Eighty-year-old Bill Gaither is ready to share with Lake Charles some of the more than 700 original gospel songs he and wife Gloria have written together during their 50-plus career.
The gospel music veteran and his Gaither Vocal Band will take the stage at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 28, at Glad Tidings Church, 3400 Texas St.
Gaither said it has been about 20 years since his last visit to Lake Charles, and he’s looking forward to spending a night of worship with Southwest Louisiana.
He said concertgoers can expect to celebrate the timeless themes of faith, unity and eternal hope through a variety of music the whole family will enjoy — including their standards like “He Touched Me,” Because He Lives” and “There’s Just Something About That Name.”
“I grew up on a farm in Indiana and I think probably somewhere around sixth or seventh grade, I heard my first quartet on the radio and the music drew me,” he said. “The sound was a lot more exciting than some of the stuff I had heard in church growing up. I just loved the sound, I loved the harmony, I loved all the various approaches that they had to music.
“That was probably when I was 13,” he said. “As I started getting older I began to realize the lyric and the content and what they were saying and the theology of what they were saying about whom they were singing and I went, ‘Oh, that’s cool.’ ”
Gaither said music can have a transforming power.
“I think that still happens today,” he said. “A lot of people criticize contemporary Christian music because it’s too hard rock-y or whatnot. I think for every generation the music has a way to attract a young ear. The good news of it is after they hear it, they say, ‘This is the way of life and I need to make a choice. Is this going to be music for me? Is this going to be a way of life for me?’
“In my teenage years, I decided this needs to be more than music to me. It needs to be a commitment to Christ,” he said.
But the multiple Grammy winner said music wasn’t his initial career path.
After graduating from college, he taught English for nearly a decade.
“I was writing music as my night job and somewhere along the way my night job overtook my day job,” he said.
“I really hated to quit teaching. I waited for three years to see if I could do both, but by two or three years we were getting so many calls to come do the music that we were writing that I just couldn’t do both,” he said. “That was a big decision, but I look back and it was the right decision.”
Gaither said it brings him tremendous job when he runs into former students from his teaching days.
“It’s always affirming when they say, ‘You were a big influence on my life,’ ” he said. “I believe teaching is a great calling for a Christian to do. Those were good years.”
Gaither said the Gaither Vocal Band has been together for about 30 years and will be performing their latest single “Sometimes It Takes A Mountain.” Joining the band Friday will be vocalists Charlotte Ritchie and Gene McDonald, as well as guitarist and comedian Kevin Williams.
Attendees “are going to hear a lot of great four-part harmony and wonderful songs,” he said. “We know how to make an evening fun.
“I’ve always said it all starts with a great song, and we are fortunate that each concert includes great songs that have stood the test of time,” he said. “With all the musical choices that are available now, there is still a special place for the joy and optimism that reside in gospel music. Good news never gets old.”
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Complete information, including ticket pricing, is available by calling 477-7774 or visiting www.gaither.com or http://ift.tt/XM833X. To charge tickets by phone, call 855-484-1991. Tickets are also available in person at the Glad Tidings Church office.
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