Capsule Reviews
Those Guys in the Background
Have you heard of the Jordanaires?
Some of you would say yes; most would say no. So, let me rephrase the question.
Have you heard the Jordanaires?
The answer is yes, for virtually everyone reading these words.
For 40 years, the Jordanaires sang background vocals on an astonishing number and variety of recordings—most famously for Elvis Presley, but also for Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash, Ringo Starr, Gordon Lightfoot, Dolly Parton, Don McLean, Branda Lee, Chicago, and hundreds of other artists.
For much of that time, they were booked from morning to midnight at recording studios in Nashville and L.A. They would show up, hear a demo, work out harmonies, record the track in an hour or two, and move on to the next session. A tiny sampling of those recordings:
Don’t Be Cruel
I Fall to Pieces
The Battle of New Orleans
Big Bad John
Coal Miner’s Daughter
Travelin’ Man
It’s Only Make Believe
You get the idea. For those of us living during that time, the Jordanaires recorded the soundtrack of our lives.
The lead singer was Gordon Stoker (lower left), who started out as their piano player, then joined the group as high tenor. During their glory years, Hoyt Hawkins sang baritone, Ray Walker was the booming bass, and Neal Matthews was second tenor and, more importantly, the arranger. On arriving at the session, Matthews would hear the song for the first time and then, in minutes, sketch out harmonies so the group would be ready to record.
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