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The Churchmen are pleased to announce their newest member taking the position of guitar player and lead vocals. Glenn Waller was born in South Boston Va. and raised in rural Pittsylvania County in the community of Cody. His father exposed him to bluegrass music at an early age by way of attending festivals and concerts of first and second generation bluegrass acts. "I got to witness so many bluegrass acts I can't name them all".

At the age of thirteen Glenn got his first guitar for Christmas and soon after took lessons from Billy Pack (banjo player for the Lilly Brothers) for about a year. Since that time he new guitar was what he was born to play. He has played with several bands in the last thirty years, namely, Shades of Grass, Pocket Change, Dixieland Express, Second Helpin', Appalachian Express, Jeanette Williams Band and most recently Northridge. "Bluegrass has taken me many places in the last 30 years and allowed me to make many friends." Glenn's principle influences have been Jimmy Martin, Tony Rice and Dan Tyminski who actually was kind enough to give him one on one lessons in the early 90's while he was still a member of The Lonesome River Band. "Those sessions formed the style of guitar that I play today". "I am grateful for the opportunity to play and sing bluegrass gospel because after all talent is God given and ultimately should be used for his praise. I look forward to this next chapter of bluegrass in my life". Glenn currently makes his home outside the town of Gretna Va. with his wife of 22 years, Wendy.

The group would like to take this time to thank David Guthrie for all his contributions over the past 4 years. David needed to come off the road to spend more time with his family. The group would also like to thank Charie "Buck" Oakley for filling in while they were searching for a permanent replacement.

The Churchmen have a Facebook page. It seems that Facebook has taken over the internet and most people seem to be involved. We update news, photos, comments, and various personal, and group news on our page. Please look The Churchmen up and interact with the band. Gerald Harbour is our Facebook guy and he does a great job keeping everything up to date. Log on today and say hello to Gerald or any of the other guys.

God again blessed us with a busy year in 2010. We would like to thank our booking agent for his hard work! Keith Clark books the group, and he is currently still booking for 2011, and also for the 2012 season. We are looking forward to playing a lot of the shows that we do on an annual basis. Please contact Keith Clark at 276-340-5209 or Click Here to Email Keith for more information.

We would like to mention again that although we enjoy playing festivals and other venues, that our hearts are still in ministering in churches. This has always been, and will continue to be, a priority for our group. If your church would like to have a Churchmen concert during a regular service or special event, please contact us! Thanks for your support.

Pinecastle Records has undergone extensive changes over the last couple of years. Col. Tom Riggs, founder and long time president of Pinecastle was forced to retire due to failing health and Tom's son handled the business for a brief period. After shutting operations down Court Riggs sold the business to a longtime supporter of the label and a local Doctor in the Columbus, NC area. Dr. Lonnie Lassiter bought the label and renamed the company Pinecastle Recording Company. He has continued the great traditions of Pinecastle and some of the previous staff are still on-board. Ethan Burkhart is vice-president of operations, and Matt Hood is vice-president of public relations. We have been in preliminary discussions concerning a new project and hope to have some plans to record soon. We are looking forward to recording again and also looking forward to getting Glenn's rich voice on CD along with the traditional Churchmen harmonies. Check out Pinecastle Recording Company at www.Pinecastlemusic.com. Stay tuned for updates.

We are thrilled to report that The Churchmen have again been nominated by the SPBGMA organization for Bluegrass Gospel Group of the Year / Traditional for 2011. We are truly honored to be nominated for this award. We want to take this time to thank the fans and friends for nominating The Churchmen. We want to also ask for all of the attendees at the SPBGMA convention in February to consider voting for The Churchmen!

Thanks again to everyone who has voted for us in the past, and a big vote of appreciation to Chuck Stearman and his staff for the first class operation of SPBGMA and all of their events. We have been nominated for 19 years in at least one of the Gospel categories and that's very flattering and encouraging to us. Please visit the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America website at www.spbgma.com.

We are really thrilled about the airplay and attention that the new CD, "I'LL Be Long Gone", is still getting. Several cuts from the project are showing up on playlists across the country. The CD has also showed up in the top 50 on the Roots Music Report for Bluegrass! Thanks to all of the DJ's and friends who are playing the songs and requesting them! Please call or e-mail your local DJ, or XM - Sirius to request Churchmen tunes. Thanks again!

