The Impressions, including Chattanoogans Fred Cash and Sam Gooden, will be honored by the state of Tennessee with the installation of a Tennessee Music Pathways marker on Tuesday, Dec. 3 at the Bessie Smith Cultural Center.
Attending the event will be Cash and Gooden, as well as family members of the late Curtis Mayfied, including his wife Altheida and son Cheaa Mayfield. Mayfield passed away in 1999 and was a member of the group almost 12 years, leaving them in 1970.
He is credited with adding a social conscious to their songs, including hits such as "People Get Ready." Gooden was a founding member of the group and Cash joined six months after it formed after he turned 18.
Online:
Hear a podcast with Fred Cash and Sam Gooden at https://peoplewithbarry.podbean.com/mf/play/w97rsg/Impression_final_final.mp3
Gooden and Cash continued to perform until retiring two years ago. They added several singers over the years to take the lead role once held by Mayfield. Among the replacements singers are Reggie Torian, Willie Kitchens and Jermaine Purifory, who was with the group for the last years.
Tennessee Music Pathways is an online planning guide that connects visitors to the state's rich musical heritage at tnmusicpathways.com. It stretches across all 95 counties and features hundreds of landmarks from the seven genres of music that call Tennessee home.
The ceremony will take place at 10 a.m. on Tuesday.
