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The Florida Boys were a male
vocal quartet In music, a quartet or quartette (, , , , ) is an ensemble of four singers or instrumental performers; or a musical composition for four voices and instruments. Classical String quartet In classical music, one of the most common combinations ...
in
Southern gospel Southern gospel music is a genre of Christian music. Its name comes from its origins in the southeastern United States. Its lyrics are written to express either personal or a communal faith regarding biblical teachings and Christian life, as ...
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 Beasley Les Beasley (August 16, 1928 – November 17, 2018) Liverett, David (2005). ''This Is My Story: 146 of the World's Greatest Gospel Singers''. Thomas Nelson, Inc. . P. 9. was an American Southern Gospel musician. From 1953 to 2007 he was the lea ...
as lead/guitar, Glen Allred as baritone, and Derrell Stewart at piano, and featured many notable tenors and basses. In 1999, the Florida Boys were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. The group, led by Charlie Waller in its later years, officially retired in 2016.


History

Roy Howard, the group's original lead singer, had a
heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...
in 1951 and died shortly thereafter. Doyle Wiggins sang lead for about a year. When he left in 1953, he was replaced by
Les Beasley Les Beasley (August 16, 1928 – November 17, 2018) Liverett, David (2005). ''This Is My Story: 146 of the World's Greatest Gospel Singers''. Thomas Nelson, Inc. . P. 9. was an American Southern Gospel musician. From 1953 to 2007 he was the lea ...
. Beasley remained at the lead position through 1999, when he stepped aside and hired Josh Garner to fill the position. Beasley continued to play
bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
and act as the group's master of ceremonies. Glen Allred joined as baritone in 1952; Derrell Stewart became the group's pianist in 1956. Allred, Stewart, and Beasley remained at their respective positions for over four decades. During this time, various tenors and basses sang with the group. Billy Todd joined the group as bass singer in the late 1950s, and stayed with the group until 1972. He was replaced by Buddy Liles, who had sung with The Orrell Quartet, The Rhythm Masters Quartet, The Landmark Quartet, and The Rebels Quartet. Liles stayed with the group for over two decades. In 1999, the Florida Boys were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. In 2007, the Florida Boys had two personnel changes at relatively the same time, as long-time bass singer Gene McDonald left to work for a bus company, and tenor Harold Reed left to join the
Kingsmen Quartet The Kingsmen Quartet (better known as The Kingsmen) is an American Southern gospel vocal quartet. Musical career and Awards The Kingsmen are a Southern Gospel vocal quartet based out of Asheville, North Carolina. Many singers of Southern Go ...
. McDonald was replaced by Butch Owens, and lead singer Josh Garner moved up to the tenor position, with Les once again singing lead for the group. Then, in June 2007,
Les Beasley Les Beasley (August 16, 1928 – November 17, 2018) Liverett, David (2005). ''This Is My Story: 146 of the World's Greatest Gospel Singers''. Thomas Nelson, Inc. . P. 9. was an American Southern Gospel musician. From 1953 to 2007 he was the lea ...
announced that the legendary quartet would be disbanding the following month. However, he also announced that they would come back together once more for a farewell appearance at the
National Quartet Convention The National Quartet Convention (NQC) is an annual gathering of Southern Gospel quartets and musicians. It is held at the Leconte Center in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, United States. History The first National Quartet Convention was held in 1957. J. ...
in September 2007. At the "farewell concert" on the main stage at the
National Quartet Convention The National Quartet Convention (NQC) is an annual gathering of Southern Gospel quartets and musicians. It is held at the Leconte Center in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, United States. History The first National Quartet Convention was held in 1957. J. ...
, it was announced that, with the blessing of Allred, Beasley, and Stewart, the Florida Boys name would be continuing on and the mantle was passed to Charlie Waller to continue on with the Florida Boys legacy. Waller continued to operate the Florida Boys until 2016. The Florida Boys' cover of the song "Love Lifted Me" was used in Richard Linklater's 2011 Film ''Bernie'' and was covered in the soundtrack by actor-musician
Jack Black Thomas Jacob Black (born August 28, 1969) is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is known for his acting roles in the films '' High Fidelity'' (2000), ''Shallow Hal'' (2001), ''Orange County'' (2002), '' School of Rock'' (2003), ''E ...
.Southern Gospel On Film
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Personnel

