Blackwood Brothers w/ London Parris - Zion's Hill

[Gamolmann]

Was this Bill Shaw singing tenor?

[adkinsda]

@Gamolmann

yes Bill Shaw on tenor.

[ShallCatsAdore]

tell me which was better, Chief or London??????

[ohjason10]

@ShallCatsAdore They are completely equal! Both better than JD

[EnchiladaMan360]

@ShallCatsAdore London. Hands down. His training from J. D. really shows.

[jmcinvale]

one cannot forget J. D. Sumner who by far is the best bass singer I have ever heard.

[djcamp2000]

"prettier than a dewdrop on a rosebud"

[mvdayoc]

In my opinion London Parris was / is about the best bass singer. Smooth / old school bass singing. No ear monitor, no high tech condensor mic just smooth low bass singing! Awesome.. Like to sing with him when I get to heaven.

[jmcinvale]

@mvdayoc

I agree. Learned what he knows from J.D. Sumner

[mvdayoc]

In my opinion London Parris was / is about the best bass singer. Smooth / old school bass singing. No ear monitor, no high tech condensor mic just smooth low bass singing! Awesome.. Like to sing with him when I get to heaven.

[gloriajean61]

London and Jim Hamill were the best in the business. London was a very sooth bass singer.

[1234JDParris5678]

Cecil had two jobs. One was singin the baritone part and the other was trying to keep from losing it when London pulled some of his antics. They must have had a lot of fun.

[PoMilostiEvo]

I have always loved the sound of Parriss

[8124876731]

I think that Lee Roy Abernathy is the reason London Parris became a great bass singer. He heard him clear his throat in a men's restroom.

[victoryopop]

@8124876731 What do you mean? Is that REALLY how he got discovered?

[edukipable]

Bravo i love these! am in kenya n i would like to get their dvds esp...for Blackwood , n Jd ...plz help where can i get??/

[TarheelMusicMan]

top 5 alltime

[HiltonsFriends]

Basso profundo!

[Gravitazia]

Абсолютно искусственный бас. На самом деле - тенорррррр!!!

[Hendrick4404]

now you know where tim duncan got his bass singing talent. duncan learned how to sing bass under the direction of London. you can really hear London coming out of Tim.

[SunshineRox007]

It is very difficult to get a good bass. I dont think the bass singers get the credit they deserve!! By far the best I've heard. My second fav. George Younce.

[gospelpianomanone]

London Parris was the MAN!!,,,A Bass Singer's..Bass Singer!!!. He always did a "lead" to perfection and with class. These younger bass singers of today, need to take notes from London's bass singing abilities...that way they would not be just a LOW BARITONE and then maybe they could be a solid Quartet!!. London, was and still is my all time FAVORITE BASS SINGER!!!!!!!!.

[jmcinvale]

@gospelpianomanone

Gotta remember that J.D. Sumner did mentor London Parris.

[jmcinvale]

@gospelpianomanone

london would not be good had J.D. Sumner not taught him how to be a bass singer.

[lonemapper]

I can't imagine what the Cathedrals would have become if George would never have taken a lead. Maybe Gaither should never take a lead but most pro basses are more than just the fourth part in the harmony.

[grac27]

I really love this! I love that LOW bass!

[markcash]

Big Chief sung "lead on verses" plenty of times!!

Some of my favorite songs are where they feature the bass singer.

[fox76012]

Omgosh! Lol! You would almost not be able to hear the amazing talent of some of these guys if they never sing lead! If a quartet (any quartet) did not want to feature their base singers in lead parts, then there would be no bass singers in quartets period! Lol!

[M007rk]

Excellent music! Thank you so much for the memories. I grew up Listening to this kind of music and always loved the Blackwood Brothers.

Listening to London Parris, as well as JD Sumner gives me goosebumps. JD can go lower, but London has the better voice.(In my opinion)

[jowox]

what great double low A:s from London here! Such resonance!

[joestephr1991]

Listen to his video I want to get closer, by the rebels quartet, his notes weren't so strong at the very end of the song, but dear me he hit that double low B I believe, with strength!

[justinloves3993]

My Grandpa just died this morning he used to sing this at church

[yahoofreak44]

I hear some voice resemblance between London Parris and Tim Duncan...as i recall he was trained by Parris!

