Guy Penrod
Encyclopedia
Guy Penrod is a gospel music
singer mostly known for his work as the lead singer of the Gaither Vocal Band
, a position he held from 1994-2008.
, where his father, Rev. Joe Penrod, was the pastor of Temple Baptist Church. He also is a 1980 graduate of Hobbs High School. During his high school years Guy recorded his first album, singing all four parts.
Penrod is a graduate of Liberty University
. Starting in the early 1980s, he worked as a studio singer, backing up voices such as Steve Green, Amy Grant
, Michael W. Smith
, Garth Brooks
, James Ingram
, and Phillips, Craig & Dean. He was also a member of the Christ Church Choir, as was another future Gaither Vocal Band member, Jonathan Pierce
. During his years in the studio, he met Bill Gaither for the first time. He also made regular appearances on Music City Tonight as a background singer.
After accepting the position with the Gaither Vocal Band in 1994, Penrod became internationally known for his powerful vocals and broad singing range. He has performed in Gaither Homecoming concerts all over the U.S. and Canada, as well as in Europe, Australia, and Africa.
He and his wife, Angie (Clark), have eight children. They live on his family farm in Tennessee
. All their children are homeschooled.
Recently, Penrod performed for the grand opening of Jerry Falwell
's new Thomas Road Baptist Church
new 6,000 seat sanctuary.
His album, The Best of Guy Penrod, reached #92 on the Billboard 200
on August 6, 2005. The Gaither Vocal Band's 2006 release was entitled Give It Away, followed by "Lovin' Life" in 2008.
Guy took a sabbatical from the Gaither Vocal Band in the Fall of 2008. In a press release January 13, 2009, Bill Gaither announced that Penrod would be leaving the Gaither Vocal Band and starting a solo career. In August 2009, Guy released his debut solo album, Breathe Deep, on the Servant Records label. Produced by veteran country music producer and studio musician, Brent Rowan, the album consists of positive country music with Christian undertones.
Gospel music
Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
singer mostly known for his work as the lead singer of the Gaither Vocal Band
Gaither Vocal Band
The Gaither Vocal Band is a Grammy award-winning Christian music vocal group, headed by Bill Gaither. They originally recorded contemporary Christian music, but after the popularity of the Gaither Homecoming videos, the group has become known for southern gospel.-Group history:The Gaither Vocal...
, a position he held from 1994-2008.
Biography
Penrod grew up in Hobbs, New MexicoHobbs, New Mexico
Hobbs is a city in Lea County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 28,657 at the 2000 census.Hobbs is the principal city of the Hobbs, New Mexico Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Lea County.-Geography:...
, where his father, Rev. Joe Penrod, was the pastor of Temple Baptist Church. He also is a 1980 graduate of Hobbs High School. During his high school years Guy recorded his first album, singing all four parts.
Penrod is a graduate of Liberty University
Liberty University
Liberty University is a private Christian university located in Lynchburg, Virginia. Liberty's annual enrollment is around 72,000 students, 12,000 of whom are residential students and 60,000+ studying through Liberty University Online...
. Starting in the early 1980s, he worked as a studio singer, backing up voices such as Steve Green, Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
, Michael W. Smith
Michael W. Smith
Michael Whitaker Smith is a Billboard top ten Billboard Hot 100 recording artist and Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in Contemporary Christian music. Smith also has achieved a considerable amount of...
, Garth Brooks
Garth Brooks
Troyal Garth Brooks , best known as Garth Brooks, is an American country music artist who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon. His eponymous first album was released in 1989 and peaked at number 2 in the US country album chart while climbing to number 13 on the Billboard 200 album chart...
, James Ingram
James Ingram
James Ingram is an American soul musician. He is best known as a vocalist. He is also a self-taught musician who plays piano, guitar, bass, drums and keyboards...
, and Phillips, Craig & Dean. He was also a member of the Christ Church Choir, as was another future Gaither Vocal Band member, Jonathan Pierce
Jonathan Pierce
Jonathan Pierce is an American gospel/CCM singer from Odessa, Texas. His full name is Jonathan Pierce Edward Loveheart Hildreth although he prefers to perform using his first and middle names instead of his first and last name....
. During his years in the studio, he met Bill Gaither for the first time. He also made regular appearances on Music City Tonight as a background singer.
After accepting the position with the Gaither Vocal Band in 1994, Penrod became internationally known for his powerful vocals and broad singing range. He has performed in Gaither Homecoming concerts all over the U.S. and Canada, as well as in Europe, Australia, and Africa.
He and his wife, Angie (Clark), have eight children. They live on his family farm in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. All their children are homeschooled.
Recently, Penrod performed for the grand opening of Jerry Falwell
Jerry Falwell
Jerry Lamon Falwell, Sr. was an evangelical fundamentalist Southern Baptist pastor, televangelist, and a conservative commentator from the United States. He was the founding pastor of the Thomas Road Baptist Church, a megachurch in Lynchburg, Virginia...
's new Thomas Road Baptist Church
Thomas Road Baptist Church
Thomas Road Baptist Church is a megachurch in Lynchburg, Virginia. It currently claims 24,000 members and is headed by Jonathan Falwell.-History:Started in 1956 by a group of 35, including Jerry Falwell, Thomas Road now claims over 24,200 members...
new 6,000 seat sanctuary.
His album, The Best of Guy Penrod, reached #92 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
on August 6, 2005. The Gaither Vocal Band's 2006 release was entitled Give It Away, followed by "Lovin' Life" in 2008.
Guy took a sabbatical from the Gaither Vocal Band in the Fall of 2008. In a press release January 13, 2009, Bill Gaither announced that Penrod would be leaving the Gaither Vocal Band and starting a solo career. In August 2009, Guy released his debut solo album, Breathe Deep, on the Servant Records label. Produced by veteran country music producer and studio musician, Brent Rowan, the album consists of positive country music with Christian undertones.
Albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Christian | US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US Country | ||
| The Best of Guy Penrod |
|
4 | 92 | — |
| Breathe Deep |
|
7 | 108 | 41 |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||