The Kingsmen Quartet

The Kingsmen
Also known as	Carolina Boys (2001–04)
Origin	Asheville, North Carolina
Genres	Southern gospel
Years active	1956–present
Members	Ray Dean Reese Chris Jenkins Alan Kendall Chris Bryant Brandon Reese
Past members	see section below
Website	kingsmenquartet.com

The Kingsmen Quartet (better known as The Kingsmen) is an American Southern gospel vocal quartet.

Musical career

The Kingsmen are a Southern Gospel vocal quartet based out of Asheville, North Carolina. Many singers of Southern Gospel including Jim Hamill, Squire Parsons, Anthony Burger, Mark Trammell, and others have been members of The Kingsmen.

GMA Dove Awards

• Album of the Year – Big and Live (1974)
• Album of the Year – Chattanooga Live (1978)
• Southern Gospel Album of the Year – From Out of the Past (1980)

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

• BMI Radio Airplay Award, “Oh Yes I Am” (2016)
• BMI Radio Airplay Award, “Battle Cry” (2017)
• Gospel Music Hall of Fame (Inducted in 2000)
• Christian Music Hall of Fame (inducted in 2007)
• Southern Gospel Hall of Fame
  
  • Eldridge Fox, inducted in 1998
  • Jim Hamill, inducted in 2004
  • Anthony Burger, inducted in 2007
  • Ray Dean Reese, inducted in 2008
  • Squire Parsons, inducted in 2008
  • Mark Trammell, inducted in 2018
  • Ernie Phillips, inducted in 2019

