The Homeland Harmony Quartet was an American

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...

group founded in 1935. The original lineup of the quartet was

Otis Leon McCoy Otis Leon McCoy (February 17, 1897 – March 27, 1995) was an American singer-songwriter and music teacher. He was the president of Tennessee Music and Printing, the publishing company of the Church of God, and he wrote hundreds of Southern gosp ...

, Doyle Blackwood,

Fred Calvin Maples Fred Calvin Maples (1910 – February 28, 1987) was an American Southern gospel singer and Baptist minister. He was the founder of the Harmoneers Quartet in the 1940s. He later served as the minister of music and education at Pinecrest Baptist Ch ...

, and B.C. Robinson. The group had lasting ties to the Church of God and went through more than fifty line-up changes in a career that spanned thirty years. In 1943,

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

Connor Brandon Hall joined the quartet. He would remain with the group until his death in 1992. Other notables to sing with the group include

basses Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass ...

Big Jim Waits Big or BIG may refer to: * Big, of great size or degree Film and television * ''Big'' (film), a 1988 fantasy-comedy film starring Tom Hanks * ''Big!'', a Discovery Channel television show * ''Richard Hammond's Big'', a television show presente ...

and

Johnny Atkinson Johnny is an English language personal name. It is usually an affectionate diminutive of the masculine given name John, but from the 16th century it has sometimes been a given name in its own right for males and, less commonly, females. Variant ...

, Lee Roy Abernathy and

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 ...

James McCoy James McCoy may refer to: * James McCoy (politician) (1821–1895), California politician * James B. McCoy (1839–1911), Wisconsin politician * James M. McCoy (1930–2022), sixth Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force * James Russell McCoy (1845� ...

. The line-up of Hall, Abernathy, J. McCoy,

Shorty Bradford Shorty is a nickname, usually for a short person. See Shorty (nickname). Shorty may also refer to: Music Artists * Ras Shorty I, Trinidadian artist and founder of soca music. * Shorty (band), an American rock band formed in 1991 * Shorty (Americ ...

, and A.D.Soward that formed in 1947 is widely considered to have been a seminal influence on both

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

and further

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...

al stylings.

Personnel

TENOR
Connor Hall 1942-1989

LEAD
Otis McCoy 1942-1944
Shorty Bradford 1946-1948, 1953-1954
Paul Stringfellow 1948-1950
Bobby Shaw 1950-1952, 1987-1989
Wayne Groce 1952-1953
Harold Lane 1954-1955
Jim Cole 1955-1956
Tommy Rainer 1956-1957
Fred Elrod 1957-1958, 1963-1987

BARITONE
James McCoy 1942-1958
Jimi Hall 1963-1969
JL Steele 1969-1986

BASS
BC Robinson 1942-1943
Big Jim Waits 1943-1944, 1949-1952
John Hamrick 1946-1947
Aycel Soward 1947-1949, 1953-54, 1955
Johnny Atkinson 1952-1953
London Parris 1954
George Younce 1955
Rex Nelon 1955-1958
Bill Curtis 1963-1989

PIANO
Hovie Lister 1942-1944
Lee Roy Abernathy 1946-1948, 1953-1954
Reece Crockett 1948-1949
Wally Varner 1949-1950, 1951-1953
Doy Ott 1950-1951
Randy Jones 1954-1955
Jack Clark 1955-1956, 1969-1989

References

External links

Overview of Homeland Harmony Quartet
American gospel musical groups Gospel quartets Musical groups established in 1935 Southern gospel performers {{US-singing-group-stub