[revival79]

I forgot to mention that the last project he sang on, to my knowledge, was a solo project he did in 1987. Of course by that time cassettes had become popular so it was released in that form. I had an original copy a few years ago but lost it during a move. Needless to say I was sick over it because it is even more rare than most of his early stuff. It was great though, featuring London's big voice accompanied by Jackie Marshall of Blackwood Brother's fame on the piano.

[GospelPhil]

I have the record, a 33 1/3 rpm, featuring London on the songs....I have always loved his bass singing since I first saw him at Ellis Auditorum in Memphis TN

[GospelPhil]

I have the record, a 33 1/3 rpm, featuring London on the songs....I have always loved his bass singing since I first saw him at Ellis Auditorum in Memphis TN

[revival79]

Anything London recorded during his second tenure with the Rebels Quartet would have plenty of low ones. Also, any of his Apostles albums have alot of low stuff. I have one he did in the early 80's with the Senators quartet from Memphis, TN, it has some great low notes. The trick is, his singing career was pretty much over by the mid 80's, so almost every recording he did is in album form, and can be very hard to find.

[Bravilor]

Please recommend some recording by Paris where he hits some really low note.

[revival79]

Let me also add in reference to my last post, that the low F London hit on the album was excellent quality. I had the priviledge to sing part time with the revival version of London's quartet the Apostles, formed in the early 70's. In this group was one of London's early lead singers, Rick Smith. Rick told me once during his original tenure { I think 1974-76}, London sang down to a double low D once during a sound check. That is one step above Sumner's famous C. He also said it had Quality!

[1234JDParris5678]

Great Trivia. London was my favorite bass singer of all. The guy could do it all. Wish I could have heard him hit the ultra low one that you described. Thank for your insights.

[revival79]

London Parris was my favorite bass singer of yesteryear. He could not only sing low, but his low notes were sung. What I mean is he didn't growl or try to use blowtones. He and Tim Riley had the lowest QUALITY bass voices I've heard, meaning they could maintain a tone and cut {edge} below a low B flat. George Younce Had a good quality A flat in his prime. The lowest note I have London hitting on an album is the F below low C.

[uofmrebel]

I like that little eye shift Parris does. It's as if saying, "Hey everybody, can you believe how low I'm singing?"

[gospellover]

What is his lowest note on this song according to your ears?

[uofmrebel]

Hmm, that first "wide" was pretty low.  The "mended" was pretty low and the "still" toward the end.

[uofmrebel]

Hmm, that first "wide" was pretty low. The "mended" was pretty low and the "still" toward the end.

[gospellover]

I'm talking bout the note itself

[gospellover]

I'm talking bout the note itself

[uofmrebel]

I'm not a singer, so I couldn't say. I like listening to these singers because I can't do it myself.

[1234JDParris5678]

Most likely an "A" below low "C" ... I am sitting here singing along and that is about the bottom of my range so I am pretty sure that is about where it would be.

Remember, JD Sumner is noted in the Guiness Book of Records as hitting a "Double Low C" ... At that time, the early - mid 1950's, that was the lowest note ever on record ... There are a lot of guys these days that can do that, or come really, really, close ...

[gospellover]

Wasn't is 67 or 68 that Sumner did the Double Low C on Blessed Assurance?

Better check your dates.

[1234JDParris5678]

I saw sometime in regards to that last week on some website. Wish I remembered. I was surprised on the approximate date myself. I also seem to remember when I was a kid in the early 60's that James Blackwood referred to J.D. as the "Lowest Bass Singer in the World".

Either way this gives me something else to research. Thanks for your comment.

[gospellover]

I have kept up with Sumner since the mis 60's.

I guss if he hit a lower note that anyone else in the late 50' and 60's than he was the lowest that doen't mean that it took a Double Low C to do it.

Everything is relative.

[1234JDParris5678]

Now that is an excellent observation ...

[larmoe542]

London was indeed a wonderful, wonderful bass.

[adkinsda]

Ever watch the Bugs Bunny cartoon where he's on a desert isle with 2 starving men? One o fthem sure looks like London. Google Wackiki Wabbit and check the images. LOL!

[carteru93]

I think it's the nose, sure must help his deep bass voice though, man!

