How Great Thou Art - James "Big Chief" Wetherington

[JoeLarnaque]

What a voice, what a bass. My idol.

[Kimindigo]

( DYSLEXIC )...sounds like the singing in the bohemian grove club in the woods of callifornia... look it up... i dont say this man sing in that evil ritual, but its the same way of singing...the name of the video is-- illuminati meeting caught on tape..

[henrycems]

Love his voice, thanks.

[lonemapper]

@maltliickey Every great bass that I had the privilege of meeting smoked cigarettes. Never met Chief. My dentist keeps telling me about the importance of dental hygeine, says the lack of contributes to heart disease. Bacteria in the teeth and gums can spread to the heart. It is my understanding that Chief had tooth absesses that may have caused his heart attack. Remember this, probably every singer smoked back then.

[Loverboy721]

There is a Christian radio station close to where I live in California. Its KCBC 770 on the AM dial. Anyway every Sunday afternoon from 2PM to 4PM they play country and southern Gospel. I would hear the anouncer mention Big Chief and even play his songs. I never knew what he looked like till now. Thanks for posting this video.

[Rabadamtimtimti]

Staggering performance.

[jssain1]

George Younce and Big Chief were not only great bass singers, they were great singers period, and could do something with songs that was very special. Also, one's speaking voice and their singing voice are very different things for the most part. Many bass singers have that smokers' rasp...some women smokers have a deep voice and actually sound like a man.

[JAMAICNLIGHTEN818]

What a voice.... What a voice..... What a Voice... Absolutely Beautiful! Thank's so much for sharing.

[revskull]

I think the real power of the Chief he still has so much style and vocal control so far away from the mic.... ... if you watch, so many bass singers today actually cup the mic, and basically stick it in their mouth, when they want to fry out their low notes....not the Chief!!

[bigboytenor]

@revskull There are a number of things to consider here. 1 - many basses today use a completely different type of microphone that Chief. 2 - he was singing with nothing but 3 voices and a piano most of the time vs. basses today competing with tracks filled with instruments, background vocal, etc. 3 - Chief, like many basses, had a real ability to sound must lower than he was because of the resonance of his voice.

[gregryf]

@bigboytenor That's right. A very resonant voice gives the impression of hitting a lower note than the one actually hit.

[chowman007]

I enjoy listening to Big Chief n he is one of my top 5. But Big John Hall or Jim McClintock would render a better performance.

[TarheelMusicMan]

The Chief had it all.Fullness,richness,resonanc­e,clarity,and a beautiful voice plus knew how to use it without growling like these wanna be's today.

[ramey58]

The Chief was wonderful! I sing the bass to this song in a quartet 15 or 20 times per year. I love the Chief. Also, George Younce, J.D. Sumner and Richard Sterban. Harold Reid of the Statlers never impressed me. There will never be another "Big Chief."

[elvis0rei]

linda musica

[victoryopop]

Beautiful music, indeed. I guess those high school Spanish lessons did come in handy, after all. None the less, wonderful performance by big chief here

[BlackBart48]

I'm a big JD Sumner fan, but on this song there is no one like Big Chief in any genre

[pro3tlb]

I knew J. D. and he would be the first to tell you that he loved the "Big Chief". Chief could carry a low note in key better than J. D. and was able to sing at about any level as far as bass or baritone.

[ChubbyBeak]

ELVIS loved this man before Elvis became the " King of Rock and Roll" he wanted to be like the " Big Chief" bass singer and all he even got his moves from the Big Chief ......

[TurbinePower69]

The Chief was Truly one of the Greats

of all time.......and on the horizon, personally I rather like Royce Mitchell of The Liberty Quartet, out of Boise, ID

......excellent voice control, a great bass

singer.

Any others out there...heard Liberty &

Royce ??

[makingmo]

I had the privelege of singing with Liberty this past weekend. Royce is as good as they come. They are great guys that need more national exposure.

[humpty318]

What's amazing is he doesn't hold the mic and "swallow" it like 95% of bass singers do. He is two feet from the mic!!! Wow.

