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From 1982 until their retirement in 2002, Jimmy Fortune sang tenor for country music legends, the Statler Brothers and during his tenure with the group, they won numerous group awards, including Jimmy winning Songwriter of the Year in 1985, 1986 and 1987. Traveling the Country Music circuit with the Statler Brothers was a dream come true for Jimmy, and those years will forever be etched in his mind as wonderful, happy memories. With the retirement of the group about 3 years ago, Jimmy continued as a solo artist performing a variety of dates and singing his music and telling his story to anyone who will listen. This year, Jimmy is releasing his first Southern Gospel recording through Song Garden Music Group. Jimmy will also be performing at the Gospel Music Fan Festival in Smyrna , Tennessee at River of Live Assembly of God on Friday, July 29th . It looks like this year could be a banner year for Jimmy, and recently I spoke with him about his career, his music and his life.

James: Was making a gospel recording something you've always wanted to do?

Jimmy: Yes it was. Gospel Music is something that has been imbedded in my heart since I was a child. I got my first guitar when I was twelve years old, and eventually started playing for school dances things like that. Eventually I went into other genres of music, of course I've done country, got into rock and roll and eventually even went through the disco stage! (laughing) I literally went through everything, but I just love music in general, especially gospel. I always kept an open mind about music and always realized that though there are some messages in music I don't like, I've always wanted to concentrate on putting a positive message in my music. If you can't stand up in front of your family and do it, I wouldn't sing it or be a part of it.

Seeing all that was going on in the world and the hopelessness in the world, I had a strong desire to record a gospel recording. I saw that there was a great need out there for something positive and good songs that could change people's lives and make them realize that God is there for them. I believe that God laid it on my heart to do this gospel album. The fans have been on me constantly about doing a gospel album doing some old favorites and so I let them pick some of the old songs I did on the album, then I wrote a couple and found some other great writers who contributed a few songs as well. God sent some wonderful songs my way and I believe He had a purpose for me to this.

James: Tell me about some of the songs on the new recording.

Jimmy: “He Gettin' me Ready” is a footstomping, handclapping song that people seem to really enjoy. The title song, “I Believe” seems to really strike a chord with people. That song was written as an expression of my faith and it came out of some complicated things that I had to deal with that drove it home to me. Being there with my mother when she passed away and holding her hand really inspired the second verse of the song. In this day and time we need to know that there is a God and that there is hope. Holding my mother's hand as she passed away, I felt God come in and pull her out of this world and it was something I will never forget. All that was left was her body in that room, and it drove the point home that there is a Heaven and “I Believe” describes that and drives the point that everything that the Bible says is true.

“Wrote it in Red” is the first single from the recording and a friend of mine named Tony Browder wrote it. He had really been suffering with cancer and the chemo had really pulled him down and was really in a lot of pain and he finally got to the point where he cried out to God wondering if He really was there and was listening and all of sudden these words started coming to him, and he grabbed a pencil and started writing, “I wrote it red, etched it in stone, left no room for doubt, that you're not alone…” . He brought me the song when he found out was doing a gospel album and he said the Lord just laid it on his heart to give it to me. It really was a blessing because I connected with the song because I knew what he was trying to say. Through all the suffering that went into some of these songs, there is also a great hope. That's the whole message we wanted to give out on this recording. This world has a lot of suffering, but there is a hope greater than anything we have. Tony also wrote another great song called “Be With Me” and it's about Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane and how He went through all the suffering and God told Him “It's finished Son, now come be with me.” It's really a powerful song.

James: The new recording is being put out through Song Garden Music Group. How did you become involved with Song Garden, and what do you hope to accomplish by working with them?

Jimmy: As an artist, you always look for someone who believes in you and your cause. Robbie is a great tenor singer and I've always admired him. I ran into him one night at a truck stop a few years ago right before the Statler Brothers retired. I told him what was getting ready to happen and he said maybe someday down the road we can work together. We left it at that and kind of went on with our lives and then we crossed paths again and he and Nick Bruno wanted to hear this new gospel album I had done and they wanted to talk to me about possibly releasing it through their company. In our talks, we found out that we both had the same goals and desires and wanted to accomplish the same things with out music. We both want to break new ground and get this message of Hope out there. Through a good label that feels the same way you do, you can accomplish that. I feel like I have a team on my side. Sometimes an artist gets so caught up in the music that it helps to have people to keep you on course and be the vehicle for your music to get to the places you want your music to reach. I love Robbie and Nick and their stand for the Lord, and what they believe in.

I feel like there is a need to reach people. I really think you have to hold a firm ground in what you believe and reach out to people. You don't have to get in to mire with them, but we want to reach those people. Being in my position that sang for years in country music, I can show people that you can be happy without all the booze, drugs and sex and all this other stuff. You can survive and live a better life with the Lord.

