In This Episode:
- The Difference Between Singing a Low Tone and Singing A Quality Note
- Why Singers Should Sing They’re Best No Matter The Crowd Size
- The Common Ground Between Country Music and Baseball
- What Is Was Like Having Conway Twitty as a Neighbor
- What Made Richard Leave Elvis To Join the Oak Ridge Boys
- Richard Speaks About Whether The Oak Ridge Boys Will Retire Soon and Their New Album “Front Porch Singing”
Quotations:
“So what I did, I just basically followed my heart and I made the decision to leave Elvis and to join the Oak Ridge Boys.” – Richard Sterban
“Just about 3 or 4 weeks ago we were able to be booked at the Opera for the first show that they allowed 100% capacity and what a great night that was.” – Richard Sterban
“There’s a certain psychology to bass singing.” – Richard Sterban
“Elvis was kind of a strange person.” – Richard Sterban
“I remember being in the studio recording ‘Elvira’ and it felt like a hit, you know, the musicians were smiling and everyone was having a good time.” – Richard Sterban
Guest’s Bio:
Richard Anthony Sterban (born April 24, 1943) is an American singer. He was born in Camden, New Jersey. He joined the country and gospel quartet The Oak Ridge Boys in 1972.
Sterban grew up in Collingswood, New Jersey,[1] After graduating from Collingswood High School, Sterban attended Trenton State College (now The College of New Jersey).[2]
He lives in Hendersonville, Tennessee, with his wife, Donna, and two daughters. Richard also has three sons from a previous marriage and several grandchildren.
Prior to joining The Oak Ridge Boys, Sterban toured with J. D. Sumner and the Stamps Quartet, who were singing backup for Elvis Presley at that time. Sterban ultimately became best known for his “oom-pa-pa-oom-pa-pa-oom-pa-pa-mow-mow” bass solo in the Oak Ridge Boys’ 1981 single “Elvira” and sang lead vocals on a select few of the group’s songs, including a cover of The Righteous Brothers’ hit “Dream On“, which was a top-ten hit.
Sterban has recorded public service announcements for NOAA Weather Radio. He served as the voice of The Roadhouse, the classic country Sirius Satellite Radio channel. Sterban, along with entrepreneur Larry Schmittou and other country music stars, such as Conway Twitty, Larry Gatlin, and Cal Smith, was a minority owner of the Nashville Sounds minor league baseball team from 1978 to 2008.[3]
(Bio from Wikipedia)
Guest’s Contact Info: