Wendy Bagwell and the Sunliters

Wendy Bagwell and the Sunliters
Wendy Bagwell
Background information
Genres	Southern gospel music and comedy trio
Past members	Wendy Bagwell Jerri Morrison Georgia Jones

Wendy Bagwell and the Sunliters was a Southern gospel music and comedy trio that was inducted into the Gospel Music Association's Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2001. ^[1]

Personnel

The group originally consisted of Wendy Bagwell, Geraldine Terry (later known professionally as Jerri Morrison), and Georgia Jones; Jones was succeeded initially by Sandy Garvin ^[2] and later by Dot Pressley, Virginia Williams, and, ultimately, by "Little Jan" Buckner, who married Bagwell's adopted nephew Ronnie Buckner. ^[3]

The Bagwell-Morrison-Buckner trio worked together for 33 years and recorded approximately 40 albums. ^[2] As of 2023, Buckner is the only surviving member of the trio. ^[4]

Achievements

The group was the first Southern gospel group to appear at Carnegie Hall ^[2] and the first to tour Europe, in 1965. ^[3] Their 1970 comedy monologue, "Here Come the Rattlesnakes" (sometimes known as "The Rattlesnake Song", although it contains no singing or music), an account of their performance at a small church in Harlan, Kentucky that handled rattlesnakes, was the first certifiable million seller in Southern gospel history. ^{[3] [5]} It eventually sold more than 2 million copies. ^[2]

References

1. GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame (visited March 10, 2012).
2. Jones, Loyal (2008). Country Music Humorists and Comedians. University of Illinois Press. pp. 71–72. ISBN   9780252033698 . Retrieved July 20, 2017.
3. W.K. McNeil, Encyclopedia of American Gospel Music 21 - 22 (2005).
4. The Official Site of Little Jan Buckner Ministries (visited June 29, 2008).
5. Wendy Bagwell (visited June 29, 2008).