I was on the way home from Fort Worth, TX, the day JD Sumner died (November 16, 1998). Regardless of what you thought of his abilities as a performer, the man was a legend in the world of Southern Gospel Music.
In my role as Editor for Singing News, I got to work with JD on a different level. The man was a good writer and for many years, his "I Can't Wait" article that appeared was one of - if not THE - most read thing in each magazine. But, I'll have to admit - trying to get that article out of him each month was a very trying exercise.
Now, don't get me wrong, JD was easy to work with - IF you could find him! I literally would have to track him all over the country before I could get that article. There were many times, we'd be on the verge of going to press and JD was no where to be found. Finally, the phone would ring and on the other end, there would be a deep bass voice saying, "Danny? JD. Figured I'd better call you and give you a story."
Every now and then, JD would call up and say, "I don't feel like writing anything" or "I can't come up with anything." He'd follow those statements with "Just write something and sign my name to it. You couldn't do any worse than I can." We made each other a promise that we'd never tell which one of us wrote which articles. But I will tell you this...JD wrote all of them but three because I'd keep telling him that only JD could think and write like JD and he'd eventually give in and write the article.
Somewhere here in my office, I've got a note from JD that he sent me after he read one of the articles I wrote. All it says is , "Yeah, but you can't sing bass. JD"
Sometimes, JD would seem insecure in his writing because he knew that no matter what he wrote, someone was going to get offended. And truthfully, we did get some less than glorious comments from readers at times. But JD was JD. He wrote what was on his heart and didn't care who read it.
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Everyone was just beginning to get over the inital shock of JD's passing when Brock Speer died at Baptist Hospital in Nashville on March 29, 1999. Brock had battled Alzheimer's Disease for several years and during the last couple of years the Speers were on the road, it was painfully evident that Brock would not be with us much longer. But he still had moments of sheer genius.
In May of 1997, Brock delivered a 37-word sermon in Fresno, CA, to a bunch of Southern Gospel "youngsters" at the first Great Western Quartet Convention. He was in the first stages of Alzheimer's, although no one knew it at the time.
Everyone got to town late on a Wednesday evening and after I had checked in at the hotel, I found Brock and Glen Payne sitting in the lobby. Before long, McCray Dove, Eric Ollis, Jonathan Wilburn and about fix or six others came over and all of us listenly intently as those legends told us about the "good ole days." They had us laughing so hard that I'm sure the rest of the people staying in the hotel wondered what we were up to.
But Brock suddenly turned serious and said, "Men, whatever you do in Gospel Music, do it right and do it with dignity. Put your heart into it. And never, ever, forget the real reason why we're out here. Because, without Him, you are nothing."
True to his always classy and simple ways, Brock gave us the recipe of success.
