Book Review: The Jordainaires

The greatest backup group in the history of recorded music undoubtedly was the Jordanaires, a gospel group of mostly Tennessee boys, formed in the 1940s, that set the standard for studio vocal groups in the '50s, '60s, '70s, and beyond. In their sixty-five-year career, from 1948 through 2013, the recordings they sang on have sold an estimated eight billion copies. They sang on more than 200 of Elvis's recordings, including most of his biggest hits. They were in three of his best-known movies, appeared with him on most of his early nation-wide TV shows, and toured with him for many years. Throughout Elvis's early career, they were his most trusted friends and probably his most positive influence. "No telling how many thousands of miles we rode together over those fourteen years," remembered Gordon Stoker, the group's manager and high tenor, "and most of those miles were good miles, with lots of laughs, and lots of talk about life."

On November 15, 2022, The Jordanaires: The Story of the World's Greatest Backup Vocal Group will be published. Backbeat Books, a subsidiary of Rowman and Littlefield, provided an early galley for review.

This is the story straight from one of its founding members recorded words. Gordon Stoker was the group's manager and high tenor. His son Alan is a musician, vocalist, audio engineer and music historian. Together, they compile the story of this world-renowned group. And what a history they had. Besides their work with Elvis, they also had great success with Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Ricky Nelson, Andy Williams, Fats Domino, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Dinah Shore, The Everly Brothers, Glen Campbell, Patti Page, Neil Young, Perry Como, Ringo Starr, Tom Jones, Andy Griffith, Bobby Vinton, Brenda Lee, Billy Ray Cyrus, Waylon Jennings, and about 2,100 other recording acts. That is a varitable who's who of music. Through anecdotes and reminiscing, we get some interesting stories of these performers.

While I knew of the group and their sound, I never knew their story. Gordon Stoker's recollections are like listening to an elderly family member sharing the past over a glass of lemonade on a hot summer afternoon. It is comfortable and easy-going. His story is a reminder of the simpler times of the first half of the 20th century. For someone my age (born the the mid-60's), it is the right balance of foreign and familiar - in a very good way.

I learned a lot from reading this one. I suspect I would have gotten even more enjoyment from it if my knowledge-base related to country music was a lot broader than it is.