Crimson Ridge & Michael Wayne Smith benefit singing

Tonight my wife and I attended a benefit concert that featured Michael Wayne Smith and Crimson Ridge. The fundraiser was to help raise money toward the cost of chemotherapy treatments for a young lady that has cancer.

The concert was held at Union Baptist Church and started just a little after 6:00 pm. Dale Burress, from Ark Studios, was there to film the evening for the television show Southern Style Praise. There was a great turn out for the event. The middle section of the sanctuary was pretty much packed as well as the left side. We took a seat in the middle section about 5 rows from the front.

Things started off with a surprise performance by, Jeff Branam, who is the father-in-law of the lady the concert was for. He sang, The Anchor Still Holds, and did an outstanding job on it. After that, Michael Wayne Smith walked up on stage and took a seat behind the piano. He sang and played several rousing numbers from his latest CD. He is an amazing song writer and has an excellent voice. His love for the Lord really shone through the songs and music, however, the huge smile on his face revealed it all. My favorite song that he sang was one titled, Until the Storm Is Over. The words just spoke to my heart and caused tears to well up inside of me and spill over.

Crimson Ridge came up to the stage next and tore into the lively, Let's Have Revival, followed up with one of my favorite songs that they sing, An Old Sinner Like Me.  I've had the pleasure of hearing these guys sing on several occasions when they were called, 3 For Thee, but this was the first time I had heard them under the new name of Crimson Ridge. Same guys (Greg Davis, Jackie Painter, and Warren Beeler) but they sounded tighter than ever. Great vocal harmonies and pitch, with a real nice full sound, which was really showcased on the catchy number, All I Ever Needed. My wife and I both agreed that probably our favorite song that they sang tonight was one lead singer, Jackie Painter, wrote, which is titled, He's In Control. I guess what I like most about this group is their heartfelt testimonies and clear presentation of the Gospel while on stage. Some groups will get up and try to sound real spiritual but you can always tell who is the real deal and the guys in Crimson Ridge are the real deal.

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Kenny Bishop concert review - Union Baptist Church Knoxville

This is a review of my recent attendance of a live taping of the television show, Southern Style Praise, in which Kenny Bishop and the trio HisVoice was performing. It took place at Union Baptist Church in Knoxville, TN. I was honored to be their special guest Music Minister for the evening.

I've seen Kenny Bishop sing live several times in my life, mostly with his former family group, The Bishops. I met him one time, about 10-years ago, at the National Quartet Convention. I guess the thing that I've always liked about Kenny is his natural Kentucky country voice. I've always thought that he could probably have had a really successful career in Country Music. I'm glad he chose Southern Gospel instead.

I've seen more than my fair share of folks in the gospel music business that treat it as a job instead of a ministry. I can say first hand that Kenny Bishop is not one of those people. He appears to have an open and honest heart for the ministry. I watched him pretty closely because I was sitting just 2 rows behind him. He sat in the congregation with two older ladies in which he appeared to know. I saw and heard him shouting "amen" and praising God while HisVoice was on the stage. And, while he was on stage he spent more time talking about the grace and mercy of God than he did actually singing. He spent very little time talking about himself, he was fully focused on spreading the gospel message.

I enjoyed every song that Kenny sang, however, I've got to say that my very favorite was, 'The Prodigal's Dad.' It's track number 9 on his latest CD, simply titled, "Kenny Bishop." The parable of the Prodigal Son is one of my very favorite passages in the Bible. In fact, the next night after hearing Kenny sing that song, I preached a sermon on the Prodigal Son at my church. I also thoroughly enjoyed the Woody Wright penned, 'Under the Influence of Mercy,' which was a play on the old Buck Owens tune, 'Under the Influence of Love.' Another great tune was, 'More Than Amazing,' which was also written by Woody Wright, specifically for Kenny. According to Kenny, it is a song for everyone.

At the end of his performance, Kenny gave a very touching invitation for anyone that may have had a need. I could really feel God's presence during that time. Afterwards, I was privileged to get to meet and shake hands with Kenny. He said that he thought I looked very familiar and wanted to know if we had met before. I told him that we had but that it had been several years ago at NQC. I didn't hang around and bug him any because he was busy talking to other fans and selling his CD's and signing them.

My whole family enjoyed our evening of Southern Gospel and I left there an even bigger fan of Kenny Bishop than I was before I came. If you have yet to go to one of his concerts, you should make a point to do so. I know you will enjoy it as much as I did.

Read my separate review of the HisVoice portion of the evening HERE.

See all of the pictures that I took of the evening HERE.

Visit Kenny's Official Website HERE.

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HisVoice concert review - Union Baptist Church Knoxville

I was thrilled to receive an email from Allen Davenport of the trio HisVoice, asking if I would be their special guest music minister for their concert with Kenny Bishop, at Union Baptist. I gladly accepted the invitation and was really psyched up over it. HisVoice ministered at my church this past year so I was already familiar with them.

