| Welcome | Buddy Merrick & Praise | Buddy Merrick | Carol Merrick | David Griffin | | Concert Commitments | Highlights | Q & A | Product Information | |
Why Should We Book Buddy Merrick & Praise?
 |
Buddy Merrick & Praise is one of the most versatile, easy- to-book performing groups to come along in years. Refreshingly new to the Fairs circuit, they offer a unique style and effortless assimilation into any theme, from country to gospel, to patriotic. Still, they're conspicuously serious about their work Buddy's been a TV executive, an ordained Southern Baptist minister and a retired Lt. Colonel with a legacy of heroic soldiers dating back to Gettysburg. Carol's a professional businesswoman, a homemaker and an instructor in Evangelism Explosion. David's a talent show winner, a sound systems expert, a former varsity ball player and a college student. Their home includes three adopted grandchildren, a lot of music and a immeasurable amount of love. Their music includes five excellent albums, the finest Nashville producers and thousands of performances from the 8,000 seat Las Vegas Convention Center to a tiny revival barn in Pennsylvania. Most important, Buddy Merrick & Praise noticeably enjoy doing what they do. And, it shows. |
 |
Q. Will the audience recognize Buddy Merrick & Praise by name? |
| A. Buddy Merrick & Praise are well-known in gospel music circles, having traveled and performed alongside the nation's greatest gospel groups. Just recently they performed a 3-song set on the World Premier of Gospel Music which was beamed worldwide by satellite and syndicated on TV stations across America. They've performed dozens of times on local TV stations in the northeast, including WPCB/Pittsburgh, WGCB/Harrisburg and WJAL/Washington DC/Hagerstowrt, MD, and are regularly featured on Gospel/Music Television and the T V show, "Keystone On the Line. " Of course, they're regularly heard on hundreds of radio stations across America. They've also performed hundreds of live concerts in churches, fairs and events from Las Vegas and Texas to West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Their albums and background tracks are distributed to music and bookstores nationwide by Nashville's New Day Distributors. Once an audience hears Buddy Merrick & Praise, they'll likely never forget them, and perhaps that's what's most important. |
| Q. How can I be confident that Buddy Merrick & Praise is professional, musically? |
| A.Buddy Merrick first recorded with Word Records in 1986, receiving Word Records' Artists Award of Merit. Their most recent Nashville-produced projects include the albums,"Gospel Country," and the companion, "More Gospel Country. " Their song 'Jesus Is... "was a monster hit which charted nationwide throughout 1996. A byproduct was their 1997 CD called "A Double Helping of Gospel Country," a compilation of 19 outstanding country gospel songs, also nationally distributed. Their current project is the CD album entitled, "Livin' On The Edge,"which was selected by Cedar Hill Records as Cut #1 on the label's August radio release CD. Within one month of that release, the single of "Living On The Edge" had already achieved "medium" airplay across America, on its way to another charting success. |
| Q. How does their musical talent appear on stage? |
| A. Buddy Merrick & Praise present an entertaining, fun and varied show on stage. First, they take great pride in their appearance, with professional western costumes, often including several changes in a single concert. Second, their style of country-mixed-with-gospel music is well received by lovers of both kinds of music, and never offensive to any. Third, the personalities of this real family (grandparents and grandson) are genuine and complimentary. Their humor is clean, really funny, well timed, and often impromptu, the marque of a troupe who really loves and enjoys playing and performing with one another. That love easily transfers to audiences large and small, the reason they're almost always asked to return for a future repeat performance. |
| Q. Can Buddy Merrick & Praise please a mixed audience? |
| A. Yes, and they have hundreds of times. First, Buddy Merrick & Praise have the talent and intuition to reach juniors and seniors, and effortlessly mix good, wholesome country songs like, "If Tomorrow Never Comes, " and their recorded hits like "Mississippi Squirrel Revival" and "Love Can Build A Bridge," with the southern gospel sound of "He's Still In The Fire," or their original hits like, "I'm Gonna Leave Here," "Burnin' Up The Barn" or their new #1 hit, "Livin' On Fire Edge." Their performance normally begins with a five-song set of upbeat, hand-clapping songs, and segues into some heart-wrenching ballads like Buddy Merrick's "Songs My Mama Sang," or "Mama Cried" written by Buddy and country star Daron Norwood. Buddy's symphony-backed version of "How Great Thou Art" is often performed on request along with a solid helping of those good ol' gospel songs. On the right occasion, they'll change into the Colonel's dress blues and David's battle dress uniforms for a dramatic skit and a set including Buddy's Persian War hit, "Welcome Back Home," and an audience sing-along with Elvis Presley's "American Trilogy, " Lee Greenwood's "God Bless The USA" and "America The Beautiful," complete with background video, fireworks and an impressive climactic recital of The Gettysburg Address. |
| Q. Will we be required to provide expensive equipment for Buddy Merrick & Praise? |
| A. No. Buddy Merrick & Praise always come equipped and ready to perform. The troupe travels in a handsome 41- foot custom coach and a matching 15-foot trailer which contains everything you'll probably need except a stage. Their sound system is new, state-of-the-art, and includes up to ten speakers, cordless mics,10,000 watts of amplification, a 16-input mixer board, digital f/x producer, pink noise analyzer, and all their Nashville studio-produced background mixes on computer mini-disc. They also provide basic multi-color lighting and f/x on two tall light trees and even a mirrored ball. Their sound equipment has filled small churches and a municipal stadium (home of the minor league team of the Toronto Blue Jays). They will, however, be happy to use any existing sound system and can plug their complete background system into a single mic pod. |
| Q. How will Buddy Merrick & Praise be to work with? |
| A. Buddy Merrick & Praise pride themselves in being consummate professionals. They arrive early, take great care in setting up sound, lighting, f/x and checks, and ensure excellent preparation well before they take the stage for preformance. They come with typeset monitor lists and performance and lighting designs, a copy of which is always available for the promoter. They confer with the director or pastor well before the performance about specify songs they intend to perform, and such things as the location of tables set up to offer cassettes, CDs and the like. From their extensive experience in promotion, Buddy Merrick & Praise offer professionally-produced programs, posters, radio scripts, ad mats and even TV commercials to help publicize an event. |
| Q. Can we afford all this? |
| A. Yes. Buddy Merrick & Praise normally come for a fee ranging from $500 to $2,000 depending on the venue, plus expenses. They are always affordable, and consider each booking on its individual circumstances. |
|
We Invite You To Book Buddy Merrick & Praise for Your Next Event Call (717) 375-4000 |
