Most often credited as Bill Johnson, this artist is one of the founding members of the Golden Gate Quartet, a gospel ensemble whose sounds quite often crossed over into the realms of doo wop and barbershop quartet harmony. The original members of this group were Johnson, Henry Owens, Clyde Riddick, and Orlandus Wilson, all high-school students in Norfolk, VA. It was not the first time this name had been used for a gospel group -- another Golden Gate Quartet had started up in Baltimore in the final decade of the 19th century. However, the Norfolk ensemble became famous enough to gain bragging rights to the name.
© 2008