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| The Sounds of Joy |
| About the Sounds of Joy |
The group that is now The Sounds of Joy dates back to the mid
1980's. We were known then as Glory Bound. We sang for
several years, mostly in Florida and south Georgia. Then God
began to move us in different directions. Vocalists Paul and
Loretta Luke moved to Tennessee. Keyboardist Kay Rice and
her husband, guitarist David moved to Steinhatchee to pastor a
church
By 1999, everyone who had moved away had moved back to
Ocala, but we just never got back together as a group. Also by
then, bass player Gary Bennett's father was in the advanced
stages of terminal cancer. He had always loved to hear Glory
Bound sing, so one afternoon at his request, we brought all the
instruments over to his house and gave a command performance
for him on his front lawn.
Several neighbors gathered around the fence and they enjoyed it
almost as much as Gary's dad did.
That re-lit the fire and Glory Bound was reborn as The Sounds of
Joy. There have been quite a few changes since then. In
November of 2001 David Rice was called home to glory. In July
of 2003, Kay Rice felt the call to come off the road and work full
time in the music ministry of New Covenant Worship Center. The
Lord sent Linda Riley to fill that void. In November, the Lukes left
and took the bus with them.
For a while it looked like The Sounds of Joy had reached the end
of the road, but God was simply giving us a major overhaul in
preparation of greater things to come. Evangelist Steve Swift
stepped in as front man.
In December 2003, the Lord blessed us with a miracle bus that
was newer and nicer than the one we lost. Not long after that,
Larry Hill joined and our four-part harmony was again complete.
In September of 2004, Linda got a phone call out of the blue from
Ted Britt, a steel player who had heard our music on WWKO
Radio. He said God just told him to call and see if we could put
him to work for the Lord. We were blessed to have Ted for nearly
a year before he had to come off the road.
In October of 2005, the Lord made some more changes. Steve
Swift left to become associate pastor of a church in Tampa. His
replacement was Earleene Roberts--a lady with a special
connection to the Sounds of Joy. Earleene's daughter is Laura
Johnson. Laura sings with the Sonshine Quartet , a group we've
been friends with for years.
For a while, we thought October would bring another dramatic
change. On October 14, Larry suffered a serious heart attack.
The paramedics said he died twice in the ambulance on the way
to the hospital. However, they revived him both times and when
they got to the hospital, the doctors were able to stabilize him.
Just two weeks later, Larry was back on stage with a mike in his
hand sounding as good as ever. God truly does perform miracles.
Just two month later, Larry suffered yet another serious heart
attack, but again, God spared his life and he was back on stage
in a remarkably short time.
In May of 2007, Earleene decided to leave the group. Larry,
Linda, and Bob continued to sing God's praises as a trio.
October of 2007 brought another change to our group. Bob
Paxton decided to leave the group to form Southern Harmony with
Earleene Roberts. Eddie Park stepped in to provide us with our
third vocal and back up piano. Brandon Smithson, Larry's son,
joined the group as our drummer. Finally, in February of 2008,
Steve Swift rejoined the group and gave us our four part harmony.
CHANGES!! The Sounds of Joy have experienced many
changes over the past few months. Linda Riley, Eddie Park, and
Steve Swift all decided to leave the group. We were left with one
vocal and no piano player. We knew that if the group was to
continue God would have to work a miracle. We relied on our
faith and belief in God that He would send the vocalists and the
piano player that was needed for the Sounds of Joy. And, of
course, God provided that miracle. Tina Solero, Susie Fister, and
Jennifer Bennett all joined the group to provide the vocals that
were needed. We had to use soundtracks, for the first time, until
God sent us the right piano player. After about 2 months, our
prayers were answered when Kim Coski joined the group as our
new piano player. The Sounds of Joy was complete once more.
The Sounds of Joy look and sound a lot different than they did
when they got back together, but they remain steadfastly
committed to carrying out the Great Commission.
The Sounds of Joy have brought the Gospel to many churches,
both large and small and in many different denominations.
Please see our References page. Please use the e-mail link
below if you need more information or would like to book The
Sounds of Joy: Sounds of Joy Information
God bless you.