Members

Line-ups

1956–1957 (Under the Name "The Kingsmen Quartet")	1957–1958	1958–1959
Charles Collier – tenor Everett McKinney – lead Raymond McKinney – baritone Reese McKinney – bass Charlie Matthews – piano	Charles Collier – tenor Louis McKinney – lead Raymond McKinney – baritone Reese McKinney – bass David Young – piano	Frank Cutshall – tenor Louis McKinney – lead Raymond McKinney – baritone Reese McKinney – bass Martin Cook – piano
1959	1959–1960	1960–1961
Frank Cutshall – tenor Harold Bailey – lead Raymond McKinney – baritone Reese McKinney – bass Martin Cook – piano	Jack Henderson – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Raymond McKinney – baritone Reese McKinney – bass Eldridge Fox – piano	Jack Henderson – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Raymond McKinney – baritone Reese McKinney – bass James N. Ward – piano
1961–1963	1963–1964	1964–1965
Jack Henderson – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Raymond McKinney – baritone Reese McKinney – bass Ray Talley – piano	Jack Henderson – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Raymond McKinney – baritone Calvin Runion – bass Ray Talley – piano	Jack Henderson – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Raymond McKinney – baritone Calvin Runion – bass Eldridge Fox – piano John Dalton – drums Jim Kirby – guitar Jim McCauley – bass guitar
1965–1967	1967–1968	1968–1969
Kermit Jamerson – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Eldridge Fox – baritone Calvin Runion – bass Ray Talley – piano Jim Kirby – guitar	Kermit Jamerson – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Eldridge Fox – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Ray Talley – piano Jim Kirby – guitar	Kermit Jamerson – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Eldridge Fox – baritone Calvin Runion – bass Ray Talley – piano Jim Kirby – guitar
1969–1970	1970–1971	1971–1973
Jerry Redd – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Eldridge Fox – baritone Calvin Runion – bass Ray Talley – piano Tommy Hensley – bass guitar	Jerry Redd – tenor Frank Cutshall – lead Eldridge Fox – baritone Jim McCallister – bass Ray Talley – piano Tommy Hensley – bass guitar	Johnny Parrack – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Eldridge Fox – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Charles Abee – piano Jim McCauley – bass guitar John Broome – drums Leonard Hollifield – guitar Eddie Trent – steel guitar
1973–1975	1975–1976	1976–1977
Johnny Parrack – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Eldridge Fox – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Bruno – piano Jim McCauley – bass guitar John Broome – drums (1974) Chester Arms – drums Gary Dillard – steel guitar (1974)	Johnny Parrack – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Squire Parsons – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Bruno – piano Jim McCauley – bass guitar Chester Arms – drums Gary Dillard – steel guitar	Johnny Parrack – tenor Squire Parsons – lead Eldridge Fox – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Bruno – piano Jim McCauley – bass guitar Bob Conley – guitar (1976) Gary Dillard – steel guitar
1977–1978	1978–1979	1979
Ernie Phillips – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Squire Parsons – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Bruno – piano Jim McCauley – bass guitar Greg Fox – drums Gary Dillard – steel guitar	Ernie Phillips – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Squire Parsons – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Anthony Burger – piano Mark Trammell – bass guitar Gary Dillard – steel guitar Greg Fox – drums	Ernie Phillips – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Eldridge Fox – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Anthony Burger – piano Mark Trammell – bass guitar Greg Fox – drums Gary Dillard – steel guitar
1979–1980	1980–1983	1983–1984
Ernie Phillips – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Mark Trammell – baritone, bass guitar Ray Dean Reese – bass Anthony Burger – piano Greg Fox – drums Gary Dillard – steel guitar	Ernie Phillips – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Wayne Maynard – baritone, bass guitar (1983) Ray Dean Reese – bass Anthony Burger – piano Otis Lynn Dillon – bass guitar (1981) Sam Crowe – steel guitar Jim McCauley – bass guitar (1981) Ed Crawford – bass guitar Greg Fox – drums	Ernie Phillips – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Ed Crawford – baritone, bass guitar Ray Dean Reese – bass Anthony Burger – piano Greg Fox – drums
1984–1988	1988–1989	1989–1993
Garry Sheppard – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Ed Crawford – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Anthony Burger – piano Greg Fox – drums	Garry Sheppard – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Arthur Rice – lead, baritone, bass guitar Ray Dean Reese – bass Anthony Burger – piano Greg Fox – drums	Garry Sheppard – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Parker Jonathan – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Anthony Burger – piano Tim Surrett – bass guitar Greg Fox – drums
1993–1995	1995–1996	1996–1997
Chris Collins – tenor Tim Surrett – lead, bass guitar Parker Jonathan – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Randy Matthews – piano Greg Fox – drums Randy Miller – guitar	Chris Collins – tenor Jim Hamill – lead Parker Jonathan – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Randy Matthews – piano Tim Surrett – bass guitar Rory Rigdon – bass guitar Greg Fox – drums Randy Miller – guitar	Chris Collins – tenor Bryan Hutson – lead Parker Jonathan – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Tim Lovelace – piano Rory Rigdon – Bass guitar Greg Fox – drums Randy Miller – guitar
1997–1998	1998–2001	2001–2002 (Under the Name "Carolina Boys")
Chris Collins – tenor Bryan Hutson – lead Parker Jonathan – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Andrew Ishee – piano Greg Fox – drums Randy Miller – guitar	Jerry A. Martin – tenor Bryan Hutson – lead Parker Jonathan – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Andrew Ishee – piano Colby McClatchey – (bass player) Jason Selph – bass player (1999) Greg Fox – drums Brandon Reese – drums (1999)	Jerry A. Martin – tenor Randy Crawford – lead Parker Jonathan – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Succi – piano Brandon Reese – drums Jason Selph – bass player
2002–2003	2003–2004	2004–2005 (Under the Name "The Kingsmen")
Derrick Boyd – tenor Randy Crawford – lead Tim Surrett – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Succi – piano Brandon Reese – drums Jason Selph – bass player	Derrick Boyd – tenor Tim Surrett – lead Jason Selph – baritone, bass player Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Succi – piano Brandon Reese – drums	Jeremy Peace – tenor Phillip Hughes – lead Tim Surrett – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Succi – piano Brandon Reese – drums Jason Selph – bass player
2005–2007	2007–2008	2008–2009
Jeremy Peace – tenor Phillip Hughes – lead Tony Peace – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Succi – piano Brandon Reese – drums Jason Selph – bass player	Harold Reid – tenor Phillip Hughes – lead Bryan Hutson – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Nick Succi – piano Brandon Reese – drums Grant Barker – bass guitar	Harold Reid – tenor Phillip Hughes – lead Bryan Hutson – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Brandon Reese – sound system
2009–2010	2010–2011	2011–2012
Harold Reid – tenor Bryan Hutson – lead Phillip Hughes – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Cody McVey – piano Brandon Reese – sound system	Harold Reid – tenor Randy Crawford – lead Bryan Hutson – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Cody McVey – piano Brandon Reese – sound system	Ernie Phillips – tenor Randy Crawford – lead Bob Sellers – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Brandon Reese – sound system
2012–2016	2016	2016–2017
Chris Jenkins – tenor Bob Sellers – lead Randy Crawford – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Brandon Reese – sound system	Ernie Phillips – tenor Bob Sellers – lead Randy Crawford – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Brandon Reese – sound system	Josh Horrell – tenor Bob Sellers – lead Randy Crawford – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Brandon Reese – sound system
2017–2018	2018–present
Chris Jenkins – tenor Bob Sellers – lead Randy Crawford – baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Justin Nehrkorn – piano Brandon Reese – sound system	Chris Jenkins – tenor Chris Bryant – lead, baritone Alan Kendall – lead, baritone Ray Dean Reese – bass Brandon Reese – sound system

