Tim Veazey
Archie WatkinsIF YOU GO* What: Sacred Sounds.* When: 7:30 p.m. today.* Where: Ringgold Depot, corner of Depot Street and U.S. Highway 41, Ringgold, Ga.* Admission: $5 donation; free for children 5 and younger.* Website: www.shareamericanfoundation.org
A Southern Gospel Music Hall of Famer and an internationally known piano player will perform tonight for Sacred Sounds at the Ringgold Depot. Randall Franks will emcee.
* Archie Watkins notched 45 years singing tenor with The Inspirations of Bryson City, N.C., known for such songs as "Two Shoes," "I'll Not Turn My Back on Him Now" and "Touring the City."
Deciding he needed to "slow down, change pace" and spend more time with his family, he resigned from the group in February 2009 but not from singing.
"We put up a website, and before I could turn around, I had 30 dates booked," he said in a news release. Those 30 turned into 120 as the year progressed and a new CD, "Pouring Out Blessings." His wife, Cindy, accompanies him on the road.
* Tim Veazey is a Chattanooga native whose talent has taken him around the world. As a musician, he performed with acts including Crystal Gayle, Doug Stone, Billy Joe Royal, Rita Coolidge and Sonny Turner of The Platters. Coolidge featured his song "Out of the Blues" as the title cut of her hit 1996 CD.
As a solo artist, he has performed in concert with such singers as Ray Stevens, Kathy Mattea and Chet Atkins.
He will be featuring songs from his latest recordings "God Is Workin'" and "Gospirisophical."
The event is a fundraiser for the Share America Foundation's Pearl and Floyd Franks Scholarship Fund. The Georgia nonprofit rewards students who excel in the Appalachian musical arts.