Spencer Taylor & The Highway QC’s Still Making Waves in Gospel
The Highway QCs under “The Godfather” Spencer Taylor Jr. have not only entered their eighth decade of spreading the good news through quartet music and they are not slowing down no time soon.
The Highway QC's has been together over 70 years with Spencer Taylor at the lead for the last 60 years.
The group has helped launch the careers of several secular stars, including Lou Rawls, Johnnie Taylor and Sam Cooke.
The Highway Q.C.'s were founded in 1945 in Chicago by a group of male teenagers who attended Highway Baptist Church, including Sam Cooke, Creadell Copeland, Marvin Jones, Charles Jones Jake Richard, and Lee Richard. Cooke sang with the group through 1951, when he joined The Soul Stirrers; and Lou Rawls participated through 1953. Before joining the HQC's, Rawls sang with the Holy Wonders, and eventually all of the other Wonders (Spencer Taylor, James Walker, and Chris Flowers) also joined the HQC's.
In 1953, Johnnie Taylor joined the group, and in 1955 they made their first recordings for Vee-Jay Records. In 1957 Taylor left the group, replacing Cooke in the Soul Stirrers when Cooke pursued a solo career. They have recorded for Savoy Records, A&M Records, and other labels.
The group was highly commercially popular between 1973-1983 with several albums. Spencer Taylor & The Highway QC's has shared the stage with legends such as Mahalia Jackson, James Cleveland and Clara Ward.
Taylor released a 2020 single, “He Picked Me Up.” It's a high powered release that lets you known God will pick you up. The latest single "Saved and Sanctified" is a sure fire hit that has a great quartet flair and showcases the group and Taylor even at the ripe age of 93. The group even performed for the 2021 Presidential inauguration and has a new release that captures the moments. Taylor's son and other group members now comprise the legendary quartet group.
The single is another example of the what Jontee Ruffin’s Ruffboyz Music Group is doing in the industry, and particularly in traditional gospel quartet spectrum. The group has been nominated for a 2021 Stellar Award.
Only great things are ahead for the legendary Spencer Taylor & The Highway QC's.
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