Ben Lacy Speer (June 26, 1930 – April 7, 2017) was a singer, musician, music publisher, and record company executive. He sang for The Speer Family for most of his career. Speer later became the music director of the

Gaither Homecoming ''Gaither Homecoming'' is the name applied to a series of videos, music recordings and concerts, which are organized, promoted and usually presented by Christian music songwriter and impresario Bill Gaither. To date, the ''Gaither Homecoming'' t ...

programs. He was born in

Double Springs, Alabama Double Springs is a town in Winston County, Alabama, Winston County, Alabama, United States. The city is the county seat of Winston County. The county seat was initially located at Houston, Alabama, Houston, but by referendum in 1883, Double Spri ...

, the youngest child of Lena and G.T. Speer (affectionately known as "Mom" and "Dad" Speer to most people in Southern gospel music), who originally led the group, with Speer's siblings

Brock Speer Brock Speer (December 28, 1920 – March 29, 1999) sang bass for the Speer Family Southern Gospel musical group and was a leader in Southern Gospel music. One might say that Southern Gospel music was Speer's life. David Liverett's book, ''This Is ...

, Mary Tom Speer, and

Rosa Nell Speer Rosa Nell Powell (née Speer; September 22, 1922 – May 16, 2017) was an American southern gospel singer who sang with the well-known Speer Family. She was born in Double Springs, Alabama, the second child (and oldest daughter) of George Tho ...

also participating. He died on April 7, 2017, after suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

Performing career

From starting to sing at age 2, Speer went on to a career that led to his being described on the

Gospel Music Association The Gospel Music Association (GMA) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1964 for the purpose of supporting and promoting the development of all forms of gospel music. As of 2011, there are about 4,000 members worldwide. The GMA's membership co ...

Hall of Fame website as "one of the most enduring and outstanding lead singers and piano performers in gospel music." During his years with the

Speer Family The Speer Family was a Southern gospel family musical group. It was founded in 1921 by George Thomas ("Dad") Speer (1891–1966), his wife, Lena Darling ("Mom") Speer (née Brock; 1899–1967), and his sister and brother-in-law, Pearl Claborn (1 ...

, the group recorded more than 75 albums. In addition to singing and playing piano with the

, he arranged music for them. He retired from the group in 1993, but made some appearances with it until the group itself retired.

Technical and business career

Speer has contributed to both the technical and business aspects of Southern gospel music. Speer was the longtime music director for the

series. The

Hall of Fame's website noted his technical accomplishments as follows: "Ben chose experimenting with sound equipment as a hobby. He has excelled in this field and is often used as a consultant for sound by his colleagues in gospel music." As owner and chief engineer of Ben Speer Recording Studios, he has produced albums by the

Florida Boys The Florida Boys were a male vocal quartet in Southern gospel music. The group was founded in 1946 by J. G. Whitfield. Originally named The Gospel Melody Quartet, the group was renamed in 1954. From the 1950s until 2007, the group was led by Les ...

Ivan Parker Ivan Ray Parker (born December 21, 1957) is an American Southern Gospel singer. Musical career Ivan Parker was raised in Sanford, North Carolina, where his father was a pastor in a Pentecostal church.Southern Gospel music in 1950, founding the Ben Speer Music Company. Among songs published by the company are "What a Day That Will Be," "I'm Standing on the Solid Rock," and "Touring that City."

Ben Speer's Stamps Baxter School of Music

In 1988, Speer revived the Stamps-Baxter School of Music, which for many years had been an institution for training people in Southern gospel music. Now known as Ben Speer's Stamps Baxter School of Music, the school attracts students from across the United States and from other countries. James R. Goff Jr., in his ''Close Harmony: A History of Southern Gospel'', wrote that a 1998 brochure summarized key elements of the school as follows: "theory, harmony, song writing, sight reading, ear training, performance training, conducting, voice, piano, guitar, bass and drums are taught." The school continues to be operated by members of the Speer family following Speer's death with the school being hosted at Middle Tennessee State University in 2018.

Honors

Speer was inducted into the

Hall of Fame in 1995, the

Southern Gospel Music Association The Southern Gospel Music Association (''SGMA'') is a non-profit corporation formed as an association of southern gospel music singers, songwriters, fans, and industry workers. Membership is acquired and maintained through payment of annual dues. T ...

Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Southern Gospel Piano Roll of Honor in 2002.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Speer, Ben 1930 births 2017 deaths American gospel singers Southern gospel performers Musicians from Alabama People from Winston County, Alabama