Over the previous 3 years, the Greenes were on 3 different record labels…Riversong, Eagle One and Journey Records. By the end of 1988, Roger Bennett (head of Journey Records) had re-joined the Cathedral Quartet, and the Journey label was absorbed by Homeland Music (which Bill Traylor was the head of), with most of the artists on the Journey label moving to Homeland. Instead, the Greenes opted to make the bold move of creating their own company, called ACA (American Christian Artists), which allowed them to maintain creative control of their music and make their own decisions for the Greenes music and ministry. The idea for ACA stemmed from conversations Tim Greene and Roger Talley were having concerning the need to create a label that would assist not just with recording, but also with bookings, radio promotion, distribution, etc. With Tim as the owner, and Roger serving as consultant for the label, the Greenes’ “10th Anniversary Live” recording would be the very first release on the new label. Over time though, ACA became mostly associated with just the Greenes’ music (along with solo releases by Tim, Tony and TaRanda), but other artists recorded for the label as well, including the Telestials, Barbara Fairchild, Won by One, and Lucy Hemingway.

Produced by Phil & Carolyn Cross, “10th Anniversary Live” was recorded before an enthusiastic audience at the Paramount Arts Center in Ashland, Kentucky in March 1989. If that location sounds familiar, the Singing Americans recorded their “Live and Alive” album there in 1984 (Jerry & the Goffs also recorded a live album on that same night as well), and a few live videos were shot there also. At this time, Vince Shifflet was the Greenes piano player, and along with Tim playing the bass guitar, that was their band, along with soundtracks on certain songs. For this live recording, they brought in a full house-band to play behind the Greenes on stage which included Dirk Johnson playing keyboards, David Smith on bass guitar, Eddie Anderson playing the drums, John Willis picking guitars and Russell Mauldin on percussion. According to Tim, there were no overdubs done in the studio, and everything was played “live” that night. The band was not overpowering and was actually pretty understated, but they did a tremendous job complimenting what the Greenes were doing vocally. Since the Greenes normally didn’t have a big stage band, I think the low key playing the band did, worked out perfectly for this live recording.

After an excited introduction by former Riversong head (and current Homeland CEO), Bill Traylor, the Greenes hit the stage to enthusiastic applause with the upbeat, “Lord, Lift Me Up”. Featuring Tim, the song was written by a young lady named Lynn Rhew, who sang with the Roy Knight Singers at the time, who also recorded the song on their 1988 recording, “Overshadowed By the Blood”. This was a great lead off song, which led perfectly into the upbeat testimonial, “Family Business”, which was written by Phil and Carolyn Cross, especially for the Greenes and this live recording.

After the applause dies down, the acoustic guitar kicks off an understated rendition of the song, “More Precious Than Gold”, which the Greenes first recorded 2 years earlier on their “Family Praise” album. By the time they recorded this live album, the song had become a classic Greenes concert staple, and in fact, upon recognizing the song, the audience breaks out in brief spontaneous applause. Then, as Tony does what I have seen him do often, he steps in mid-song to basically set the tone for the concert, before leading the audience in a word of prayer, after which Kim delivers a powerful performance on the second verse. As the song builds with intensity, they show off some of that amazing harmony before they hit that classic “Greenes ending”! This song showcases several important factors in the Greenes classic sound…first, the amazing harmonies which they knew exactly how to work it in a song without sounding forced…second is the unique syncopation, as they remain behind the meter on certain words and phrases…then third, the classic “Greenes ending”, which I like to call “organized chaos”. This is where each person kind of does their own thing building up to the grand ending, but it’s not done haphazardly, and despite what it sounds like, it’s very calculated and purposeful, and it’s something Everette Greene taught his kids how to do and how to do it effectively. The Greenes perfected the art of the power ending, and it was a hallmark of their sound!

As Kim steps up to the mic to testify and introduce the next song, she delivers a powerful performance on the Tim Greene penned, “When I Knelt, the Blood Fell”. This would become Tim, and the Greenes, very first #1 song, holding that position for 3 months in a row from November 1989 through January 1990. Tim wrote the song on a Burger King take-out bag (as it was the closest thing he could find to write on), and with a little guidance from Ronny Hinson later on, as Tim struggled with the line, “what made all hell tremble, and rang Heaven’s bells”, ultimately becoming one of the Greenes’ greatest hits. I remember as a DJ in 1989, I was so excited when that little green 45 single arrived in the mail, and I couldn’t wait to play it on my next shift!

Next, the Greenes pick up the tempo as they jump into the exciting concert favorite, “I’m Saved”, which was written by Elmer Cole (writer of the classic tune, “Ten Thousand Years”), before Tony introduces one of the Greenes earliest tunes, “It Sure Sounds Like Angels”. With simple acoustic guitar accompaniment, the Greenes turn in an impeccable performance on the first verse and chorus, and before Kim sings the second verse, Tim steps up to share a personal testimony of singing “Amazing Grace” during a high school assembly. As Kim delivers the goods on the second verse, before the band and the Greenes join her on the chorus, you once again, hear that “Greenes syncopation” at various points in the song, along with the Greenes nearly stopping the song entirely to emphasize their harmony on certain words and phrases, and it’s an absolutely gorgeous performance. This live recording would not have been complete without including this song, and I’m so glad they included it here!

