Biography

Bill & Gloria Gaither

with Danny and Mary Ann Gaither

WILLIAM J. GAITHER and GLORIA GAITHER are a married performing and songwriting team, whose business ventures have grown to become a publishing and production juggernaut in the Southern Gospel music industry. Bill’s specialty has been in the area of singing and composing, whereas Gloria is known more for her abilities as a writer and lyricist. Initially, both started their careers as teachers before making a full-time living out of music.

Bill Gaither, born 28 March 1936 at Alexandria, Indiana, was the son of George Gaither and Lela Hartwell, and he grew up on a rural farm. From a young age, he and his brother DANNY (born 20 Nov. 1938) would sing together in the community. Danny was the most capable lead singer, while Bill learned to play the piano. Bill was especially fascinated by southern gospel music and would collect records, travel to concerts, and listen to radio broadcasts. In 1950 and into 1951, Bill and Danny were part of a quartet called the Log Cabin Four, with Howard Little and cousin Maurice Gaither (1934–2001). In 1952, at age 16, he played piano for a young quartet called the Gospel-Aires. On 11 March 1953, one of Bill’s quartets—made up of Billy Gaither, George Glass, Richard Scott, and Larry Campbell—sang at a high school sports banquet, and on 3 January 1954, an early version of the Gaither Trio performed at the Alexandria Church of the Nazarene, consisting of Bill, Danny, and older cousin Arden Gaither (1922–2007).

In 1954, Bill graduated from Alexandria High School and initially set his sights on starting a music career by forming a gospel quartet called the Pathfinders with Charlie Hodge of Decatur, Alabama, whom he had met at the three-week Stamps School of Music summer program in Dallas, Texas, in 1953 and 1954, plus Danny Gaither and a young bass singer, Vance Windsor. In one notable highlight, the group met the Golden Keys Quartet while on tour, and Danny was invited to sing with them on at least one occasion. Even so, the Pathfinders were short-lived and had an oft-shifting personnel. Danny, still a high-school student, was replaced by Gene Lowery when school reopened in the fall of 1954, and the bass part was taken up by Olen “Honey” Dunn after Vance got married and moved to Florida in October. Over the winter, they picked up singer James Barnett and Bill moved to an accompanist role. Lowery left in May or June of 1955. In August of 1955, with not enough financial success or audience interest to show for their effort, Bill left the group and returned to working for Cox’s grocery store in Anderson. He enrolled at Taylor University in Upland, Indiana, then transferred the next year to study English at Anderson College, closer to home.

Not ready to give up on his music dreams, Bill recruited his siblings Danny and MARY ANN (born 17 Jan. 1945) to sing as a trio. On 11 September 1955, in one of their first performances, they sang for an evangelistic service at the Church of the Nazarene in Alexandria. Their popularity grew slowly at first, mostly singing around their hometown and within easy driving distance of it. In 1956, Danny enrolled as a college student at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, and Mary Ann was entering sixth grade, which meant the trio operated around everyone’s school schedules. In the earliest years of the Gaither Trio, Bill was not yet a songwriter, so they performed cover versions of Christian songs. The trio would grow to become far more successful than the Pathfinders had been. By early 1959, they were described in newspapers as having made radio and television appearances in Muncie and being “widely known throughout the middle west” (Nashville Banner, 25 July 1959).

Danny married Lolita “Toni” Floyd in 1958 and had a son, Steven (“Nic”), on 5 May 1959. Bill graduated from Anderson with a B.A. in English and a minor in music in the spring of 1959. In the fall, Bill secured a teaching position at Madison Heights Junior High School in Anderson while also starting an M.A. in guidance and counseling from Ball State, while Danny entered his junior year at Ball State and Mary Ann entered Alexandria-Monroe High School. By 1960, they were “the famous Gaither Trio, radio and revival singers” (Princeton Clarion-Democrat, 12 May 1960) and they were hitting the studio to record a series of albums for Crusade Records: Presenting the Gaither Trio of Indiana, Volumes 1 and 2, and Oh How I Love Him. On 8 October 1960, indicating the degree of their success, they were part of an all-night gospel event in Indianapolis, amongst big talents like the Blackwood Brothers, the Statesmen Quartet, and the Speer Family.