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)
• 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)

Discography

• 1959 What Love
• 1960 New Jerusalem
• 1962 Closer to Thee
• 1963 That Kingsmen Sound
• 1963 From the Land of the Sky
• 1964 A Visit with the Kingsmen
• 1965 Carolina's Favorite Quartet
• 1966 Songs and Spirituals
• 1967 Sing Out!
• 1968 Kingsmen Kountry
• 1968 Daddy Sang Bass
• 1968 Crown Him King
• 1969 Try a Little Kindness
• 1969 Standing Room Only
• 1970 The Kingsmen
• 1971 Then and Now
• 1971 Suddenly There's a Valley
• 1971 America's Favorite Hymns
• 1971 Presented by Colonial Mobile Homes
• 1972 May Day
• 1972 Turn Your Radio On
• 1972 It's Time to Ring the Bell
• 1972 Johnny Parrack Out Front
• 1972 Hymn Time in the Country
• 1973 High and Low: Johnny Parrack and Ray Dean Reese
• 1973 Sing a Lot of Gospel
• 1973 Reverend Everett Beverly and Anna Laura
• 1973 Just Plain Singin'
• 1973 Just As the Sun Went Down (same album as above)
• 1973 Big and Live
• 1974 1686 lbs. of Gospel
• 1975 Jubiliation
• 1975 The Old and the New: Jim Hamill and Squire Parsons
• 1975 24 Carat Gospel
• 1976 It Made News In Heaven
• 1976 Just In Time
• 1976 Golden Gospel
• 1977 Just a Little Closer Home
• 1977 Chattanooga Live
• 1978 The Upper Window
• 1979 From Out of the Past
• 1980 Ring the Bells of Freedom
• 1981 Live...Naturally
• 1982 Your Ride Is on the Way
• 1982 With Grady Nutt
• 1983 Live from the University of Alabama
• 1984 The Game of Life
• 1984 Kingsmen Silver (compilation album with two original featuring Garry Sheppard)
• 1985 Better in Person
• 1986 Stand Up at Opryland USA
• 1986 The River
• 1987 Mississippi Live
• 1988 Anchors Aweigh
• 1989 The Judgement
• 1990 Live in Dayton
• 1991 Wish You Were Here
• 1992 Singin' in the Sun Live
• 1992 Walking with Jesus
• 1992 Singing News Hits
• 1992 Living by Faith
• 1993 Kingsmen Band
• 1993 27 Great Gospel Songs
• 1993 New Life
• 1994 Ridin' High
• 1994 Live from the Alabama Theatre
• 1994 A Kingsmen Christmas
• 1994 30 Great Gospel Songs
• 1995 Georgia Live
• 1996 40th Anniversary Reunion: Perfecting the Crown
• 1996 Beyond the Clouds
• 1997 You're Not Alone
• 1997 Kingsmen Klassics
• 1998 The Old Time Way
• 1998 Kingsmen Klassics 2
• 1999 Southern Standards
• 1999 Shelter
• 1999 Not Quite as Big, But Just as Live
• 2000 Proven Time and Again
• 2001 I Will
• 2001 Honoring the Heritage 1 (as Carolina Boys)
• 2002 Good News! (as Carolina Boys)
• 2003 Ready (as Carolina Boys)
• 2004 Born Again
• 2005 My Past Is Past
• 2006 Good, Good God
• 2007 I'll Not Turn Back-Live
• 2007 Honoring the Heritage 2 - Live
• 2008 When God Ran
• 2009 Missing People
• 2010 Honoring the Heritage 3
• 2010 Live Performances from the National Quartet Convention
• 2011 Grace Says
• 2012 Once Again
• 2013 Front Row Live
• 2014 Battle Cry
• 2017 They Don't Know
• 2019 Victory Shout

External links

• The Official Kingsmen Quartet web site
• Southern Gospel Music history: Kingsmen Quartet
• Illustrated discography