The X Factor

Expect the "X Factor" when you come to see Herb Allen (above,left ) and the Colwell Brothers (above, right) return to Nashville, Tennessee on Saturday evening, June 23 for a special 7:00 p.m. concert at the J.T. Moore Middle School Auditorium, which is located at 4425 Granny White Pike.

It's the "X Factor" as in "Xcellent Xylophone." See and hear what I mean from a previous performance of these gentlemen from a couple of years ago, and as captured on YouTube......

 http://youtu.be/adqGxW2T9y8

Tickets are on sale for $10 with a limited number of seats available. For more information, and to order your tickets on line, click the link below.....

https://www.eventinterface.com/registration?eventid=aGplcGpiYQ%3D%3D&refer=www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.eventinterface.com%2FUWPNashville&h=8AQHWuUo7AQFyYG5auQcDHtmU9Yr5XFFbKjcnx5qDyCCI9g

The evening will also include appearances by special Up With People alumni guests and others. You also have the opportunity to pre-order the biography of the Colwell Brothers, entitled "A SONG FOR YOU" by Frank McGee....

The book prices range from $15.00 (soft cover), to $17.50 (hard copy) and $20.00 (deluxe edition). 10% of all the book sales support the Up With People Alumni Association and any extra donations from the evening will provide tuition dollars to sponsor Nashville-area residents to travel with Up With People!

The First Time

It was a cold winter's afternoon shortly after 3:30 p.m. on Monday, January 17, 1966 when the Colwell Brothers, musical director  Herb Allen and the cast of Sing-Out '66 (above) arrived in Nashville for the first time. They came on charter buses via Little Rock, Arkansas and Memphis, Tennessee where the trio, Allen and the cast had done some earlier shows. After their week of performances in Nashville, the lives of hundreds of people in town would be changed forever.

As soon as they reached the Davidson County line they were picked up by a full police escort. "Newman's Raiders" would become the group's constant companions whenever they came to town in the months to come. Their first trip was to the historic Tennessee State Capitol building downtown where they briefly entertained the waiting crowd with an impromptu "Sing-Out" on the steps of the Capitol.

From the steps of the Capitol, the Colwells and the Sing-Out '66 cast walked a short distance over to the Hermitage Hotel where they were the guests of honor at a special welcoming banquet, attended by scores of business and political leaders (including Governor Frank Clement, Mayor Beverly Briley and Congressman Richard Fulton). The banquet was sponsored the city's afternoon newspaper, THE NASHVILLE BANNER (the paper sponsored and heavily publicized the entire week's visit to the city). The dinner was hosted by the paper's publisher James Stahlman. This also marked the first formal show performance done by the Colwells and cast at the end of the evening. It was greeted with loud applause and rave reviews.

This show also marked the first performance by the Colwells and the Sing-Out '66 cast of the song "The Volunteers of Tennessee." It was part of a tradition that saw the Colwells , Herb Allen and the cast often write special pieces of music to honor the home city or state when they were visting and performing. In this case, it was a song that Sing-Out South, the local group formed in the wake of the national group's whirlwind visit to town, performed in every show it did over the next five years of its existence. The lyrics to the song, written on the bus to Nashville by Paul Cowell and Ken Doran (lyrics) and Herb Allen and Ralph Colwell (music) are below, as reproduced in the NASHVILLE BANNER the next day (click on photo to enlarge):

And so, over 46 years later, the Colwell Brothers and Herb Allen return to Nashville for a special show on Saturday evening, June 23 at 7:00 p.m. at the JT Moore Auditorium, 4425 Granny White Pike. Tickets are $10 and availability is limited (just 250 seats). Here's more information about the show and the Colwell's biography book, A SONG FOR THE WORLD, which is also available.

http://www.eventinterface.com/UWPNashville    
   
Be there!

Our Founding Fathers Return

Saturday night, June 23 at 7:00 p.m. in the John Trotwood Moore Auditorium, the Colwell Brothers (Steve, Ralph and Paul), the original trio of Sing-Out '66 and Up With People, return to Nashville along with UWP Musical Director Herb Allen for a special concert. For tickets ($10) and other details click on the link below.  Then join us for an unforgettable night of music and memories with special UWP alumni also joining the celebration. The Colwell Brother's biography, A SONG FOR THE WORLD by Frank McGee is also available (signed) for pre-order below.


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