In spite of his longtime passion for performing and singing, Bill’s pursuits into songwriting didn’t begin until 1960, when he wrote his first song, “I’ve been to Calvary.” Unsure of his abilities and seeking feedback, he pitched it to Jim Hill of the Golden Keys Quartet, based out of Portsmouth, Ohio. Bill and Jim had met during the ill-fated tours of the Pathfinders. Hill liked what Bill offered, so he had the Golden Keys learn the song, and they included it on their album The Ninety and Nine (Skylite SRLP-5984, 1960), along with another of Bill’s compositions, “I’m in love with Jesus.” Bill later credited Jim Hill as “one of the first to make wide use of my music.”[1] Ben Speer of the Speer Family, having heard “I’ve been to Calvary” via the Golden Keys, offered to publish the song through their company, and the Speer Family later recorded it on Family Favorites (Skylight SRLP-5990, 1962).

Bill completed his masters degree from Ball State in 1961. Danny graduated from Ball State at the same time with a B.A. in industrial education and started looking for teaching jobs. On June 16, the trio departed for a three-week tour of Arkansas, Kansas, Texas, and Oklahoma, then returned and gave performances around Indiana. Danny accepted a position in the Wheelersburg (Ohio) Local School District, and moved there in the fall. Around the same time, personal tensions were rising in the group. They continued to perform after Danny’s move, at least until December 3, when they appeared in Phlox, Indiana, near Kokomo, but then broke up shortly thereafter. A brief statement in the Alexandria Times-Tribune, 4 April 1962, confirmed the split: “Many people who have heard and enjoyed the Gaither Trio in the past have wondered what happened to them. Well, time changes things and people, and the three Gaithers have gone their separate ways.”

Gloria’s arrival and the new Gaither Trio

Gloria Lee Sickal, born 4 March 1942 at Battle Creek, Michigan, was the daughter of Wilford Lee Sickal and Dorothy Boster. Her father was a pastor in the Church of God denomination (headquartered in Anderson, Indiana), so when Gloria was considering a college education, she opted to attend Anderson College in the fall of 1959 (Bill graduated from Anderson that previous spring). Two years later, in the fall of 1961, she met Bill:

I was a junior in college when the French teacher at Alexandria High School took a leave of absence. When a qualified substitute couldn’t be found, someone contacted the college to see if a student might be willing to fill in. Bill and I reported for work the same day. He had just transferred from another teaching job to accept an assignment at his old high school. I’ve often said if I never used French for anything else, it got me into this crazy life I lead.[2]

They were engaged in the summer of 1962 and married on 22 December 1962 at her father’s church in Michigan. Gloria graduated from Anderson College in 1963 with a B.S. in English, with additional majors in French and sociology, and a minor in secondary education, and got a permanent job at Alexandria High School with Bill. Mary Ann entered Anderson College in the fall of 1963.

In the meantime, with the Gaither Trio on hiatus, Bill turned his musical energy toward directing the choir at South Meridian Church of God in Anderson. Bill personally financed an album, South Meridian Sings, in 1962, then a follow-up album, South Meridian Sings Vol. 2. He struck up a friendship with a local singer named Doug Oldham, who performed some of Bill’s songs, especially “Have you had a Gethsemane?” which became the first song Bill professionally printed and published under his own Gaither Music banner. Bill wrote “He Touched Me” in 1963 using a suggestion from Doug’s father, Dr. Dale Oldham, and Doug was the first to sing it and record it (Duets and Devotions, TDE 506, 1964; Songs That Touch the Heart, Universal 3664M, 1964).

While Bill’s songwriting business was starting to blossom, he and Gloria were still teaching at Alexandria High School, and he was still without a group of his own. After some requests to speak about his music and offer his own performances, he reassembled the Gaither Trio in 1963, this time consisting of Bill, Gloria, and Mary Ann. Gloria, having not had the performing experience of the other two, was initially reluctant to join. As a reconstituted group, they recorded Songs of Praise and Devotion (TDE Records 505, 1964), He Touched Me (TDE Records 510, 1964), and The Longer I Serve Him (Gaither Music 850LPM, 1965). Around the same time, leveraging Danny’s abilities as a lead singer, they collaborated on an album, Songs by Bill Gaither As Sung by His Brother Dan (Crusade LPM 7801), for which Bill played piano, with contributions from organist Paul Yerden and vocalists Mary Ann, Nancy Combs, Doug Oldham, and Joan Dixon.

