Statesmen quartet

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1 Early Years
2 The Glory Years
3 Elvis: The Statesmen Influence
4 Tragedy and Triumphs
5 The Later Years
6 Members

[edit] Early Years

Formed in 1948 in Atlanta, GA, by piano player Hovie Lister, a Baptist minister and convention-style piano player with a flair for showmanship, "Brother Hovie" envisioned the group as a hand-picked cream-of-the crop grouping. Hovie had been the pianist for the Sand Mountain Quartet in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The original Sand Mountain Quartet began singing in the 1930's in Boaz, Alabama. The personnel of this quartet at the time that Hovie became the pianist was Bobby Strickland, a great tenor from Albertville, Alabama; Erman Slater, from Geraldine, Alabama; Alton Jolley on the lead and Irby Gardner singing bass. Odis B. Moore, from Boaz, had been the pianist and stayed behind as the quartet moved to Chattanooga. There would be other singers from the Sand Mountain area that would play vital roles in the Statesmen Quartet.

The initial Statesmen included lead singer Mosie Lister from Atlanta, Gordon Hill on bass, Bervin Kendrick from Birmingham singing baritone and Bobby Strickland of Albertiville singing the tenor. The quartet made their debut on WCON in Atlanta in October, 1948.

Around 1952, Hovie's vision of "the perfect quartet" was realized when the lineup solidified with Denver Crumpler - tenor, Jake Hess - lead, Doy Ott - baritone, James 'Big Chief' Wetherington - bass, and Hovie Lister, piano and master emcee.

[edit] The Glory Years

In 1952, the Statesmen entered into a business partnership with The Blackwood Brothers Quartet. The "Stateswood" team would dominate Southern Gospel music for the next two decades.

The popular Cat Freeman, a native of Sand Mountain, Alabama was replaced by the great Irish tenor Denver Crumpler. With this lineup, the Statesmen began recording for RCA Victor and began starring in the Nabisco Hour national TV show. Popular songs of this period include "Get Away Jordan" and "Happy Rhythm." As early as 1950, the Statesmen used the phrase "Rockin' and rollin'" in a song, and Hovie Lister's frantic boogie woogie piano, piano bench acrobatics, and hair shaken down in his eyes predated Jerry Lee Lewis' use of the same tricks by a good five years.

[edit] Elvis: The Statesmen Influence

On 4 July, 1955, the Blackwood/Statesmen team traveled to Texas for an engagement that would feature several secular artists on the same program. Among them was Elvis Presley. Elvis was planning to sing his rock hits, but refrained out of respect of his gospel idols, the Statesmen and Blackwoods. The Statesmen exerted a powerful influence on young Elvis Presley, who idolized and imitated Jake Hess' vocal stylings and Big Chief's leg shaking. In an interview with songwriter Bill Gaither, Hess remembered seeing young Elvis coming to Statesmen shows in Tupelo when Presley was only nine or ten. Hess said that the serious young Elvis would ask him, "How do you make a record?" or "How many suits you got?" On the Gaither Homecoming video "Oh My Glory", Jake Hess tells about Elvis coming to Statesmen concerts and being invited up onstage to sing lead in place of Jake on a song or two.

[edit] Tragedy and Triumphs

In 1957, Denver Crumpler died in diabetic shock when his symptoms were misdiagnosed as a heart attack. Cat Freeman came back briefly, followed by lyric tenor Roland 'Rosie' Rozell, a soulful singer and former policeman from Oklahoma. The Rosie-Hess-Ott-Chief lineup recorded such classics as "Faith Unlocks The Door" and Rosie's signature tune "Oh What A Savior" and "There's Room at the Cross"

In 1963, Jake Hess left the Statesmen to form his own quartet, Jake Hess and The Imperials.

Hovie tapped young, debonnaire from Boaz, Alabama,Jack Toney to replace Hess. Before long, Toney's movie idol looks and powerful voice helped the Statesmen to soldier on without missing a beat. Ironically, Jack Toney would replace Jake Hess on five different occasions in thee different decades with the Statesmen and the Masters V.

Bass singer "Big Chief" Wetherington died of a massive heart attack on 3 October 1973 while attending the National Quartet Convention in Nashville. He is buried in TyTy, Georgia.

Hovie Lister died on December 27, 2001, at the age of 73. He is buried in Decatur Georgia.

Jack Toney died April 15th, 2004 at the age of 70 and is buried near Boaz, Alabama at Whitesboro Baptist Church.

Jake Hess died January 4, 2004 at the age of 78. He is buried in Columbus, Georgia.

Rosie Rozell died in 1994 at the age of 68. He is buried in Trussville, Alabama.

[edit] The Later Years

Later incarnations of the Statesmen would include tenors Sherrill 'Shaun' Nielson, Willie Wynn, and Johnny Cook; lead singers Roy McNeil and Jim Hill; baritones Chris Hess (Jake's son), Biney English and Rick Fair; and bass singers Ray Burdette and Bob Caldwell. Over the years, Jake Hess, Jack Toney, Doy Ott and Rosie Rozell would rejoin the Statesmen at various times, most notably a couple years after Chief's death when Lister brought back Rozell, Jake Hess, and Doy Ott as "The Statesmen" sans bass. A comical pairing of this classic Statesmen "trio" with longtime Blackwood Brothers/Stamps Quartet bass singer J.D. Sumner at the 1977 National Quartet Convention in Nashville was the birth of the Masters V Quartet, which would include, in its classic lineup, Rosie Rozell, James Blackwood, Jake Hess, J.D. Sumner, and Hovie Lister. The Statesmen's influence lives on in some of today's most popular quartets, such as The Dove Brothers and Mercy's Mark.