Sons of the Pioneers Timeline

A listing of the key members who have been in the group since its beginning in 1933, when they joined and departed, plus notes telling their duty in the group.

1.  Leonard Slye (Roy Rogers) 1933 - Dec. 1937  Sang lead in the trio and played rhythm guitar.

2.  Bob Nolan 1933 - July 1949  Sang Baritone in the trio...played the upright bass until late 1937.

3.  Tim Spencer 1933 - July 1936; 1938 - Jan. 1949  Began singing tenor in trio, came back in 1938 singing lead.

4.  Hugh Farr late 1934 - early 1959  Fiddler and bass singer.

5.  Karl Farr Fall of 1935 - passed away Sept. 20, 1961  Lead guitarist...assisted w/vocals when needed.

6.  Lloyd Perryman Sept. 1936 - April 1943; Jan. 1946 - April 1977  Tenor singer in trio, lead vocalist 1964-77; rhythm guitar.

7.  Pat Brady Dec. 1937 - late 1943; Jan. 1946 - 1949; 1959 - 1968  Bass player, assisted w/vocals when needed.

8.  Ken Carson June 1943 - Jan. 1946 recorded thru 1947  Tenor singer in trio, played rhythm guitar.

9.  Deuce Spriggens late 1943; 1954-55  Bass player, assisted w/vocals when needed.

10. George "Shug" Fisher 1944 - Jan. 1946; 1949 - 1953; 1956 - 1959  Bass player...vocals when needed.

11. Ken Curtis Jan. 1949 - Feb. 1953  Sang lead in trio

12. Tommy Doss July 1949 - Nov. 1963  Sang baritone in trio.

13. Dale Warren Dec. 1952 - Present  Sang lead in trio until late 1963, switched to baritone; bass player also.

14. George Bamby 1959 - 1960  Accordion player.

15. Roy Lanham Fall 1961 - Nov. 1986  Lead guitarist, assisted w/vocals when needed.

16. Wade Ray 1961 - 1962  Fiddle player, assisted w/vocals when needed.

17. Rusty Richards Nov. 1963 - Oct. 1966; 1974 - 1984.

18. Billy Armstrong Oct. 1966 - Med 1972  Fiddle player, assisted w/vocal duties in trio until 1968.

19. Bob Mensor Sept. 1967 - Mar. 1968 (5 Months)  Tenor singer in trio, played upright bass fiddle.

20. Luther Nallie Mar. 1968 - 1974; 1980 - May 2004; 2007-Present  Multi-talented, trio vocalist; bass, rhythm and lead guitar.

21. Billy Liebert 1974 - 1980  Accordion, Musical arranger.

22. Doc Denning 1980  Fiddle player.

23. Dale Morris (D2) 1981 - 1983  Fiddle player.

24. Tommy Nallie 1983 - late 1988  Drummer; assisted w/vocals when needed.

25. Sunny Spencer Feb. 1984 - February 2005 Lead vocals in trio thru 1987, multi talented instrumentalist.

26. Jack Nallie 1984  Bass player.

27. Jack LaRoux 1985  Bass player.

28. Gary Foster 1986  Bass player, vocals when needed.

29. Gary LeMaster late 1986 - 2006  Lead guitar; tenor vocals in trio, multi talented instrumentalist.

30. Daryl Wainscott 1987 - 1993  Keyboards/vocals as needed.

31. David Bradley 1989 - 1993  Vocalist/guitarist.

32. John Nallie May 1993 - Dec. 2000  Lead vocalist in trio; keyboards and bass drums.

33. Roy Warhurst 1994 - 1997  Fiddle Player.

34. Ken Lattimore 1998 - Present  Tenor vocalist in trio; fiddle player.

35. Randy Rudd May 2001 - Present  Lead vocalist in trio; rhythm guitar.

36. Preston Eldridge 2001 - 2006  Upright bass; vocals when needed.

37. Jarrett Dougherty 2001 - 2002  Drums, Comic.

38. Waylon Herron May 2004 - 2006  Guitarist/Vocalist.

39.  Justin Sifford - 2006 - Guitar/Vocals.

40.  Ricky Boen - 2006 - Present:  Fiddle

41.  Mark Abbott - 2006 - Present:  Bass

Pioneer Alternates...

Charlie Quirk and Wesley Tuttle worked in the group for a short time before Lloyd Perryman joined in Sept. 1936.  Western performer Doye O'Dell worked with the group as a fill-in in the mid to late 1940's.  And there have been a couple of drummers who have filled in during the late 1990's.  Total, a little over 40 men have worked as regulars in the Sons of the Pioneers organization in 71 years time.

A little confusion regarding some of the Sons of the Pioneers recording for you.  Sometimes, there would be a touring version and a recording version, each would have different trios.  This started happening in the mid 1950's.  In 1955, when the group returned to RCA Victor, RCA asked the 1940's trio of Bob Nolan, Tim Spencer and Lloyd Perryman to come back, and later Ken Curtis, even though Lloyd along with Tommy Doss and Dale Warren were touring.  This really upset Tommy and Dale, but they got to record for RCA beginning in late 1958, Tommy had recorded in late 1949 thru 1952.  It is my belief that this was an effort to boost record sales, as they had been down for some time.  A similar situation took place when Tommy Doss left in late 1963.  Even though Rusty Richards was hired as Tommy's replacement, Rusty never recorded while the group was with RCA.  Tommy Doss came back and remained in the recording trio with Lloyd and Dale until late 1967.

If you happen to be hunting for Sons of the Pioneers recordings, your best bet would be to locate a used record store.  One of the best is located in Brighton, MI, owned by John Morris, Old Homestead Records provided nearly every Pioneers LP that I needed to complete my collection.  Go check out the Old Homestead Records website at: www.oldhomesteadrecords.com.  John has a little bit of everything available, but in general, just good ol' American music.  I also recommend Ebay when it comes to the Pioneers.  Usually you'll find their LP's dating back from 1955 thru the early 1980's and most are in excellent shape.  I've picked up a few on Ebay myself!