While living and teaching in Ohio, Danny recorded two albums with the Golden Keys, Wonderful, Marvelous, Yet True (Key Records Lp-St 11, 1962), and The Golden Keys Quartet (Golden Records 8347, 1964), the latter of which included Bill’s song “He Touched Me.” The first of Bill & Gloria’s three children, Suzanne, was born in 1964. Gloria initially continued to record and perform, taking the baby with her on tours. When Danny returned to teach in Alexandria in the summer of 1966, she gave his place in the trio back to him, and she left her school position to focus on raising Susanne. The albums Sincerely (Heart Warming HWS-1894, 1966) and When God Seems So Near (Heart Warming HWS-1924, 1966) marked a return to the original trio (Bill, Danny, Mary Ann) and the beginning of a long-term relationship with Heart Warming Records, a subsidiary of the John T. Benson publishing company (Impact Records was a later imprint of the same operation), based in Nashville. Then in 1967, after 12 years of trying to balance music and family and education, Bill gave up his teaching position and opted to go full time into the music business (as did Danny).

The Trio without Mary

Mary Ann married John M. James on 27 Oct. 1967 and elected to give up the music business to focus on being a homemaker. She helped to fulfill some concert commitments through December while Bill tried to secure a replacement. One of the singers they used was Sherry Slattery, who appeared on the album Happiness (Heart Warming HWS-1974, 1967). She and John divorced after only a few years; she eventually became involved with Gaither Music in an administrative capacity, directing the concert promotions. Mary Ann later remarried to Donnie Addison.

Mary Ann’s departure left Bill without a permanent third singer. Gloria had filled that gap before, but she resisted doing it again. With another pre-existing engagement on the books, Bill coaxed Gloria into subbing one more time. The event turned out to be a moving experience for everyone involved, highlighting Gloria’s spiritual giftedness, and reframing Bill’s mindset from music business to music ministry. Fortunately, around this time, Gloria’s parents had retired to Alexandria and helped fulfill orders for sheet music. Bill and Gloria bought 15 acres of land and built their life-long home on it.

When the Gaithers went to Nashville to record the album I’m Free (Heart Warming HWS-1989, 1968), Gloria’s confidence wavered at being involved in a higher-stakes studio environment, so producer Bob MacKenzie recommended local singer Betty Fair, who had a voice similar to Gloria’s. Fair provided most of the harmony vocals in place of Gloria, although Gloria ended up singing on a couple of tracks and provided a couple of voiceovers. Fair did not join the group permanently but would sometimes sing with the Trio if they were recording or performing in the area, including the next two albums He Touched Me (Heart Warming HWS-3017, 1969) and Sings Warm (Heart Warming HWS-3051, 1969).

Bill became involved in the fledgling Gospel Music Association, founded in 1964, and helped organize the first Dove Awards ceremony in 1969. According to one historian, “Bill Gaither helped to name the show and design the Dove Award itself.”[3] At that first ceremony, Bill earned the first Songwriter of the Year award, and he would go on to win eight out of the nine Songwriter awards given from 1969 to 1977 (missing only 1971). Gloria won a Songwriter award in 1986.

At home, Bill and Gloria had their daughter Amy in 1969, followed quickly by a pregnancy with their third child, Benjamin, born in 1970. In spite of their successes, the third pregnancy brought anxiety for Gloria, spurred partly by the tumultuous political and racial strife of the time, and Bill privately sank into a stretch of physical and mental struggles, which in turn brought several months of writer’s block. The most important song to come out of this episode was their song of assurance: “Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.” The second stanza (“How sweet to hold a newborn baby”) is a direct reference to the birth of Benjamin. The album Because He Lives (Heart Warming HWS-3130) was issued in 1971 and re-issued with a new cover in 1974. Around this time, they wrote another classic, “The King is Coming,” which appeared on the album At Home In Indiana (Heart Warming HWS-3083; later re-issued as The King is Coming).

By this point, Bill had established a publishing agreement with Singspiration (a division of Zondervan), and an explosion of licensed arrangements followed, including Bill Gaither’s Songs Arranged for Choir (arr. Cyril McLellan, 1967), He Touched Me and Other Songs (arr. W. Elmo Mercer, 1969), the Bill Gaither Choir Series (arr. Harold Lane, 1972–1973), Something Beautiful Choral Series (arr. Rick Powell, 1973–1976), The King is Coming and Other Songs (arr. Harold DeCou, 1973), Let’s Just Praise the Lord: A Praise-Book of Choruses (arr. W. Elmo Mercer, 1974), and their first official musical, Alleluia! A Praise Gathering for Believers (arr. Ronn Huff, 1973). Their demonstration recording for the musical was a surprise hit and sold over a million copies.