Tenor: *Guy Dodd (1946–1952) *Buddy Mears (1952–1956) *Coy Cook (1957–1966) *Tommy Atwood (1966–1971) *Laddie Cain (1971–1974) *Jerry Trammell (1975–1979) *Don Thomas (1980–1983) *Paul Adkins *Johnny Cook *Mark Flaker (1982–1983) *Terry Davis (1983–1986) *Rick Busby (1986–1988) *Greg Shockley (1988) *Greg Cook (1988–1995) *Billy Hodges (1995–1997) *Allen Cox (1997–2004) *Harold Reed (2004–2007) *Josh Garner (May 2007–July 2007) *Eddie Broome (2008–2015) *Nathan Parrish (2015–2016) Lead: *Roy Howard (1946–1951) *Doyle Wiggins (1952–1953) *
Les Beasley Les Beasley (August 16, 1928 – November 17, 2018) Liverett, David (2005). ''This Is My Story: 146 of the World's Greatest Gospel Singers''. Thomas Nelson, Inc. . P. 9. was an American Southern Gospel musician. From 1953 to 2007 he was the lea ...
(1953–1999, May 2007–July 2007) *Josh Garner (1999–2007) * Charlie Waller (2008–2016) Baritone: *Edward Singletary (1946–1952) *Glen Allred (September 1952 – 1958) *Tommy Fairchild (1958) *Glen Allred (1958–2007) *Buddy Burton (2008–2010) *
Chip Cooper Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) is a type of immunoprecipitation experimental technique used to investigate the interaction between proteins and DNA in the cell. It aims to determine whether specific proteins are associated with specific genom ...
(2010–2015) *
Jimmy Reno James W. Reno (born January 8, 1969) is an American Christian country music singer from North Alabama. He was initially a member of his family's singing group, and later of The Mystery Men Quartet and then Mark209. He subsequently sang baritone ...
(2015–2016) Bass * J. G. Whitfield (1946–1958) *
George Younce George Wilson Younce (February 22, 1930 – April 11, 2005) was an American bass singer, known for performing with Southern gospel quartets, especially The Cathedrals. Biography Born in Patterson, North Carolina, Younce ( ) was the youngest ...
(1958–1959) * Billy Todd (1959–1972) * Buddy Liles (1972–1998) * Gene McDonald (1998–2007) *Butch Owens (February 2007–July 2007) *Chip Cooper (2007–2010) *Paul Hyde (2010–2012) *
Joe Lee Armstrong Joe Lee Armstrong (born July 13, 1955) is an American Christian Southern gospel bass singer. Initially, he was a member of his family's singing group, and later a member of The Mystery Men Quartet and then Mark209. While with the Mystery Men Quar ...
(2012–2016) Piano: *Ivan “Tiny” Merrill (1946–1954) *Emory Parker (1954) *Livy Freeman (1955) *Derrell Stewart (1956–2007) *Joshua Pope (March 2008–July 2008) *Joshua Pope (2011-2016) Bass guitar: *Tommy Watwood (1976) *Barry Miller (bef. 1977–aft. 1983) *Les Beasley (2001–2007) Drums: *Chet Johnson (1973–?) Various instruments: *Tim Lovelace (for 9 years)


Glen Allred's personal work

Glen Allred and 3 Generations Glen Allred & 3 Generations is a Southern gospel group. Glen Allred, the former baritone singer for The Florida Boys, is also the baritone singer for The 3 Generations. Randy Allred, the former bass singer for The Dixie Echoes reprises this role. The alto is Cindy Dunn and the soprano is Brandy Allred. Shayne Dunn and Shirley Allred were also featured on the latest album. Discography: *''I Shall Sing'' *''Time To Sing'' *''More Singing Please''


References


External links


"Retired" Florida Boys Official WebsiteThe "New" Florida Boys Official Website
{{Authority control 1946 establishments in Florida 2016 disestablishments in Florida Gospel quartets Southern gospel performers Musical groups established in 1946 Musical groups disestablished in 2016