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The Oak Ridge Boys talk about ‘Life Is Beautiful,’ and new album (Includes interview)

The Oak Ridge Boys - Markos Papadatos
The Oak Ridge Boys - Markos Papadatos

The Oak Ridge Boys are comprised of Duane Allen, Joe Bonsall, William Lee Golden, and Richard Sterban.

Regarding their single “Life Is Beautiful,” Allen said, “I got a text from someone, who told me to check out Keb Mo on the Internet and the song ‘Life is Beautiful’ since it sounded like something that we would want to sing. It was probably the perfect new love song that I had heard in quite some time. I couldn’t get it out of my head, it was like an earworm. I felt that Keb Mo was singing right to my heart.”

Front Porch Singin‘ is their fourth collaboration with Grammy-winning producer Dave Cobb. It was recorded during the pandemic, and it’s a record that offers comfort and optimism to each listener. The album will be released on June 11.

On the song selection process for their new album, Bonsall said, “The whole idea that we came up with was four Oak Ridge Boys singing on the front porch old gospel, new gospel, old country, and new country songs. These songs are real familiar that people can sing along with. We added some new songs that fit that process that kept the same attitude. That was the whole basis for the song selection.”

The group acknowledged that “Life Is Beautiful” is their personal favorite song for the time being. “Every song on the album has a purpose and I like everything we recorded,” Allen said.

In 2015, they were inducted into the coveted Country Music Hall of Fame, and they were made members of the hallowed Grand Ole Opry on August 6, 2011. “It’s the epitome of the country music world, actually. You work your entire life looking up to the people in the Hall of Fame, and then one day, we get the word that we are being inducted. That was a great honor then, and it is still an honor today. It is one of the highest achievements that The Oak Ridge Boys have had in our long career in country music,” Golden said.

The Oak Ridge Boys opened up about the 40th Anniversary of their classic hit single “Elvira.” “That feels great,” Sterban exclaimed. “When I first heard it, I knew it was the song that we had been looking for. We all felt that same way, it felt like a hit. A few days later we recorded it in the studio, and we felt like we had a special song. The response from the audience for that song was unbelievable. We called our record label, MCA Records, and told them that we had something special in our hands. Sure enough, we released it and it screamed to the top of the charts, and it became our signature song. All four of us are indebted to ‘Elvira’.”

The group has sold in excess of 41 million units worldwide and they have won five Grammy Awards, nine Gospel Music Association (GMA) Dove Awards, and two American Music Awards. Two of their albums were certified double-platinum and they have scored over 30 Top 10 hits on the Billboard charts.

The Oak Ridge Boys defined the word success as “when you plan something, it’s successful, and then you bring it back home and put it in the bank.”

For their fans, Bonsallconcluded about Front Porch Singin‘, “I don’t think we planned it in the studio, but we may have inadvertently recorded the perfect album for these times. There are some very encouraging songs and messages. People need more faith, love, and healing. It turned out to be an album for the times. We hope that the people that listen to it will take away something really positive from it.”

Their new album Front Porch Singin‘ is available for pre-order by clicking here.

To learn more about The Oak Ridge Boys and their new music, check out their official homepage and their Facebook page.

The Oak Ridge Boys

The Oak Ridge Boys
Brandon Wood

Markos Papadatos
Written By

Markos Papadatos is Digital Journal's Editor-at-Large for Music News. Papadatos is a Greek-American journalist and educator that has authored over 20,000 original articles over the past 18 years. He has interviewed some of the biggest names in music, entertainment, lifestyle, magic, and sports. He is a 16-time "Best of Long Island" winner, where for three consecutive years (2020, 2021, and 2022), he was honored as the "Best Long Island Personality" in Arts & Entertainment, an honor that has gone to Billy Joel six times.

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