We stated already we are really excited about our new CD, "I'LL Be Long Gone" that was released to retail on November 4th and seems to be doing really great. The project features 7 original tunes written by our own David Guthrie, along with Jason Barie, Rick Pardue, and Josh Manning. David penned 4 of the originals with Jason, Rick, and Josh each contributing one song each. The remaining songs are Bluegrass Gospel standards or re-makes with a new twist. We are truly thrilled to get the new band configuration recorded. David's lead vocals and Tim's fiddle playing certainly blended well with the Churchmen sound. This project features some contemporary tunes combined with the straight ahead Bluegrass that is a Churchmen trademark .We recorded the project again with Dale Perry producing at Lakeside studios and we believe is definitely our best effort to date. The CD is available now at Churchmen shows, on this website, The Music Shed, County Sales and in your favorite retail outlets.

Here are a couple of early quotes from DJ's.

I got the new CD last week and played it Saturday and Sunday and the NUMBER ONE FAVORITE down here is "Rocked On The Deep" - that is some great stuff. The whole CD is GREAT. Keep 'em coming. - Jimmy Strange WJFC FM Jefferson, TN & WMTN AM Morristown, TN

Whoa! Real Bluegrass Gospel ... old time, new time, anytime. Soul-stirring vocals and ultimate instrumentation. No doubt, many of these powerful songs will be chart-toppers. Bluegrass gospel at its best! - David M. Bissell www.PowerGrassRadio.com Salem, WV

This is our third project with Pinecastle Records and we want to thank Col. Riggs and his staff for their continued support. Please call or e-mail your local DJ's, Sirius Radio, and XM Radio to request songs off of the new project.

The Churchmen have had a band for 22 years. Boy that's a long time isn't it? During those years we have ran our own sound or depended on the sound-men and sound-women at the concerts. Although that has worked out ok we are proud, and very excited to say that finally in 2008 those days are over! We have been greatly blessed with the addition of sound technician Jerry Haga. Jerry hails from the community of Horsepasture, VA. Jerry is a fellow member with band mate Gerald Harbour at Horsepasture Christian Church. He has been a great friend to the band for several years and the time was right for Jerry to join the band. Thanks to The Lord for bringing such great people our way! Jerry's addition has allowed us to go back to using individual mics and this has been a real help to The Churchmen sound. Here is a biography on Jerry.

Jerry was born on May 08, 1951 in Clintwood, VA. He is an excellent musician in his own right and plays all woodwind instruments, specializing on the Saxophone. He started playing professionally in 1970 and took on a dual roll in 1973 to become Sax player and sound technician. Jerry played full time from '73 until '77. Jerry re-dedicated his life to The Lord 17 years ago and now plays primarily in church and uses his talents with The Churchmen.

Jerry has been married to his lovely wife Glennette for 31 years. They are the proud parents of 2 sons - Johnathon and Andrew.

Thanks again to Jerry and welcome on board to one of the finest guys that you would ever want to meet. Jerry is well known in the community for his charitable spirit and is a real team player for the band.

Bluegrass Gospel group "The Churchmen" has been recognized by the popular web based radio dedicated to Bluegrass Gospel Music 24 hours a day. The web site named them as the 2008 Bluegrass Gospel Group of the Year and their latest release "I'll be Long Gone" as Album of the Year. The Churchmen record for Pinecastle records and their latest release is the 3rd project since joining with Pinecastle. The CD was released in mid-summer to radio with the retail release on November 4, 2008. Highlighted on the album is the song writing talents and voice of David Guthrie who joined the group January of 2007 and fiddle veteran Tim Smith joining September 2007.

The Churchmen are closing in on twenty years of performing and recording bluegrass gospel music.

What people are saying.......

"The Churchmen are a fine group of entertainers, whose talents are indeed unique, whether in performance in ensemble or solo. It is always a pleasure to work with them." The Lewis Family

"The Churchmen are a very talented group who play and sing with the kind of harmony that keeps you listening for more. I have known them since they started their group and I highly recommend them to anyone who loves good bluegrass gospel music." Russell Easter, Sr.

"We have had the pleasure of performing with the Churchmen on several occasions, and it is always enjoyable. They have a fine group and are fine people." Doyle Lawson

"The Churchmen are one of the fastest growing, hottest new sounds in Bluegrass Gospel Music today. We have worked with these guys a lot, and they really live what they sing. We highly recommend them to any- one for concerts." Jeff and Sheri Easter

1. Multiple nominations for "Gospel Group of the Year" by The Society of Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America (SPBGMA) spanning 15 years!
2. Performance at the Ryman Theater for the Bluegrass Now Fan's Choice Awards
3. Performance at multiple International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) show cases, and the IBMA Bluegrass Fan Fest
4. Nominated for 2 Dove Awards, Gospel Music's most prestigious award, for Bluegrass Gospel album of the Year (2005) and Bluegrass Gospel Song of the Year (2007).
5. Churchmen song "Get Onboard" was #1 on Bluegrass Now Magazine's Gospel Truths chart and remained on the chart for 3 ½ years.

