Gas House Gang was a

barbershop quartet A barbershop quartet is a group of four singers who sing music in the barbershop style, characterized by four-part harmony without instrumental accompaniment, or a cappella. The four voices are: the lead, the vocal part which typically carries t ...

that won the 1993

SPEBSQSA The Barbershop Harmony Society, legally and historically named the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America, Inc. (SPEBSQSA), is the first of several organizations to promote and preserve barbershop ...

International Quartet Competition. They started singing as a group in 1987 in St. Louis Missouri. After winning the 1988 Central States District Competition in their first attempt, they began a steady climb up the International Competition ladder which culminated in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, where they were awarded the 1993 International Quartet Championship.

Performances

The Gas House Gang toured the United States and they performed in all fifty states in the U.S. They also sang extensively in Canada and performed around the world, singing in 15 countries. Major highlights included: * Singing on a

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

special with

Marquis (quartet) Marquis is a barbershop quartet that won the 1995 SPEBSQSA international competition. Originating from the Cincinnati-Dayton area, they won the championship less than two years after they formed. Their lead singer, Randy Chisholm, was the first ...

, "Voices in Harmony" *

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

's "At the Creation" * NBC's

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * Day of the present, the time that is perceived directly, often called ''now'' * Current era, present * The current calendar date Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Today'' (1930 film), a 1930 A ...

Show *

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering th ...

* Singing at

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

three times * Singing on the stage at the

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...

* Professional productions of

The Music Man ''The Music Man'' is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and ...

with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra at

The Muny The St. Louis Municipal Opera Theatre (commonly known as The Muny) is an amphitheater located in St. Louis, Missouri. The theatre seats 11,000 people with about 1,500 free seats in the last nine rows that are available on a first come, first s ...

* Cruise ship performances * Performers with whom they shared the stage include

The Four Freshmen The Four Freshmen is an American male vocal quartet that blends open-harmonic jazz arrangements with the big band vocal group sounds of The Modernaires, The Pied Pipers, and The Mel-Tones, founded in the barbershop tradition. The singers accom ...

The Swingle Singers 270px, The Swingles at the Black Forest Voices Festival in Kirchzarten, Germany">Kirchzarten.html" ;"title="Black Forest Voices Festival in Kirchzarten">Black Forest Voices Festival in Kirchzarten, Germany on 29 June 2019 The Swingles are a v ...

Rockapella Rockapella is an American a cappella musical group formed in 1986 in New York City. The group's name is an amalgam of "rock" and "a cappella". Rockapella sings original vocal music and a cappella covers of pop and rock songs; and over time, their ...

The Persuasions The Persuasions are an American a cappella group that began singing together in Brooklyn, New York in the mid-1960s. The Persuasions were formed in Brooklyn in 1962, singing a cappella under corner streetlights and in subway corridors. Their ...

The Chordettes The Chordettes were an American female vocal quartet, specializing in traditional pop music. They are best known for their 1950s hit songs " Mr. Sandman" and "Lollipop". Career The group organized in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, in 1946. The origin ...

The King's Singers The King's Singers are a British a cappella vocal ensemble founded in 1968. They are named after King's College in Cambridge, England, where the group was formed by six choral scholars. In the United Kingdom, their popularity peaked in the 19 ...

, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra,

Victor Borge Børge Rosenbaum (3 January 1909 – 23 December 2000), known professionally as Victor Borge ( ), was a Danish-American comedian, conductor, and pianist who achieved great popularity in radio and television in the North America and Europe. His ...

Porter Wagoner Porter Wayne Wagoner (August 12, 1927 – October 28, 2007) was an American country music singer known for his flashy Nudie and Manuel suits and blond pompadour. In 1967, he introduced singer Dolly Parton on his television show, ''The Po ...

, GLAD and the Grammy award-winning group Chanticleer. * They produced five recordings * They were awarded nominations and awards by the

Contemporary A Cappella Society The Contemporary A Cappella Society (of America), or CASA, is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to fostering and promoting a cappella music of all styles around the world. CASA was founded in 1991 by Deke Sharon in San Francisco just ...

of America (CASA), including Best Barbershop Song, Studio Album of the Year, Artist of the Year, Best Christmas Album, and Best Christmas Song. * They were named to the

Barbershop Harmony Society The Barbershop Harmony Society, legally and historically named the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America, Inc. (SPEBSQSA), is the first of several organizations to promote and preserve barbershop ...

's Hall of Fame in 2008. On June 3, 2004, the quartet announced their retirement at the end of 2005. The quartet still occasionally does reunion shows. As a part of their 25th-anniversary performance on the 2018 Association of International Champions Show, the Gas House Gang shared a tribute to their original baritone Rob Henry, with some help from his son, Ryan.