Their songs started to be adopted into the realm of congregational church hymnody, starting with “Speak, Lord, For Thy Servant Heareth” in the Hymnal of the Church of God (1971). “Because He Lives” was adopted into the Baptist Hymnal (1975). Bill and Gloria joined with Bob MacKenzie to form Paragon Associates, and they contributed significantly to the development of Hymns for the Family of God (1976), which included 30 of their songs and 8 readings by Gloria. The corresponding Hymnal Companion (1979) included a dedicatory prayer from Bill and a practical guide for families (“A hymnal at home is a wonderful thing”) by Gloria.

Utilizing her gifts for language and devotional spirituality, Gloria released her first book, Make Warm Noises (1971), and a spoken-word album, Let’s Talk About . . . Something Beautiful (HWS-3110, 1971). In 1973, the Gaithers built their own recording studio, Pinebrook Studios, near their home in Alexandria, thus centralizing their recording and publishing endeavors in their own home town. Bill was presented with an honorary doctorate in music from Anderson College that same year.

Danny charts a new path, and the Gaither Vocal Band emerges

In 1977, Danny left the Gaither Trio to pursue a solo career. He had already laid some groundwork for his independence with three solo albums orchestrated by Rick Powell: Sweet & High (Heart Warming R3166, 1972), Sing a Song of Love (Impact R3278, 1974), and It Is Well with My Soul (Impact R3432, 1976). Post-trio, he recorded several albums with arranger Lari Goss, starting with Singing to the World (Impact R3527, 1978).

To fill Danny’s place, Bill recruited Gary McSpadden, who had been one of the founding members of The Imperials. Gary’s first album with the Trio was Pilgrim’s Progress (Impact R3495, 1978). The Trio often toured with a small group of backup singers, and one evening in January of 1981, Bill and Gary were nonchalantly harmonizing with Steve Green and Lee Young, when they decided it would be fun to throw a quartet number into the concert. The audience response was enthusiastic, so Bill added the quartet as a regular feature of their events, and they settled on the name Gaither Vocal Band. They recorded their first album that year, The New Gaither Vocal Band (DaySpring DST-4024, 1981). As their success grew, they became a bigger part of Gaither concerts, while interest in the Trio conversely faded.

The lineup of GVB was often in flux; Jon Mohr replaced Lee Young, then Larnelle Harris replaced Steve Green; Michael English came on board to replace Mohr in 1986. McSpadden pulled double duty in the Trio and GVB until 1988, when he opted to pursue opportunities as a soloist and television producer. Michael English helped carry the Trio for a couple more years, through their last major album, Hymn Classics (1990), then the Trio formation was effectively retired.

The rise of the GVB meant less performing for Gloria, who was never entirely comfortable as a performer. Gloria was able to then channel more of her energy into writing. Gloria received an honorary doctorate of letters from Anderson University in 1989, and in 1991 completed an M.A. in British and American Literature from Ball State University. Her daughter Suzanne Jennings completed a similar degree in 1990.

In the meantime, in the mid-1980s, Danny’s career crumbled, both from the stress of a messy divorce and from damage to his voice. In 1986, he joined Bill & Gloria’s regular road crew, and he joined the Trio on the 1990 album Hymn Classics. Danny married Yvonne (“Vonnie”) Furnish on 24 September 1991.

Homecoming

In 1991, in spite of all his successes, at age 55 Bill felt like his career might be winding down, the Gaither Vocal Band might be in its sunset years, and he considered shifting his energy toward mentoring younger acts. Feeling nostalgic, he had the idea of calling together a group of revered Southern Gospel singers—including people he had idolized as an upstart musician or had helped him get started—for a music video to be recorded in Nashville on February 19. Among them were Hovie Lister, Jake Hess, Jim Hill, Vestal Goodman, Howard Goodman, Larry Gatlin, and Eva Mae LeFevre. He only intended to record one song, “Where could I go but the Lord” by James B. Coats. As it turned out, the group enjoyed singing together so much, they wanted to keep going, and on they went—for three hours. Bill later explained:

