The Oakridge Boys rock the house in Crockett

The Oakridge Boys The Oakridge Boys hits from the past 32 years rocked the house and rang the rafters at the Crockett Civic Center on Friday night, January 23. "The Boys" made their first Crocket appearance to a sold out house of sixty-somethings who were thrilled to see their heroes so close to home.

Joe Bonsall, the quartette's tenor who was recognized in the 80s for his trademark "fro", cut his locks and could easily be described as more grey than "salt and pepper". Clad in jeans and a tshirt, he bounced around the stage much like he did decades ago. Not only was his energy high but his voice was as high and strong as ever. Bonsall undoubtedly made the audience wonder "How does he do that?" at this point in his life.

Duane Allen, the only Texan in the group, is lead singer and delighted the crowd with "Setting Fancy Free" and "Y'all Come Back Saloon". Allen, not quite as grey as Bonsall, possibly with the help of Miss Clairol, has aged well but couldn't quite camouflage his thick middle with his untucked shirttail and leather jacket. But those in the audience were very forgiving especially since most of them had exactly the same challenge.

The member who has been an Oakridge Boy the longest is William Golden, who sports a two foot beard and hair almost to his waist. Golden sings baritone and is featured on "Thank God for Kids" a major hit for "The Boys". Golden added variety by changing hats frequently during the show, beginning with a Davey Crockett hat in honor of the city Crockett. With white flowing beard and hair, along with a thickening waistline, Golden probably looks the oldest of the singers, but then he might actually hold that honor.

Richard Sterban sings bass and amazed the crowd when he rattled the chairs with his resounding low notes. Featured in "Dream On" his voice is smooth and sensual, but he really rocked the house when he did the 'omm-pop-amow-mow" in "Elivra". Sterban has managed to maintain his boyish figure and keep in black hair and goatee, so much so folks were saying "he can't possibly be in his sixties."

The audience showed their appreciation often with spontaneous applause but the singers received a standing ovation when they did a rendition of "Amazing Grace".

One of the longestrunning groups in country music, The Oakridge Boys has been in existence since the early 1940s as a gospel quartette, but of course these guys weren't singing then. William Lee Golden joined the group in 1964, Duane Allen in 1966, Richard Sterban in 1972 and Joe Bonsall in 1973, each replacing a singer who had left the group for different reasons. In 1975 they opened a series of tour dates for Roy Clark, whose manager encouraged them to try their hands at secular country.

In 1977 "The Boys" scored a Top Five hit with "Y'all come Back Saloon" followed by several top tens over the next few years. "Elvira" came bopping along in 1981 and became a major, Grammy-winning crossover smash, hitting number 1 on the country charts and the top five on the pop charts.

The group continued to make hit albums but their sales began to slow in the latter half of the '80s and in an effort to remake the group's image, William Golden was asked to leave The Oakridge Boys. Golden's mountainman appearance and lifestyle had become a point of contention in the group.

Golden sued his former band mates when he was replaced by longtime guitarist Steve Sanders and eventually settled out of court. Sanders left the group in late 1995 and after resolving their differences Golden rejoined "The Boys" at their New Year's Eve show that year. The group still performs in Branson, MO and other venues and will be releasing a new album this year.