On Center Stage The Chuck Wagon Gang by Jimmy Reno Over the past 85 years, the Chuck Wagon Gang has been a name that’s synonymous with gospel music.
no vocalist, Josh Garner as tenor vocalist and Darrell Morris as bass vocalist.
The quartet was created by David P. Carter in 1935, just after the great depression ended. The group’s first radio break came after landing a spot as sponsored singers for Bewley’s Flour in 1936.
Smith reflects back on the past and the impact her family’s group had over the years with artists like Haggard and Charlie Daniels.
The “Gang” was signed to Columbia Records and remained with the company for 29 years. At one point in time, the group was the top group Columbia had with over 39 million in record sales. The “Gang” has performed at such notable venues as Carnegie Hall, the Hollywood Bowl and the Grand Ole Opry. The group was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame and the Smithsonian Institution’s classic American recordings. Legendary country artists like Merle Haggard have spoken about the influence the music of the Chuck Wagon Gang had on them. In terms of music, the group has been an American institution. The group today consists of owner/manager and alto vocalist Shaye Smith, Melissa Kemper as sopra-
“Merle was friends with my mother and Jimmy Davis. He’s been a friend of the family for a long time. To hear him talk about the Chuck Wagon Gang and hearing them when he was growing up in Texas, to know what my family did in the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s and how it affected some of these country legends, is just very humbling and incredible,” Shaye explained. In the last few weeks of his life, Haggard was writing music. Shaye Smith continued: “He was actually writing music for the Chuck Wagon Gang in those last few weeks. He passed before he could finish it. Merle was a special guy. He was an incredible musician and there’s a close tie there between him and the ‘Gang.’”