My family and I arrived at Union Baptist an hour before the concert. Dale Burress, owner of Ark Studios, was getting the stage prepared for the taping of the concert which will air on his TV show, Southern Style Praise. I have corresponded with Dale several times through email but this was the first time I had met him in person. He warmly greeted me and we briefly discussed what was going to unfold for the evening.

Finally, the 6:00 hour arrived. I opened up with a prayer and then led the congregation in all 3-verses of Victory in Jesus. Union Baptist's pianist, Gary Barnard, did an excellent job playing the music. Gary is the former member and pianist at my church, Highland Baptist, so I was already familiar with him. He is a very talented young man.

After the congregational, HisVoice, took to the stage. Since this was a live taping for a television show, things weren't as smooth as a regular concert but it wasn't distracting, even with the large cameras mounted to booms swinging back and forth. HisVoice was very professional with just the right amount of spiritualism. Allen does a great job with the emcee work and keeping things going. Once again my favorite songs of the night were, 'Stacking Stones,' and 'He Chose This Valley For Me.' Both of those songs brought tears to my eyes. They stuck strictly to the tracks from their latest CD, which I bought. I really enjoyed hearing them again but because of the live taping I don't think they felt as free to minister and they had to keep an eye on time. But, that's to be expected. They did an excellent job under the circumstances.

After HisVoice left the stage, I led the congregation in another hymn, 'At Calvary,' while we took up a love offering. After the offering, Gary, delighted the crowd by playing a beautiful hymn. Then Kenny Bishop took the stage. I'll write a separate post on Kenny's performance.

To see all pictures from this night visit THIS post.

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HisVoice & Kenny Bishop Concert Union Baptist

We attended a wonderful evening of Southern Gospel music last night at Union Baptist Church in Knoxville. The trio, HisVoice and soloist, Kenny Bishop were having a live taping for the television show, Southern Style Praise. I will write more about this great night, including CD reviews of their new projects. Meanwhile enjoy a few pictures from the event.

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HIsVoice - Special Event at Union Baptist

I received word from the Southern Gospel trio, HisVoice, that they will be hosting a very special event at Union Baptist Church on Saturday, November 1st, at 6:00 PM. The group will be hosting "The HisVoice CD Release Concert."

Also appearing will be very special guest, Kenny Bishop, formerly of the Bishops, one of Southern Gospel Music's Most Beloved Family Groups.

On top of that, there will also be a Live Recording of the Television Show, "Southern Style Praise" taking place that evening. So make it a point to show up...you might just be on TV!!

Please Come praying & expecting Great things from The Lord. Hope to see you there!!!

Read a review of a recent HisVoice concert at Highland Baptist.

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Here's to the preacher

Another great video posted by Ark Studios. The song, Here's To The Preacher, is written and sang by Tommy Spencer. It conveys the feelings of thousands of folks that loved preacher Mull. The video was shot at my parent's church, Union Baptist. My mother is singing in the choir on the 2nd row, 2nd from the right. She was proud to be part of this great tribute to preacher Mull.



Preacher Mull is one of the biggest influences in all of Southern Gospel music. As I sadly posted on the day of his death, Rev. Jacob Bazzel Mull was a true Christian business man and follower of Christ. His name will forever be synonymous with Southern Gospel music.

I also posted a tribute to him a year after his death. It details his life and also includes his obituary. It is hard to believe that it has already been nearly 2-years since he passed away. I still miss him.

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New Years Eve Concert at Union Baptist in Knoxville

Want to ring in the New Year by listening to the sweet sounds of Southern Gospel Music? Well, my friend, you are in luck! Union Baptist Church on Washington Pike, in Knoxville, TN will be overly blessed with So. Gospel. See details below:

What: New Years Eve Concert

Where: Union Baptist Church at 6701 Washington Pike, 37918, phone is 865-687-4500 or contact Dale Burress at 865-335-9405 for more details.

When: Monday, December 31, 2007 at 8pm

Who: The Roarks, Eternal Vision, The Profitts, Reignsong, Faith 3, special appearance by Lauren King and Special Inspirational speaking by Praise 96.3’s Shane King. Videos will be shown prior to the concerts.

How Much: FREE! No Admission, A Love Offering Will Be Taken

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Eternal Vision in concert Dec. 31, 2007

Knoxville, TN based Southern Gospel group, Eternal Vision, will be in concert at Union Baptist Church in Knoxville, on Monday, Dec. 31, 2007, at 8:00pm. Union Baptist is located at 6701 Washington Pike, in North East Knoxville. For more information and directions, please visit the church website HERE.

Visit Eternal Vision here.

Visit Union Baptist Knoxville here.

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