James: Now, you were raised in a Christian home, but it wasn't until later in life that you accepted the Lord as Savior.

Jimmy: I always knew about the Lord. But, I as I got older and got out into the world, I did a lot of wrong things that I knew were wrong. Even then, I knew that there was something missing in my life. I believed in God, but hadn't let Christ totally have me. I was going through a painful divorce, I was living alone in a little cottage in the mountains of Virginia and my father was dying with cancer and there wasn't anything they could do. One night on the road with the Statlers back in 1993, we were on the way to Arkansas and we had checked into a hotel room and I was just so down and the devil had deceived me in so many ways. My life was basically crashing down around me because of the sin in my life. I literally felt the world was better off without me. But I looked over on the stand beside the bed and there was a Gideon's Bible, and I reached over and grabbed it and opened it up and it fell to Jeremiah 5:25 and it said “your sins and your iniquities have kept good things from you.” It was like the Lord was telling me, “Jimmy, it's YOUR sins, not your mother or father, your wife or your friends, it's YOUR sins that is keeping the good things from coming to you.” I realized then, that I had to change ME. I have to have God's help to change me, because this is where it all starts. All my past decisions and choices, brought me to this point. I felt these chills go up and down my back and it felt like Jesus literally had His hand on me right there and He was standing beside me. He made me realize that He was there with me in my darkest moment. I had a choice to run the other way, or run to Him and take what God has given me and try to make a difference in other people. All of sudden the writing was on the wall that one day God was going to want me out here on my own and give His message to other people, so they too can know that there is hope. When you allow Him to come in, you open up that door for Him to use you to help other people.

James: I know that your parents played a big role in your life. What roles or influences did they have on your life and your music?

Jimmy: My dad wasn't always a Christian and he was an alcoholic at one time in his life. He raised nine of us kids and provided for us, so you can imagine the pressures on someone like him in such a rural area. He cut logs for most of his life and later on went to work in a factory. But, I remember going out with him when I was little boy sitting in a car while he went on a moonshine run and I'd sit in the car and listen to the radio. I loved my daddy and wanted to go with him everywhere that he went. My mother was always the Christian woman who kept us going to church and revivals and she was such a prayer warrior. My father eventually got really bad with his drinking and she prayed for my father all the time. I remember when I was about 12 years old and my father came to a point in his life where a lot of things were going on and he really felt he had just come to the end. He was drinking and running around and trying to do anything he could to hurt my mother and the family. It got to the point that I didn't even care that he even came home anymore because he caused so much hurt. One time, my father and older brother was having a fight in the yard and I was so afraid my dad was going to reach into his car and pull out his gun, but he never did. When he came back into the house and my mother told my father that Jerry Falwell was coming to preach in our area the next day and my father agreed to go. It was little church called Oak Hill Baptist Church and Jerry Falwell preached and my dad ran to the altar and gave his life to the Lord. He quit smoking, he quit drinking, and he just quit everything. He started going to church and completely changed his life and became my hero again. My father was so beaten down by this world and just life in general, and God changed him almost overnight. Through my dad, I've seen what Christ can do if we're willing to let Him work in our lives.

James: You grew up in a pretty rural area didn't you?

Jimmy: I grew up in Nelson County, which is a rural area in the middle of Virginia. If you ever saw the Walton's TV show, that is exactly what my life was like growing up. I remember the first time I saw the Walton's on TV, I thought they stole that from our family, because that is exactly what my life was like. I never realized it then, but I realize now how fortunate I was to grow up in that type of environment.

James: Who are/were your musical influences?

Jimmy: Growing up listening to the radio, I'd listen to people like Jim Reeves, Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash, Skeeter Davis and others. I fell in love with the hymns that I'd hear at church and watching the Billy Graham Crusades on television, George Beverly Shea became such an influence. His singing mesmerized me. Later in life, secular groups like the Eagles and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, but when it came to gospel music, I loved quartets and was a big Statler Brothers fan as well as the Kingsmen, Blackwood Brothers and the Statesmen.

James: Speaking of the Statler Brothers, you spent about 20 years with them. Has moving from your role as tenor for the Statler Brothers to a soloist been easy or have you found it to be a major adjustment for you?

Jimmy: It has been a major adjustment, because I've never really been a solo artist. I remember when they announced their retirement, I had about 9 months to prepare and I thought that maybe I'd just take some time off and relax. I had my dream home in the mountains of Virginia and I was happy. But one day I was riding my tractor and God spoke to me and said, “Jimmy, I know it's beautiful here and I know you like it, but you're going to have to move on.” I argued with that and fought it for a while, and then I finally told the Lord to lead where he wanted me to go. When we put the house on the market, it sold in less than 30 days. It took us completely by surprise! (laughing) It was very hard at first walking out on stage without the other three guys standing there. I was so nervous the first time I went as a soloist that my legs were literally shaking. (laughing) I wasn't used to talking because Harold and Don handled all that with the Statlers. I wasn't used to the business because they handled all that too. All I had to do with the Statlers was show up and sing. So going out on my own was a huge adjustment for me. With the help of my wife Nina, I had to build everything from the ground up. If it wasn't for her, I couldn't even pull this off. Like me, she's learning too! (laughing) But you know, through it all I have seen God working in my life and getting me ready for everything that has happened.