[GamingDrummer89]

@adkinsda London actually looks like a combination of a current neighbor of mine and a former neighbor. I showed my mom a picture of London and she said so herself! He looks like both of them combined.

BTW, I tried searching for what you said to, and that guy does look a little like him...he's just more tan and his nose is obviously MUCH bigger than anybody's in real life is, lol.

[TheRacarden]

@adkinsda It's true. His buddy thinks he's a hot dog and that one thinks the other is a hamburger and they chase each other trying to eat one another. Brilliant!

[adkinsda]

I have LPs with Jerry Logan.

[1234JDParris5678]

I don't know where people are finding this stuff but KEEP IT COMIN'. I could talk quartets and especially bass singers all day long. There is a Big Difference between a good bass voice and a good quartet bass singer. The latter has to do with the flair in which a bass dude adds to the quartet. London Parris without a question was the best combination of both. In my opinion JD Sumner was the lowest but London Parris the most fun and the best overall addition to a quartet.

[klsrmm523]

1234JDParris5678

Wasn't London the BEST? His voice is SOO smooth as a bass

[uofmrebel]

London Parris was really low. He and JD were almost in a class of their own. Some of the other bass singers are/were just barely low enough to be bass (Bill Gaither comes to mind).

[1234JDParris5678]

Gaither just sings the bass part in his quartet ... He is not really a bass singer ... There are a lot of guys with baritone voices that can do the bass part ... They are just not what I call "Ultra Bass Dudes" like you hear in most quartets ... Really, most bass singers in these professional quartets are in a league of their own ...

[Bravilor]

Can anyone recommend any common records or songs (ones you could find on DC++) where London Parris displays some serious low bass singing (and also which group)?

[gospellover]

Having seen London Parris many times on stage I would say that any low bass he did was serious. The last time I saw him was in Greeneville SC a month before he died. At the Grand Ole Gospel Reunion.

After his stand with the Rebels he came out and sat in front of us to listen to JD Sumner and the Stamps.

[Bravilor]

I didn't mean that this wasn't serious :) I hadn't heard him before I saw this video and he is my new favourite.

[gospellover]

London Parris was a trained singer. His real name was Conley Parris.

[usetobe727]

Awesome!!! London is one of the greats along with a few I remember such as J.D. Sumner, Jim Weatherington, Rex Nelon, Burl Strevel, Paul Downing, John Gresham, Calvin Runion, Reese McKinney, Tommy Thompson, Dave Rogers, Big Jim Waites, Aycel Soward, Arnold Hyles, Bill Lyles, Herman Harper, Noel Fox,

[1234JDParris5678]

Great list ... I loved Big John Gresham during those great years with the Thasher Brothers. Maybe you remember a guy that carried the nick name of "Low Note". He sang with the Rangers Quartet in the early 50's and was in a tragic car wreck that left him in a wheel chair.

[revival79]

The guy that ended up in the wheelchair was Arnold Hyles. Prior to J.D. he was billed as the lowest bass in the industry.

[GospelPhil]

Arnold didn't have to eat the mike to make himself heard!

[in2stuff2006]

Add Seals "low note" Hilton to that list...Harmoneers Quartet.

[1234JDParris5678]

Excellent Bass Singer Knowledge ... I'm impressed ...

[Sandraz1634]

When did London Parris sing with the Blackwood Brothers???? I always thought he was with the Rebel's Quarted. This video is very good and Cecil and James Blackwood very young as well as Bill Shaw.

Very - Very good.

[jetrec]

London joined the Blackwoods in 1968 and was with them until 1972. He left the Blackwoods to go back to manage the Rebels which eventually turned into the Apostles.

[arvinwynn]

I just can't believe this great video....thanks you so much ...what a classic for sure ....boy if only the new groups would do this type of good old fashion singing .I remember seeing this when it first aired .

[stormyeyedbear]

Another great post Dean.

[MoJoPiano]

WOW! London Parris does it again! Great song by a great quartet! Enjoyed hearing Dave Weston at the keyboard too! THANKS! MoJoPiano

[statesmenfan]

London Parris is one of my favorites along with Big Chief.

[lonemapper]

London Paris!! Incredible. Thank You

[huvvahuvva]

Thanks for this one! Just great!