[korbannc]

With a condenser mic you don't really have to be anywhere near it, many quartet singers used a smaller version you can hold like a regular mic. Not to slight the chief, just to clarify why it sounds so clear from that distance.

[militarychief]

Thank you for this video. Chief was a true "bass singer" as was Tennessee Ernie Ford. I liked J.D. Sumner but I quit listening when he would "growl". I never considered the growling singing.

[hugedell]

Many people can sing low, but this man was a "basso cantabile", a good SINGER not just growler!!!!

[GamingDrummer89]

@hugedell He sounds more like a Basso Profundo to me. And he has one quality that not even Tim Riley possesses....he sounds like an Operatic Basso Profundo, too!

[jaywemm]

ever wonder where elvis got his gospel inspiration? look no further than "big chief"

[Bass35744]

Wow! What a beautiful bass voice he has! Such an inspiration! He has so much power and resonants! His low notes are sooo sooothing!

[GospelPhil]

I was in Atlanta when the Chief died. He was a great bass and a wonderful person. I always loved to hear the Statesmen sing at the Ellis Auditorium in Memphis. We got our tickets as soon as we found out when from the Blackwood Brothers Record Shop...always on the first or second row!

[BillVol]

J.D. Sumner said it on one of the Gaither videos: Big Chief was the best.

[lonemapper]

I have talked to Ray Reese, Tim Riley and both said Chief was the best. But the ultimate compliment came from who I think most would say was the best bass. George Younce was a huge Chief fan.

[revskull]

though many, including myself, really enjoyed George... I never really consider him a true bass.... rather, a deep baritone who could reach the upper register of bass... you can tell by his speaking voice that he was'nt really a true bass, but had a rather large vocal range..

[lonemapper]

@revskull I had a similar opinion until a friend of mine made me a cd of nothing but Chief. He was incredible! If he is not a "true bass" I don't know who would be. I had the privilege of speaking with George Younce on many occasions and his speaking voice never sounded like his singing voice and he is my all time favorite. If you listen to a wide range of Chiefs songs, as I did, you get a different feel for this guys talent.

[JazzBassist777]

@revskull You are kidding right? George was definitely a bass! He could sing much lower and clearer the many basses! He could easily sing G1's and Ab1s, with unbelievable clarity. Speaking voice really doesn't represent range or vocal classification.

[GamingDrummer89]

@JazzBassist777 +1. George was definitely a bass. In fact, in jowox's 7th video has him hitting an E1! And although it sounded fried at first, you can tell at the end of the note (when you can hear him more clearly because the music is quieter) that it's most likely not. And in most of the videos I've seen George in, he's got a pretty deep speaking voice.

[bigboytenor]

@revskull His speaking voice really has nothing to do with his vocal range as a singer. Most people tend to speak in their chest voice, George didn't usually do that. He would often speak in his higher register, which could lead people to think he was just a baritone. The difference between George Younce and most bass singers is that George could actually sing. Many basses can hit low notes, but they lack any real vocal quality as a soloist.

[gregryf]

@lonemapper I always thought he was the best. It was almost a toss up between him and JD Sumner but The Chief had the edge in my opinion. The first bass for The Chuck Wagon Gang (I forget his name) was right up there with them.

[lonemapper]

@gregryf JD was fabulous in the Blackwood days. No offense, but I can't remember ANY bass with the Chuckwagon that could come close to the Chief. I would say if he was that good you wouldn't forget his name and i would know him.

[gregryf]

@lonemapper Well the bass with The Chuckwagon Gang was the first one I remember with that quartet. I never hear about him in the same breath with the other greats but he really impressed me. The one that replaced him wasn't as good in my opinion. I never did associate names with most of them, couldn't tell you any names except for a few.

[newtonbrook]

Big Chief, Excellent voice. Very well rounded.

Has a very good sense of presence.

[4heavenbound]

I can still hear him, Rosie and Hovie singing at the Long Beach Auditorium in Long Beach, California back in the early 60's when I was about 15 years old.  Great memories. Thanks for posting.

[seancoxen]

Chief had it all. There was never a more complete bass singer in the gospel music field.

[lonemapper]

Love Big Chief. Thank you.