FULLER UP HOME GRIM REAPER PAGE CAUSES OF DEATH SEARCH BY NAME GET IN TOUCH SHAMEFUL DISCLAIMER    Fuller Up The Dead Musician Directory    James Hill James Hill July 6, 2000 Age 83   Cause of Death Pending    OBITUARY  BIOGRAPHY   LINKS  Buy or Hear the Music         Editor's Pick:  I Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray

OBITUARY 

Grammy-Winning Gospel Singer James Hill Dies                          Grammy-winning gospel singer James Hill of the Fairfield Four                          died Thursday (July 6) morning in Nashville at the age of 83.                         Hill and the rest of the Nashville-based, Alabama-bred Fairfield Four                         rose to prominence during the 1940s, joining acts like the Dixie                        Hummingbirds, the Five Blind Boys, and the Soul Stirrers as the most                        popular gospel outfits of the day. They were celebrated  for their renditions                         of traditional hymns, tight harmonies, and Hill's baritone voice.                        The group disbanded in 1950, but reformed in 1980, and                       continued to perform and release albums like 1998's Wreckin'                       the House. In 1989 they were designated as National                       Heritage Fellows by the National Endowment for the Arts. In                       recent years, Hill and the rest of the Fairfield Four lent their                       voices to albums from Johnny Cash, John Fogerty, Steve                       Earle, and Elvis Costello.                        "I came to record with them at a studio in Nashville, and at                       the beginning James led with a prayer," Costello told The                       Tennessean newspaper. "Sometimes people put on a little                       show of their faith, but with James Hill it was just pure                       emotion and belief." The recording with Costello was included                       on the band's 1997 album I Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray,                       which earned them a Grammy for Best Traditional Gospel                       Recording.                        Hill's bandmate Isaac Freeman told The Tennessean he                       wasn't sure if the group would carry on without Hill, stating,                       "I've got a lot to think about."                        Hill was born in Bessemer, Ala., but spent most of his adult                       life in Nashville. In the late 1940s he and the other members                       of the Fairfield Four owned the Fairfield Four Funeral Home.                       In between stints in the Fairfield Four, he worked as a                       sheriff's deputy, a police sergeant, and a deacon at                       Nashville's Temple Baptist Church. He also appeared in the                       Robert Altman movie Nashville as a police officer.                        Funeral arrangements were still being finalized. Smith                       Brothers Funeral Directors Inc. told The Tennessean that Hill                       is "survived by children, a host of other relatives, and                       friends."                                                              CD Now -- Pat Berkery           NY TIMES   James Hill, 83, Baritone in Venerable Gospel Group           By JON PARELES            James Hill, the leader and baritone voice of the Fairfield Four gospel            group, died July 6 at a hospital in Nashville, The Tennessean            reported. He was 83 and lived in Nashville.             The Fairfield Four, founded in 1921, became one of gospel's            best-known groups. They sang unaccompanied in the classic quartet            style, with fervent voices growling and leaping out of rhythmic chords.             The group was founded by the Rev. J. R. Carrethers at Fairfield Baptist            Church in Nashville, initially as the duo of his sons; it grew to a quartet            and eventually included up to six members singing four-part harmony.            After the tenor Sam McCrary joined in 1935, the group's reputation            grew locally. In 1941 it was recorded for the folk-music archives of the            Library of Congress. The Fairfield Four won a competition to appear on            a radio show, and from 1942 to 1952 they were heard on WLAC in            Nashville, and nationally over the CBS radio network, from 6:45 to 7            a.m.             Mr. Hill was born July 25, 1916, in Bessemer, Ala. With a powerful            voice but no formal musical training, he joined the group on Thanksgiving            Day in 1946, at a time when the group and gospel quartet singing were            reaching a peak of popularity.             But in the early 1950's, gospel's popularity waned. A funeral parlor            owned by the group also had business difficulties. While Mr. McCrary            toured with various groups using the Fairfield Four name, Mr. Hill and            the group's bass, Isaac Freeman, formed the Skylarks. But the heyday of            quartet singing had passed. Mr. Hill worked as a courthouse cleaner, a            sheriff's deputy and a police sergeant and ran a restaurant called the            Tombstone. He made a brief appearance as a police officer in Robert            Altman's 1974 film "Nashville."             In 1980 the Fairfield Four's late-1940's lineup was persuaded to reunite            by a gospel scholar, Doug Seroff, for a concert in Birmingham. The            group began touring again, and in 1989 it received a National Heritage            Fellowship, the traditional-arts award from the National Endowment for            the Arts.             The group signed a contract with Warner Brothers Records in 1990 and            was discovered by rock and country songwriters; the Four toured and            performed with Lyle Lovett, John Fogerty, Elvis Costello and Steve            Earle. Retiring members were gradually replaced during the 1980's and            90's, but Mr. Hill and Mr. Freeman continued to sing with the group. Its            1997 album, "I Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray," won a Grammy as best            traditional soul gospel album.             The group's manager, Lee Olsen, said the group was discussing whether            to continue without Mr. Hill.             Mr. Hill is survived by three sons, Wayne and Anthony Hill of Nashville            and Lawrence Dulin of Evansville, Ind.; a stepson, Riley Hackworth of            Niagara Falls, N.Y.; a stepdaughter, Margie Patton; six grandchildren;            and 17 great-grandchildren.

 

 

BIOGRAPHY

All-Music Guide The Fairfield Four  During the 1940s, the Fairfield Four were among the top-ranked   gospel quartets, along with the Dixie Hummingbirds, Five Blind   Boys, and Soul Stirrers. Originally a gospel duet created in the   early '20s by the pastor of Fairfield Baptist Church in Nashville to   occupy his sons, Harry and Rufus Carrethers, they became a   gospel trio with the addition of John Battle. The group was   transformed into a jubilee quartet by the '30s and began the first of   numerous personnel changes. They recorded for RCA Victor and   Columbia during the decade and were known for their   reinterpretations of standard hymns, featuring bright, close   baritone and tenor harmonies. When the Fairfield Four sang, they   utilized the full extent of their voices, moving easily from deep, rolling  basslines to the staccato upper peaks of the tenor range, all executed  with precise, intricate harmonies and ever-shifting leads.  The Fairfield Four reached their broadest audience when the Sunway   Vitamin Company sponsored a nationally broadcast radio show for them  daily at 6:45 a.m. on WLAC, Nashville. At the same time, they also continued   touring; it was a grueling schedule, especially with the drive to Nashville, and   often the group would be missing a member or two on the show. In 1942, the   quartet recorded for the Library of Congress, but by 1950, it all became too   much. Coupled with some financial trouble and a dwindling radio audience,   the Fairfield Four broke up, though one member, Reverend Sam McCary,   used the group name to perform with other quartets. In 1980, the Fairfield Four  from the '40s was reunited for a concert in Birmingham, Alabama, by Black  gospel specialist Doug Seroff. In 1989, they were designated as National  Heritage Fellows by the National Endowment for the Arts. They continue to   perform, though the original members are either deceased or retired. --   Sandra Brennan & Bil Carpenter, All Music Guide

 

LINKS