January 2006 ~ Featuring Dallas Rogers
The Dixie Echoes are now entering their 46th year in Gospel music, and I have been with the group since 1998. Since I joined, I have had the privilege of traveling with some of the greatest guys in the world. Back in October of 2004, we welcomed Tracy Crouch to the group to sing bass. Now, we have one other new face in the quartet. Dallas Rogers is the newest and youngest member of the Dixie Echoes. Dallas has been with the group since August of 2005, and has been doing a wonderful job filling the tenor position. This month, I hope you enjoy getting to know a little bit more about our new guy.

Dallas Rogers was born on December 9, 1981. He is the son of Larry and Pat Dawson. He has one sister, Lori Evans. Dallas is from Seymour, Indiana, but now resides in Pensacola, Florida. He and his wife Shelly were married on September 7, 2004. They are expecting their first child in May of 2006. Dallas was saved in 1988 in English, IN. His home church is Mt. Calvary Evangelistic Center in Indianapolis, IN. Dallas enjoys playing golf, basketball, and football. He collects basketball cards and Southern Gospel records. His parents had sung Gospel music for around 40 years with a group in Indiana called the Christian Cavaliers. When Dallas was born, his mother can tell you that all he has ever wanted to do was sing Southern Gospel music.

Dallas says that his parents have been his biggest influence and Gold City inspired him to sing Southern Gospel music. He states, "I'll never forget it, my father and I was backstage at the Murat Temple in Indianapolis. This was when Gold City consisted of Brian Free, Ivan Parker, Mike LeFevre, and Tim Riley. They sang a song called "There Rose A Lamb", and that song just did it for me. I was backstage in awe. As I was listening to the group, I was wishing that I were out there singing. My mother kept on telling me to pray and seek God's direction for your life and to always rely on him for everything. If there is one thing that I can say to a person, it is never give up on your dreams. Dream big and always keep God number one in your life!"

Before joining the Dixie Echoes, Dallas has sung with groups like the Toney Brothers, Heirline, and the Journeymen Quartet. He joined our group on August 4th, 2005, when he was twenty-three years old. Other than singing tenor, his jobs include washing the bus, driving the bus, and setting up the sound system. He does all three as if he actually enjoys them! Ha! I've never met anyone else that actually enjoys driving the bus. Dallas auditioned with the group in the summer of 2005, in a little town called Collins, Mississippi. Randy Shelnut had Dallas join us on a few songs that night. Dallas says that he was nervous as he could be, but at the same time he was having the time of his life. Dallas says, "I consider it an honor to be with this quartet. Glory to God!"

To find out more about Dallas and the rest of the Dixie Echoes, visit our website at www.dixieechoes.com. We are currently in the studio recording a new album that will feature the current lineup of the Dixie Echoes. It should be available within the next few months. Also, the Dixie Echoes have started a television program that is currently being aired in a few markets in the southeast, and will be expanding to several other major markets throughout the United States within the next year. For more information on the television program, including broadcast times and TV station information, visit our website. The program is titled 'Keep On Singing', and it is a thirty-minute live concert by the Dixie Echoes Quartet. Be sure to check our concert schedule to see if we will be in your area in the near future. Please join us soon and welcome Dallas to the Dixie Echoes family!