James: Speaking of which, your song, “He's Gettin' Me Ready” is almost like a testimony song for you isn't it?

Jimmy: Yes it is. Before the Statler Brothers retired, I got this idea and I wrote this song. The group actually recorded it on our last studio album. When I made the choice to ask Jesus into my heart, and I earnestly wanted a relationship with Him, He came in and He literally started getting me ready. He's getting me ready for this life, and the life that lies before me. This song is a testimony of my life. If I were to look back on all my songs and where my life is going, it's literally my life put to music.

James: Do you do a mix of country and gospel in your shows?

Jimmy: Yes. In the Country Music industry, a lot of people don't know what to think of me. I don't preach, but I let my music talk for me. I tell people where my life has been and where it's going and I tell them that there is hope in Christ. I try to give a positive message in my music and try to have some fun and sing some great songs that the people like. Like I said, my music is my life. I want people to come away knowing what I stand for and the most important thing is they not know who Jimmy Fortune is, but that they know Jesus and they know that He cares for them.

James: You mentioned that the people in the Country Music industry don't know what to do with you because you're not the typical Country Music artist and by the same token, there will be those in Gospel Music that don't know what to do with you because you're not the typical Gospel artist. What do you say to those people when you've got them coming at you from both sides like that?

Jimmy: I really don't know what to say to those people except that I am letting God guide me with this and that I am what I am. I am someone who is in this world, because I live in this world. But I am also a Christian because I know Jesus lives in my heart. I know that I want to help others, but the only way I know how is through my music. One time I was singing on this show on a cruise awhile back and this guy stumbled in and sat on the front row. I was singing “How Great Thou Art” and telling people about my life and what the Lord had done for me. The guy gets up and yelled, “I didn't come here to meet Jesus” and he got up and left. He went out of there knowing how I felt about the Lord and even though it was his business to get up and leave, God allowed me to plant a little seed somewhere in him that might grow. That is what my life is about; planting little seeds of hope in places where the dirt might be a little hard and dry. I know there will be people who don't, or won't accept what I do and might not understand what I do, and I can't help that. I know some people come expecting to hear a bunch of Statler Brother songs, and though I do a few of those, it's mainly just me and where I am at in my life. I can't be anybody else. What I'm about is about God and presenting a positive message that there is hope in Him.

James: I mentioned earlier that you spent almost 20 years with the Statler Brothers. How would you describe your time with them?

Jimmy: It was kind of like an education in a way, because they know the music business like the back of their hand and I learned so much from them. I learned that you have to take care of business, or things will just go down the tubes. We both had similar backgrounds, and we shared a lot of the same loves for quartet music. The Statlers were firmly planted in their faith and their families. They always looked out for me as well as the other guys in the group. I wasn't out there with a bunch of drunks or drug addicts, these guys were clean cut, Bible believing, God fearing, family men. When people looked at the Statler Brothers, they knew they were wholesome family entertainment. A Statler Brothers show was something you weren't afraid to take your children to, and I'm proud that I was a part of that. Going back and looking at it, God had a plan and He meant for me to be there. They could have gone to Nashville and found hundreds of great tenor singers to take Lew DeWitt's place, but they chose go 40 miles across the mountain and get ole boy who didn't know his boot from his shirt collar to come over and sing with them. It was a wonderful time for me.

James: Do you still keep in touch with any of the Statlers?

Jimmy: Oh yes…we call each other periodically, and they are thoroughly enjoying retirement. Don is writing books and once in awhile, we'll get together and go to a concert together.

James: No chance of a reunion concert or tour?

Jimmy: Well, anything is possible, but at this point they haven't said anything about that. I always knew that if they ever retired, that would be it. We all remember how frustrating it was to see artists retire, and then get back out and tour again and then retire again, and tour again and retire again, so when the Statlers retired, they planned on retiring for good.

James: Any fond memories from your years with the Statlers?

Jimmy: The TV shows were great and so much fun. We did that from about 1991-1997. There was a lot of laughter in that because of the out-takes, which were mostly mine! (laughing) There were also a lot of bus memories that weren't too pretty! (laughing) The Statler Brothers had a strong and wonderful fan base and they had the greatest people to sing to and I am so thankful many of them has followed me in my solo work.

Don't forget Jimmy's performance at the Gospel Music Fan Festival in Smyrna, Tennessee at River of Live Assembly of God on Friday, July 29 th. Find out more about Jimmy on his website, www.jimmyfortune.com .

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