1980's. We were known then as Glory Bound. We sang for
several years, mostly in Florida and south Georgia. Then God
began to move us in different directions. Vocalists Paul and
Loretta Luke moved to Tennessee. Keyboardist Kay Rice and
her husband, guitarist David moved to Steinhatchee to pastor a
church
By 1999, everyone who had moved away had moved back to
Ocala, but we just never got back together as a group. Also by
then, bass player Gary Bennett's father was in the advanced
stages of terminal cancer. He had always loved to hear Glory
Bound sing, so one afternoon at his request, we brought all the
instruments over to his house and gave a command performance
for him on his front lawn.
Several neighbors gathered around the fence and they enjoyed it
almost as much as Gary's dad did.
That re-lit the fire and Glory Bound was reborn as The Sounds of
Joy. There have been quite a few changes since then. In
November of 2001 David Rice was called home to glory. In July
of 2003, Kay Rice felt the call to come off the road and work full
time in the music ministry of New Covenant Worship Center. The
Lord sent Linda Riley to fill that void. In November, the Lukes left
and took the bus with them.
For a while it looked like The Sounds of Joy had reached the end
of the road, but God was simply giving us a major overhaul in
preparation of greater things to come. Evangelist Steve Swift
stepped in as front man.
In December 2003, the Lord blessed us with a miracle bus that
was newer and nicer than the one we lost. Not long after that,
Larry Hill joined and our four-part harmony was again complete.
In September of 2004, Linda got a phone call out of the blue from
Ted Britt, a steel player who had heard our music on WWKO
Radio. He said God just told him to call and see if we could put
him to work for the Lord. We were blessed to have Ted for nearly
a year before he had to come off the road.
In October of 2005, the Lord made some more changes. Steve
Swift left to become associate pastor of a church in Tampa. His
replacement was Earleene Roberts--a lady with a special
connection to the Sounds of Joy. Earleene's daughter is Laura
Johnson. Laura sings with the Sonshine Quartet , a group we've
been friends with for years.
For a while, we thought October would bring another dramatic
change. On October 14, Larry suffered a serious heart attack.
The paramedics said he died twice in the ambulance on the way
to the hospital. However, they revived him both times and when
they got to the hospital, the doctors were able to stabilize him.
Just two weeks later, Larry was back on stage with a mike in his
hand sounding as good as ever. God truly does perform miracles.
Just two month later, Larry suffered yet another serious heart
attack, but again, God spared his life and he was back on stage
in a remarkably short time.
In May of 2007, Earleene decided to leave the group. Larry,
Linda, and Bob continued to sing God's praises as a trio.
October of 2007 brought another change to our group. Bob
Paxton decided to leave the group to form Southern Harmony with
Earleene Roberts. Eddie Park stepped in to provide us with our
third vocal and back up piano. Brandon Smithson, Larry's son,
joined the group as our drummer. Finally, in February of 2008,
Steve Swift rejoined the group and gave us our four part harmony.
CHANGES!! The Sounds of Joy have experienced many
changes over the past few months. Linda Riley, Eddie Park, and
Steve Swift all decided to leave the group. We were left with one
vocal and no piano player. We knew that if the group was to
continue God would have to work a miracle. We relied on our
faith and belief in God that He would send the vocalists and the
piano player that was needed for the Sounds of Joy. And, of
course, God provided that miracle. Tina Solero, Susie Fister, and
Jennifer Bennett all joined the group to provide the vocals that
were needed. We had to use soundtracks, for the first time, until
God sent us the right piano player. After about 2 months, our
prayers were answered when Kim Coski joined the group as our
new piano player. The Sounds of Joy was complete once more.
The Sounds of Joy look and sound a lot different than they did
when they got back together, but they remain steadfastly
committed to carrying out the Great Commission.
The Sounds of Joy have brought the Gospel to many churches,
both large and small and in many different denominations.
Please see our References page. Please use the e-mail link
below if you need more information or would like to book The
Sounds of Joy: Sounds of Joy Information
God bless you.
| "Gospel Singing Southern Style" |