during The Kingsmen concert on January 12. Laney is learning from one of his heroes less than two years after asking Reese for advice on getting started in gospel music.
Less than a year after getting his start in gospel music, Laney learns from Kingsmen legend
By John Herndon, KentuckySings.com
CRAB ORCHARD, Ky. – Describing Drew Laney’s introduction to the world of Southern Gospel music as fast is akin to saying there’s a little bit of speed at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
It would be the monumental understatement.
Laney, all of 21 years old, has been turning heads since he started appearing on stage with The Kingsmen just before the National Quartet Convention got underway last September in Pigeon Forge.
“Just who is this kid singing bass beside Ray Dean Reese?”
Gospel music fans near Ashland, Ky., can experience a night of powerful worship when The Kingsmen, The Perrys and Karen Peck & New River come to town on Thursday, Oct. 6.
The stellar lineup of southern gospel greats will be at the Paramount Arts Center that night. The singing begins at 7 p.m.
“Ashland is a very special town,” promoter Paul Belcher says. “Folks come to worship. It’s totally different than any other market we come to promote. People rejoice and praise the Lord. It’s a church service.”
Belcher has put together a lineup full of southern gospel history but all three groups continue to receive accolades after decades in the business.
The Kingsmen in concert earlier this year at Crab Orchard, Kentucky. (File photo by John Herndon)
The Kingsmen, formed in 1956, features Southern Gospel Music Association Hall of Famer Ray Dean Reese singing his distinctive bass. The group’s sound blends the best of traditional southern gospel with more contemporary sounds.
The Perrys first performed on Dec. 25, 1970 as a family trio that Libbi Perry Stuffle continues to lead today. She remains one of gospel music’s favorite altos and her late husband, Tracy Stuffle, who sang bass with the group for more than 30 years, was inducted into the SGMA Hall of Fame in 2018.
Karen Peck & New River. (Photo submitted)
Karen Peck and New River has been one of gospel music’s top groups since forming in 1991. Karen Peck Gooch is also one of gospel music’s beloved performers, being named to the SGMA Hall of Fame last year.
All of the groups have multiple No. 1 hits and have been awarded many times by the industry.
The Paramount Arts Center routinely brings high-quality acts to the Ashland-Huntington, W.Va.-Ironton, Ohio area and Belcher says it is a great venue for southern gospel. “The history of the Paramount is so rich,” he said. “We go to the Paramount because it’s a neutral location. We seldom go to a church for a ticketed event. Every denomination feels comfortable coming to a service there….Sonny and Barbara Sites promoted there for years. I love Ashland, Ky.”
The Perrys have been singing gospel music for more than 50 years. (Photo submitted)
Belcher said he has been promoting at The Paramount since 2019 when he booked the McKameys there for part of their farewell tour. Common Bond, based in Ashland, was also on the card that night. “It was special. Being there last year, folks responded very well,” Belcher said.
Belcher said tickets, which are priced at 20 and 25 dollars, are “going rather well.” He advised that even with tickets available less than two weeks before the concert, fans should not wait.
“The last week is always the busiest with ticket sales,” he said. “I believe we will have a great crowd.”
The Kingsmen during their concert at Sand Spring Baptist Church on Oct. 14. From left are Chris Jenkins, Chris Bryant, Alan Kendall and Ray Dean Reese.
Talented baritone gives God glory as he serves in ‘Dream Job’
By John Herndon, KentuckySings.com
LAWRENCEBURG, Ky. – Alan Kendall knew he was a blessed man.
He’d been on the road, singing baritone for The Kingsmen Quartet and pulled into his Hiwasse, Georgia home just before midnight on Sunday night, October 10. He took to Facebook to let the world know just how blessed he really is.
“Nearly midnight, just got home, gotta take the kids to school first thing tomorrow morning. What a blessing. My Savior, my wife and kids, my dream job…all amazing gifts that I don’t necessarily deserve. May I never forget that, and may I honor all those things to my best ability.”
That resonated with me. It resonated a lot. Make that A LOT.
The Kingsmen in concert at Christiansburg Baptist Church, May 30, 2019. From left are Chris Jenkins, Chris Bryant, Alan Kendall and Ray Dean Reese.
By John Herndon, KentuckySings.com
We are back after a crazy month that barely gave us time to breathe!
We’ve been quiet at KentuckySings.com for the month of May due to taking on some freelance work for three different publications. Add in my youngest daughter’s final month of high school — where DID the time go? — I’ve been away from the site more than I wanted. With KentuckySings.com being a labor of love, an unscheduled lull might happen occasionally.
However, I did make two concerts in May and conducted interviews for stories scheduled to appear in another publication in the next two months. Those two interviews might have done as much for my understanding of why gospel music stays vibrant despite warnings that it’s a dying form of music. Continue reading “Last two concerts have combined the past and present”→
Kentucky Sings! 