For those who may not know, these guys have featured some of Southern Gospel music's most talented people - let's see, for starters, Jack Toney and Tim Riley. Today's line-up includes Jim Hefner (tenor), Randy Lacy (lead) Larry Beck (baritone) Jimmy Wofford (piano), Johnn Washburn (bass guitar) and ... Tim Riley (bass).

Whoa, wait a minute- Tim Riley? The Tim Riley who retired from Gold City a few years ago?

Yep. He's singing with the same group he sang with three decades ago.

You see, the Southmen now sing maybe 15-20 dates a year, according to Jim Hefner. And for Tim Riley, that's just enough to scratch his singing itch. So don't look for Tim on the full-time circuit.

In case you're wondering, Tim hasn't lost a thing in the singing department. He can still hit the low notes with the best of them and he's really enjoying the fact that he's more or less just singing for the fun of it and not dealing with the pressures of keeping a group on the road.

Also in Boaz this weekend was Les Beasley. Like Tim, he's singing a few dates here and there, but in Les' case, he puts together a scrap-iron quartet using other singers who are the program. This weekend, he acquired the services of some of the Diplomats' members and he treated the audience to a handful of songs.

I also learned that Les is a basketball player. Don't laugh - he's not THAT old. On Friday afternoon, Jim Hefner hosted the annual celebrity basketball game that feature members of the Southmen, Perrys, Kingsmen, Diplomats and scattered friends and associates. Les was right in the middle of it all. (If you want to see photos of this game, go to solidrocktalent.com and you'll find them there.)

Former Gold City lead singer Jonathan Wilburn was there, too. He spent a lot of time visiting with fans and artist friends, and it was plain to see that he is enjoying life "away from the road." He speaks very highly of everyone in Gold City (and their new vocalist), and he and Tim Riley spent a lot of time backstage swapping old "war" stories with friends.

I know I'm jumping around here a bit, but let's back up to Thursday night's "Jim Session." What this boils down to is a time of one joke after another. It's a few hours of leave-your-troubles-at-the-house-forget-about-the-bills-and-just-laugh...and most people laughed until they hurt. However, I'm not sure if it was because they laughed that hard or because the jokes were that bad. It was part "Hee-Haw," part Tim Conway, part Abbott & Costello...you get the picture.

There were some other legendary Southern Gospel names in Boaz, too: Bill Hefner (yeah, he's Jim's brother, but don't hold it against him too much), Eddie Wallace (you simply must hear him tell his Cinderella story), "Low Note" Hylton, and a few others I know I'm forgetting.

Long story short, if you have a chance to attend this event next year, it's worth the drive to Boaz - especially if you have an appreciation for the older days of Southern Gospel music and those fans that prefer that. The singing is good, but the fellowship is grand!