After the applause dies down, Tony takes a moment to introduce each of the Greenes, and once introductions were completed, the group turns in an excellent performance on the Ronny Hinson penned, “No One Blows a Horn Like Gabriel Can”, which features Kim. This song was first recorded by the Lesters on their 1987 recording, “Encore”, and the Greenes do a great job with their version of the song, before Tony takes a moment to introduce their dad, Everette, who takes the stage to introduce the instrumental, “Home Sweet Home”. Showing off his “chops”, Everette proves he is no slouch at the piano with his “slip note” country style piano playing, and it’s a wonderful highlight of the recording.

After a brief intro by Tony, the Greenes deliver another powerful performance on the power ballad, “Arise, My Love”. Featuring Tony, this was the second single from this recording, topping out at #15 in the Singing News chart for June and July 1990. Written by Eddie Carswell, this was a big song in the CCM market by the group NewSong, who recorded it on their 1987 album, “Say Yes”. Phil Cross, being a big fan of NewSong, pitched it to the Greenes to record, as he thought it would be a good fit on this live recording. I worked at a CCM radio station at the time (who played SG on the weekends), and I remember hearing the song there, but the Greenes was the first version I really paid attention to, and despite being a CCM song, Phil Cross was right, as it worked extremely well for the Greenes. The song also became a big concert favorite for the Imperials (who recorded the song in 1997 and again in 2006), and it was also recently recorded by Triumphant Quartet back in 2023, on their “Hymns & Worship” recording.

As the live concert comes to a close, the Greenes, as a reprise, jump into a chorus and tag of their hit song, “Miracle in Me”, and it’s a showstopper! By this point, the Greenes had been staging the song for a couple of years and were extremely comfortable with singing it, and they had perfected the art of “the ending”, which as I stated earlier, was one of the hallmarks of the Greenes sound. A phrase I like to use, I call what the Greenes do here as “organized chaos” (a friend of mine likes to call it “singing with abandon”), and this is what you hear very clearly on this song, especially on the final tag. When I am trying to explain the use of this “organized chaos” to someone unfamiliar with the term, I use this performance from this live recording as “Exhibit A”, as it’s perfectly and flawlessly executed here! As the song concludes, the audience is throwing babies from the balcony, and most people would opt to fade out the applause, ending the live recording on a “high”, but not the case here. As Tim quiets everyone down, he takes a moment to testify and he delivers a heartfelt message, before leading everyone into a beautiful moment of worship, as the audience sings a couple of choruses of the song, before the singing fades away to silence.

“Live” videos were becoming a big deal in Southern Gospel Music by the late 1980’s, but the Greenes opted not to shoot a live video this night in Ashland, Kentucky, but would shoot their 10th anniversary live video a few weeks later at Viking Hall in Bristol, Tennessee. On this video they recorded most of the songs found on the “10th Anniversary Live” recording, along with a few songs from their “From Our Heart” album. It’s a really great live video by the Greenes, which also features Dean Hopper playing the drums for the group!

“10th Anniversary Live” was a perfect culmination honoring the Greenes’ 10 years together as a family group. While it’s not one completely cohesive live recording (there are 2-3 places where there is some obvious editing), you had all the elements needed to create a truly wonderful live experience…great and exciting singing and performances, a band that could deliver the goods and compliment the vocals, an exciting crowd that loves you, and an outstanding collection of songs, which included a perfect balance of older and new tunes, which takes a glance back, while also looking forward. Though there are a lot of slower songs, that was where the Greenes really excelled at, and the slower tunes were balanced throughout the recording, so the live recording doesn’t drag or get boring. “10th Anniversary Live” was an excellent live recording overall, and it was an outstanding representation of their live concerts at that time.

As I alluded to in my last article, Kim had married Dean Hopper in November 1988, and she would eventually leave the Greenes before 1989 was over. In fact, it would be during the 1989 National Quartet Convention that Kim would make her final appearance with the Greenes, as Kim sang the first verse of “When I Knelt”, and when they came to the second verse of the song, Kim passed the baton over to the Greenes newest member, Amy Lambert, and a new era of the Greenes was born. Upon her departure from the Greenes, Kim did not immediately hit the road with the Hoppers, as she was unsure of what she wanted to do, and opted to stay home, while Dean continued to travel with his family. The Hoppers had been traveling without a soprano for the last couple of years and they were struggling with what they wanted to do vocally with the group going forward. During this time, they were trying out several soprano singers, while also working on a new recording, so they approached Kim about doing the soprano part on the album, and everything just fell into place. By the time the recording was officially released in late 1989/early 1990, Kim had officially joined the Hoppers. In fact, that recording, titled “On These Grounds”, was initially released without a picture of the Hoppers on the cover, but once Kim officially joined, they redid the cover to include a picture of the “new” Hoppers, with Kim as part of the group, and a new, exciting era of the Hoppers was born!

Despite Kim’s departure, though personally heartbreaking for Tony and Tim, they pressed on and quickly rebounded with renewed vigor and excitement! Not missing a beat with Amy Lambert, the Greenes continued enjoying immense success over the ensuing years, and we’ll dive into the next era of the Greenes in our next article…so stay tuned!

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