We had no script, plan, or agenda for anything that we said, did, or sang that day, other than the arrangement we had for “Where could I go but for the Lord?” Everything else that happened was totally spontaneous. But the singers in that room possessed a wealth of stories and voluminous experiences with God, not to mention a vast repertoire of great gospel songs. . . . I really had no idea what we had on tape, but I was glad we had it.[4]

Bill worked to have it edited down to an hour and showed it to some producers. It was picked up by the Christian Broadcasting Network, who aired it on their Family Channel. Within hours, the network had fielded seven thousand requests for copies. Thus a simple idea became the seed for a whole series of videos, bolstering the Gaither brand for three more decades and spawning over 100 audio and video releases, some of which were filmed in places like Australia, Israel, South Africa, and Canada, and in several venues across the United States. The series was instrumental in revitalizing the careers of some of the older artists. Some of Doris Akers’ last recordings were made for Homecoming videos. At the same time, the recordings provided a vehicle by which Bill could help to promote the careers of younger artists too.

The Gaither Vocal Band has done anything but fade. Since 1991, the group has recorded more than thirty albums, many with corresponding videos. Bill would be the first to admit he has never been the most gifted singer in any of his groups, but he didn’t need to be—by surrounding himself with a cast of top-notch vocalists, he has given many singers an opportunity to be seen and heard. In the group’s long history, it has hosted a wealth of talent, including Gary McSpadden, Steve Green, Lee Young, Jon Mohr, Larnelle Harris, Michael English, Mark Lowry, Terry Franklin, Buddy Mullins, Jonathan Pierce, Guy Penrod, David Phelps, Russ Taff, Marshall Hall, Wes Hampton, Adam Crabb, Todd Suttles, and Reggie Smith.

In addition to her continued presence in Homecoming videos and concerts, as an author, Gloria has written many devotional works, including several editions of stories behind their songs, and A Book of Simple Prayers (2008), and she has served as writer/editor for the Homecoming magazine (2003–).

Homegoing

With careers spanning over six decades, Bill & Gloria have outlasted many of their peers and their predecessors. One of the hardest goodbyes was brother and bandmate Danny, who was diagnosed with lymphoma in 1996 and left this earth on 6 April 2001. He had appeared on the Homecoming videos Reunion (1992) and Something Beautiful (1996). Tragically, two of Danny’s sons died at young ages, Mitchell Dean on 7 March 2005 at age 35, and Steven Nic on 26 December 2005 at age 46, leaving behind their sister, Trina. Their longtime friend and producer, Bob MacKenzie, died of chronic heart disease on 20 October 2000 at the age of 62. Bill’s mother, Lela, passed 27 December 2001, and his musical hero, Hovie Lister, died the next day. Bill’s father, George, followed on 20 January 2005. Gloria’s parents had passed several years previously, father Wilford Lee on 14 December 1974, and mother Dorothy on 6 May 1993; she lost her sister, Evelyn Sickal, on 18 December 2015. Bill’s sister, bandmate, and concert promoter, Mary Ann, succumbed to a pulmonary illness on 25 April 2018. Trio member and Gaither Vocal Band co-founder Gary McSpadden departed on 15 April 2020.

Part of Bill’s response to watching his friends and family members lose their health was to organize better financial support for the Gospel Music Trust Fund, which provides financial assistance to musicians dealing with serious illness and other significant losses. Bill and Gloria also processed these moments through their book Heaven (2003), along with their Homecoming videos Heaven and Going Home (2003).

Through it all, the Gaithers look to their faith, lean on their friends, and continue to fill the world with music. Bill once wrote, “As long as God allows us to make music with a message, we’ll keep doing it.”[5]

by CHRIS FENNER
for Hymnology Archive
20 May 2021

Footnotes:

1. Bill Gaither, Homecoming: The Story of Southern Gospel Music Through the Eyes of Its Best-Loved Performers (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1997), p. 21.

2. Holly Miller, “Gaithers discover ‘The family of God’ begins at home,” Vital Christianity (?).

3. Becky Garrison, “Dove Awards,” Encyclopedia of American Gospel Music, ed. W.K. McNeil (NY: Routledge, 2005), p. 108.

4. Bill Gaither, It’s More Than the Music (NY: Warner Books, 2003), p. 12.

5. Bill Gaither, It’s More Than the Music (NY: Warner Books, 2003), p. 290.

See also:

Bill & Gloria Gaither discography

Bill & Gloria Gaither bibliography