The Oak Ridge Boys are coming to Lima
Country lovers get ready. The Oak Ridge Boys are set to play to play at the Veterans Memorial Civic Center in Lima at 3 p.m. on Oct. 24.
For country and gospel music fans not familiar with the name, that’s surprising.
“There’s probably not a group in the music business that has more history than the Oak Ridge Boys,” Richard Sterban, bass player for the four-piece band, said.
The band actually dates back to World War II, when the then-gospel band was referred to as the Georgia Clodhoppers and would travel to
Oak Ridge, TN to play for scientists working on the Manhattan Project who couldn’t leave because of their work.
The band changed their name to the Oak Ridge Quartet and would become regular performers at the Grand Ole Opry. But they disbanded in the 1950s and reorganized as the Oak Ridge Boys. In 1977 the band produced their first country hit, “Y’all Come Back Saloon.” Since then, they’ve been a country group.
All of their work culminated in their 1981 with "Elvira". And unlike some signature songs that
bands tire of playing, this band never gets sick of playing the song.
None of the current members - Duane Allen, Joe Bonsall, William Lee Golden or Sterban were original members. But they have been together almost 50 years. “It’s pretty mind-bogging,” he said.
This year’s tour is a nice change from last year, when - because of COVID-19 - the band was out of work. That was tough for the quartet.
“We were not able to do what it is that we love doing,” he said.
But now they’re back and facing large crowds, a fact he attributed to peoples’ desire to experience live music once again.
“I think live music is very healing in nature,” he said. “We have a responsibility with our music to try to help people and heal people.”
And helping people through music is important to him because it leaves him with a sense of accomplishment and a worthwhile feeling.
He described their most recent album out, “Front Porch Singing”, released four months, as healing.
“We love helping people with our music,” he said.
The band used to be a regular act at the state fair in Columbus, and he said the Oak Ridge Boys frequently return to the state because of it’s “middle America” location. He also described Ohio as a place that prioritizes family and has family values, traits he described are regular in audiences that see them.
Before joining the band in 1972, Sterban actually worked with Elvis.
Tickets for the show are available on the Veterans Memorial Civic Center website, limaciviccenter.com/oakridgeboys.