Is gospel legend Bill Gaither still touring?
Gospel singer Bill Gaither, who has created legendary songs such as “Because He Lives” that have taken on the status of universal hymns of the Christian faith, recently turned 89 and could rest on his laurels.
But Gaither is still touring, sharing his faith through song.
Tonight, Gaither and his touring group, The Gaither Vocal Band, will be in Alabama.
They have a concert set for tonight at 6 p.m. in Gadsden at The Church at Wills Creek, 2730 Wills Creek Road just off Interstate 759. The 1,400-seat auditorium is expected to be sold out, but a few general admission seats are still available at $32 per ticket.
Gaither previously performed in April 2022 at the Church at Wills Creek. “They sold it out,” said Pastor Jason Ellen.
“Gaither is the benchmark in Southern gospel, and still cutting-edge,” Ellen said. “Their new music is really good and worshipful. They make it current now. They are very good at their craft.”
Featured singers tonight include Chris Blue, Ladye Love Smith, Gene McDonald and Kevin Williams.
Gaither noted in an interview more than 20 years ago with AL.com that he’d been coming to Alabama for 40 years to sing, so make it now more than 60 years coming to Alabama to sing.
‘‘So many of our pioneers are from Alabama,” Gaither said. That would include such former Gaither concert performers as Jake Hess, Howard and Vestal Goodman, Brock Speer, Ben Speer and Bob Cain.
Gaither grew up in Alexandria, Indiana, listening to gospel quartet music on WSM in Nashville and WSB in Atlanta.
Gaither and his wife, Gloria, 60, were schoolteachers in their Indiana hometown when they began writing songs.
The Gaither song catalogue includes such standards as ‘‘Because He Lives,’’ ‘‘The King is Coming,’’ and ‘‘He Touched Me,’’ which won a Grammy Award for Elvis Presley.
Gaither once used The Alabama Theatre in Birmingham to record two Christmas-theme television shows and albums. They were recorded in August, but the audience got into the Christmas spirit by dressing in red and white.