About the Churchmen.......

KEITH CLARK, was born in Martinsville, Virginia and was raised in Fieldale. His father taught him how to play guitar. "I can still picture how I used to sit on his knee and strum while he made the chords." Keith started playing the bass at age twelve and played the drums during high school, and he still enjoys playing. After working in some family bands, Keith gave his heart to the Lord when he was 17. Keith played with The Mill Creek Trio before being able to get back to his real love, bluegrass music, when they started their present band. "It's a real blessing to be able to adapt the kind of music that you love to share the gospel. I love how bluegrass can be so different. I love hard driving songs with a lot of banjo, and I love slow ballads with a lot of fiddle and Dobro. Bluegrass is so simple in some ways, but it can be played with so much complexity. I love acoustic music because it's so down to earth, and it's the way that music should be." Keith now resides in Collinsville, VA his personal goals revolve around his family and church.. "I have daughter and a wife who I love more than anything. I also love to fish and play golf and I am very active in my church. My daughter is studying to be a Pharmacist and my personal goals are all about her. She is an excellent student, and I am going to do everything in my power to help and encourage her." Click Here to Email Keith
FREDDY RAKES, was born in Martinsville, Virginia and raised in rural Henry County, near Bassett, Virginia. He was also first exposed to gospel and bluegrass as a child. His father, mother and three sisters all sang and played. They traveled as a family band from 1968 to 1988, and Freddy then worked with the Easter Brothers in the mid 80s, playing pedal steel guitar, bass or banjo. Freddy has also done a fair amount of session work with southern gospel groups. "Bluegrass music is honest music," says Rakes, "I mean it's about everyday experiences, the ups and downs of life. It's all-acoustic, so it's clean music, also energetic. I play a Gibson Mastertone banjo, and I guess I like it so well because its sole purpose in life is to enhance the sound of bluegrass music." Freddy met his wife, Donna, while performing at her church, and Freddy says that she is a faithful supporter of their music. Click Here to Email Freddy
GERALD HARBOUR was born in Stuart and raised in Woolwine, Virginia. He began showing interest in music at an early age and made his first public performance at age 5. He often would perform with his Dad throughout his childhood. In later years he would make guest appearances with his life long friends The Lewis Family. Gerald credits his parents and Little Roy Lewis for being his inspiration to pursue his musical interests. Gerald joined the Churchmen in 1989 just a few months after the formation of the group. Gerald said, "I was looking for some guys who would take the music seriously and try to constantly take it to another level". Gerald found that in Freddy and Keith and several who have passed through the band in it's existence. "It's been fun to experience the ways that the Lord has blessed us and the doors that have been opened for us along the way". Gerald currently resides with his wife Lisa and their five children in Martinsville, VA. Click Here to Email Gerald
GLENN WALLER was born in South Boston Va. and raised in rural Pittsylvania County in the community of Cody. His father exposed him to bluegrass music at an early age by way of attending festivals and concerts of first and second generation bluegrass acts. "I got to witness so many bluegrass acts that I can't name them all". At the age of thirteen Glenn got his first guitar for Christmas and soon after took lessons from Billy Pack (banjo player for the Lilly Brothers) for about a year. Since that time he new guitar was what he was born to play. He has played with several bands in the last thirty years, namely, Shades of Grass, Pocket Change, Dixieland Express, Second Helpin', Appalachian Express, Jeanette Williams Band and most recently Northridge. "Bluegrass has taken me many places in the last 30 years and allowed me to make many friends." Glenn's principle influences have been Jimmy Martin, Tony Rice and Dan Tyminski who actually was kind enough to give him one on one lessons in the early 90's while he was still a member of The Lonesome River Band. "Those sessions formed the style of guitar that I play today".
RICK KEEN plays the Resonator Guitar commonly known as the "Dobro". This is Rick's second term with the group and we are thrilled to have him back. Rick has experience with such bands as Kickin' Grass, The Grass Cats, The Anita Fisher Band, Michelle Nixon and Drive, and Hit and Run Bluegrass. He also has a lot of recording experience while playing on many projects and different genres of music. The Lord always seems to bless us with talented musicians and great people to meet our needs and Rick is one of the most exciting young players that we have seen. Rick was born in Wilmington, NC and currently resides in Benson, NC. He comes from a musical background with lots of talent in his family and it certainly shows. Rick only started playing music in 2002 and has quickly developed into one of the best in the business. Along with that talent, Rick has a great personality, is fun to travel with, and has been a hit with all of The Churchmen fans and friends everywhere.