Contest placement

International

Central States District (CSD)

* 1988 – 1st

Members

* Original tenor: Joe Fink (1988–1990) * Winning members: ** Tenor: Kipp Buckner ** Lead: Rich Knight ** Bari: Rob Henry ** Bass: Jim Henry * Kipp Buckner began singing barbershop when he was 14 with the

Louisville Thoroughbreds The Louisville Thoroughbreds are a men's chorus based in Louisville, Kentucky. They are the first 7-time International Champion chorus of the Barbershop Harmony Society, winning the Gold Medal in 1962, 1966, 1969, 1974, 1978, 1981 and 1984. Awar ...

chorus and international championship victories in 1981 and 1984. He is one of two men to have won the International Champion Quartet Medal three times. (Jeff Oxley also won three, with

Acoustix Acoustix is a Dallas, Texas-based quartet that won the 1990 International Quartet Championship of SPEBSQSA (now Barbershop Harmony Society, or BHS). They have all, at different times, been members of the Dallas-based Vocal Majority chorus. Aco ...

The Rapscallions The Rapscallions, formed in 1980 by four Bowling Green State University (Ohio) students, won the 1984 international quartet championship in St. Louis, Missouri. The quartet placed in the top ten internationally each of the three years they compe ...

, and Max Q.) Buckner won his three gold medals with the GHG in 1993, the

Interstate Rivals The Interstate Rivals is the Barbershop quartet that won the 1987 SPEBSQSA international competition in Hartford, Connecticut. Formed in 1982, the Rivals won the Cardinal District championship that fall. The next summer at the international con ...

in 1987, and Old School in 2011. Buckner sang with the

Ambassadors of Harmony The Ambassadors of Harmony (''AOH'') is a 120+ member men's barbershop chorus, based in St. Charles, Missouri. The chorus won International Championship gold medals in 2004, 2009, and 2012 – each time singing two arrangements by David Wright ...

for their first international championship victory in 2004 in his hometown of

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

. * Jim Henry, PhD joined the society at the age of 11 as a member of the Daniel Boone Chorus, which became the Ambassadors of Harmony. He became the director of the Ambassadors in 1991 and went on to lead the chorus to 16 medals including 4 gold medals (2004, 2009, 2012 and 2016). In 2009 when Crossdroads won, Jim became the only man in BHS history to direct the winning chorus and win with his quartet in the same year. In 2019, he was inducted to the

's Hall of Fame.
Henry's 2000 doctoral dissertation on the African American origins of barbershop harmony and his 2007 Harmony University keynote address, "Gold Medal Moments" have influenced the study, philosophy, and discourse of barbershop harmony. * Rich Knight has sung with the

since the 1970s and has been part of each championship. His lead voice creates the defining sound of the GHG. He is an active member in the Central States District. He is an active coach and clinician, teaching at district events, Harmony University and International Barbershop events. * Rob Henry, the quartet's

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

, was diagnosed with

esophageal cancer Esophageal cancer is cancer arising from the esophagus—the food pipe that runs between the throat and the stomach. Symptoms often include difficulty in swallowing and weight loss. Other symptoms may include pain when swallowing, a hoarse voice ...

on May 30, 2003, and died shortly thereafter on September 4, 2003. Several prominent barbershop singers helped fill in after Rob's death, to fulfill show obligations. Replacement baritone members: * Mike Slamka (

Power Play Power play or powerplay or their plurals may refer to: Sports * Power play (sporting term), a sporting term used in various games * Powerplay (cricket), a rule concerning fielding restrictions in one-day international cricket * Power play (cur ...

and

Crossroads Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to: * Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet Film and television Films * ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa * ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...

) * Brandon Guyton (

Four Voices Four Voices is a barbershop quartet based in Tennessee. After winning the SPEBSQSA Collegiate Barbershop Quartet Championship in 1996, Four Voices went on to become international champions in 2002. The quartet's sound is distinguished by its te ...

and

) * DJ Hiner ( The Ritz) * Tony DeRosa ( Keepsake,

Platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Platinu ...

, Max Q, and Main Street) * Jonny Moroni (

Vocal Spectrum Vocal Spectrum is a barbershop quartet from St. Charles, Missouri. In 2004, Vocal Spectrum won the Barbershop Harmony Society's International Collegiate Quartet Contest, and on July 8, 2006, they became International Champions, winning the soci ...

)

Discography/recordings

References

External links

AIC entryGas House Gang Facebook Page
{{Authority control Professional a cappella groups Barbershop quartets Barbershop Harmony Society