Southern Gospel History

Jake Hess (December 24, 1927 - January 4, 2004)

Jake Hess

Timeline

John Daniel Quartet (194?)

Troy Daniel Quartet (194?)

Sunny South Quartet (1946)

Melody Masters Quartet (1947-1948)

Statesmen (1948-1953, 1953-1963, 1975, 1977-1979, 1988-1989, 1992-1993)

Imperials (1964-1967)

Soloist/Jake Hess Sound/Singcord Records producer/Music City Singers/Worked with Televangelist Gene Scott (1967-1975; 1976)

Masters V (1980-1986)

Soloist (1986-1992)

Soloist (1993-2003) (Regular fixture on Homecoming Tour and other events)

Old Friends Quartet (2000-2003)

Find a Grave link

SMGA Hall of Fame link

Biography

Jake Hess was born on Christmas Eve, 1927, the last of twelve children born to Stovall and Lydia Hess. His birth certificate listed his name as "Manchild" Hess, a fact that Hess himself did not know until many years later when he attempted to secure a passport to travel outside the United States. He started singing gospel music with a family group billed as the Hess Brothers when he was just five years old. After singing with several other local groups, Hess accepted his first professional position at the age of sixteen with the legendary John Daniel Quartet.

He studied harmony at the Stamps Baxter School Of Music and organized vocal groups around northern Alabama. Hess married Joyce McWaters, the daughter of a gospel promoter who sang with her cousins billed as the Gallant Quartet.

During the late 1940s, Hess sang with the Sunny South Quartet and the Melody Masters Quartet, but he is most remembered for his years with the Statesmen. Mosie Lister sang lead for the Statesmen for a short time after the group formed in 1948, but Hess replaced him later that same year. He remained with the Statesmen for the next 15 years, leaving in 1963 to prepare the launch of his own group, the Imperials, in 1964. Hess returned to the Statesmen several times in later years. Elvis Presley used the Imperials on his Grammy-winning gospel album How Great Thou Art, and Jake later sang at Presley's funeral. Hess is reputed to have been Elvis Presley's all-time favorite singer.

After leaving the Imperials due to persistent health problems in 1967, Hess made appearances as a soloist and with his family group called the Jake Hess Sound. He also produced records for Singcord (a division of Zondervan) in the early 1970s and appeared with the Music City Singers. He later relocated to the west coast where he worked with television evangelist Gene Scott.

In the early 1980s, Hess joined the Masters V along with Hovie Lister, Rosie Rozell, J D Sumner and James Blackwood. The group featured five "masters" of their respective parts and was a popular act for several years.

After leaving the Masters V in 1986, Hess recorded for Genevox and made appearances billed as Jake Hess & Friends. By 1988, the "friends" included former Statesmen members Rosie Rozell, Buddy Burton, and Tommy Thompson. Hovie Lister joined this lineup in the fall of 1988 and for those dates, they were billed as the Statesmen. This version of the Statesmen was short-lived because Hess still had to fulfill contractual obligations to his record label.

In 1991, Bill Gaither launched the Homecoming video series. Hess was a favorite featured performer on the series until his death. Also in 1991, Hess and Hovie Lister formed a new version of the Statesmen. A year later, a doctor ordered him off the road for health reasons. In 1993, Hess and his wife Joyce relocated to Columbus, Georgia to be near their daughter Becky and her family.

Hess and George Younce launched the Old Friends Quartet in 2000 with Ernie Haase singing tenor, Wesley Pritchard at baritone, and Garry Jones playing piano. This part-time group recorded two albums, but they only performed occasionally at Gaither Homecoming concerts and special events like the National Quartet Convention. At some events when his declining health would not allow Hess to appear, Ben Speer filled in.

Jake Hess and his wife are buried in the Buck Family Cemetery in Juniper, Georgia.

Awards

Dove Awards
Backliner Notes: Ain't That Beautiful Singing (1970)
GMA Hall Of Fame (1987)
SGMA Hall Of Fame (1997)
SESAC Lifetime Achievement Award

Singing News Fan Awards:
Marvin Norcross Award (1993)