Memories

          Do you have any funny, inspiring, or memorable stories of your encounters with the Cathedrals? Submit them!

From Dwight Parker:

I was at a concert in Birmingham Al. to see the Cathedrals the night Glen Payne died. Glen had been sick but they were doing concerts with out him. Roger Bennet was singing Glen's part and playing piano. It was Scott Fowler, Roger Bennet, George, Ernie Haas. They did and awesome concert. We had intermission And when the Cathedrals came on stage they said they had just been informed that Glen had died. They sat a stool at the front of the stage and George sat down and cried and sung 4 or 5 solo songs while the other guys stood in the background and cried. George sung "Going Home" "Suppertime" then the other guys came back up and they did another awesome concert, even put a little humor in about Glen. Was the best concert I have ever been to.

From Adam Wallace:

Back in July of 2006 I went to a singing school and Danny Funderburk was one of the instructors.

I sang at a performance training and Danny was one of the instructors listenning to me. When I got done with the song Danny asked me if I would sing a song with him at his concert that night and I did.

Last March I went to a Cathedrals Rememberred Concert and saw Danny before the concert. He rememberred me and and gave me a big hug.

At intermission he asked me to come up and sing with him and so I did. In the group that I sang in it was Danny, Gerald Wolf, Mark Trammell and me.

From Doug Taylor:

I had been to each annual "Evening With the Cathedrals" (held at the Reynolds Auditorium in Winston-Salem, NC) and was excited when they decided to record a live video there - "Travelin' Live".  Needless to say, it was the thrill of a lifetime! What was so much fun about watching them record a video were the mistakes they made live, which of course were later corrected vocally on the cassettes - such as when George called out to "do that trio part again - I love that trio!" on "Boundless Love" and Glen started singing one verse while Danny and Mark started singing the other verse!!! The look on Glen's face was pricesless - it was a look of "I don't know if I'm on the right verse or not, but y'all better join up with me!!!"

From Chad Coomer:

I worked as a disc jockey at Southern Gospel WHOS in Decatur, AL from age 13 through breaks at home from college-I got to attend many concerts through the years and the Cathedrals were my favorite. While completing a degree at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, OK I had to take a course in church music administration. I asked my professor if I could do something on Southern Gospel Music. He said I could. There happened to be a big concert at the Mabee Center in Tulsa-the Cathedrals were on the bill with several others. I had the wonderful opportunity to talk with Glen Payne that night. He took time to share with me some history on Stamps Baxter School of Music and quartet history-that was back in 1990-. I was so impressed with him taking the time to talk with me. I wish I still had that paper I wrote.

From Guy Swanner of Gospel Music Productions in Lithia Springs, Georgia:

Danny Funderburk is one of my dearest friends, he told me about one time in Louisiana he and Mark Trammell caught a hugh bullfrog in a ditch and put it in George's boot box.  George got on the bus all tired, sat down pulled his boots off and pulled the box from under his bunk.  Opened it and the bullfrog jumped in George's chest and over his head.  Mark verified this (not that Danny would stretch it.) and said George almost lost it and yelled to Robbie Willis that the bus would not more til that blamed bullfrog was gone.

Ernie Haase, great Tenor with the Cathedrals and now Signature Sound Quartet, had his first traveling job with Squire Parsons.  They were doing a three night preaching and singing gig in Tuscaloosa, Ala, had finished up and were leaving that night.  Ernie was always and still is a great prankster.  Squire had gone back into the Motel for something and Ernie was hiding behind a support pillar and was going to jump on Squire's back when he came out.  What he didn't know was the local Law had the place staked out for drug operations, etc.  When Squire came out, the cops had Ernie spread eagle and were getting ready to handcuff him.  He was trying to explain to them he was the Tenor singer on that bus.  Squire said as tempting as it was to vow he did not know him, he finally said yes and they put Young Ernie safely on the bus.

From Lorne Matthews:

Lorne [Matthews] and George [Younce] were 'bunk mates' in the bus; Lorne was in the top bunk and George in the bottom bunk. Lorne, a late sleeper, said when George would get up of the morning, he would get right in his ear and say in the deepest bass voice a human being could ever have early in the morning "Get up you lazy critter," and then just growl in low tones. Lorne loved George.

From Terry S (quartetman)

Another funny thing about the Travelin' Live video is when Glen started singing the different verse of Boundless Love, Mark and Danny swapped parts. I can't recall who started it (I think Danny), but it ended up with Danny singing Mark's part and Mark dropping Danny's down an octave if I remember correctly.

At the first Cathedrals concert I went to (somewhat shortly after Scott joined), I caught George during intermission. I was much taller and bigger than he, but he was like a giant to me. I asked if they could do "What A Meeting." He said he thought they could. When they got on stage, he made a point of saying the song was a request, located me in the large audience and looked me in the eye. However, he got the song wrong . He sang Supper Time. :-) Even though the song was wrong, the memory is special. He was very personable and had a way of making anyone feel like an old and valued friend.

The next memory was from a friend of mine. He went to his first Cathedrals concert when Tremble and Webster were with them. Webster came out at sound check and hit a fairly low note. My friend thought, he is a pretty good bass. George came out and dropped the note an octave from where Webster sang it. :-)

From Jonathan Andrews

I have been a Cathedral Quartet fan since I first heard them on tape about 20 years ago. Dad had put together a little group at our church that I sang bass in. One of the first songs we did was Can He, Could He Would He, by the Cathedral Quartet. Someone said years ago when Brother Glen and Brother George had to rebuild the quartet when all three of the other guys left that Geeorge and Glen "were the Cathedrals", well I don't know if I totally subscribe to that thought. But they are definitely two of my favorite people in Gospel Music history.