NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Gaither Music Group’s Brotherly Love, featuring Jimmy Fortune, Bradley Walker, Mike Rogers and Ben Isaacs, premieres on Circle Network tonight, Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 9 p.m. ET and midnight, re-airing on Sunday, Oct. 25, at 2:30 p.m. ET. The broadcast finds the four friends sharing their close-knit blends with Rory Feek, who hosted the LIVE video recording in his concert barn in Columbia, Tenn. For Circle viewing information, click HERE.
Viewers will enjoy an intimate evening of song and storytelling, filmed in-the-round, that features an introduction by Bill Gaither and behind-the-scenes interviews with Feek and the group members, who discuss the music they chose for the performance and share how these songs have touched their lives. Those songs include the title track, “Brotherly Love,” a country hit for the late Keith Whitley and Earl Thomas Conley; the Statler Brothers’ classic “Class of ’57”; and Roy Orbison’s “Crying” as well as such gospel standards as “The Lighthouse,” “Daddy Sang Bass” and “Where No One Stands Alone.”
The Brotherly Love CD, which debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Top Christian/Gospel Albums chart and No. 16 on the Billboard Top Album Sales chart, topped the Amazon Best Sellers in Christian & Gospel chart and landed at No. 11 in the all-genre Amazon Best Sellers in CDs & Vinyl chart this past weekend. Physical copies of the DVD and CD, released digitally May 29, were released on Sept. 4. Brotherly Love is distributed by Capitol Christian Music Group and Universal Music. To order physical copies of the CD and DVD, click HERE, and for the full Brotherly Love TV schedule, click HERE. The Brotherly Love CD is also available now at Cracker Barrel Old Country Store©.
Brotherly Love is a diverse collection that spotlights some of the best-loved gems on America’s musical landscape. Cowboys & Indians described the quartet as a “country, bluegrass, gospel dream team (Dana Joseph),” while Today’s Christian Entertainment noted, “from start to finish, Fortune/Walker/ Rogers/Isaacs showcase their harmonies on Brotherly Love with every track (Kelly Meade).” “The songs chosen for the record reflect their crossover appeal to bluegrass, country, and Gospel fans, presented in an acoustic setting with assistance from top Nashville super pickers (John Lawless),” added Bluegrass Today.
Each member of Fortune/Walker/Rogers/Isaacs brings their own wealth of experience to Brotherly Love, creating an intriguing combination of styles and influences. Isaacs, a DOVE Award-winning producer who has performed with his mother and sisters for years as the GRAMMY-nominated group The Isaacs and shepherded many of the top names in the industry, produced Brotherly Love. Fortune rose to fame as a member of the Statler Brothers and penned some of their biggest hits (“Elizabeth,” “Too Much on My Heart”) before forging a successful solo career when the quartet retired. Walker is a DOVE Award-winning artist with a strong following in country, gospel and bluegrass. Formerly with the legendary Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver and currently on the road with Craig Morgan, Rogers is one of the most highly respected musicians in bluegrass music.
ABOUT JIMMY FORTUNE
Country music icon Jimmy Fortune toured, sang and performed with the legendary Statler Brothers for 21 years. Fortune wrote the group’s second No. 1 hit, “Elizabeth,” on their 1983 album, Today, and followed that with two more No. 1 hits–“My Only Love” (from 1984’s Atlanta Blue) and “Too Much on My Heart” (from 1985’s Pardners in Rhyme). Fortune also wrote the Top 10 hit “Forever” from 1986’s Four for the Show and co-wrote the Top 10 hit “More Than a Name on the Wall” from 1988’s The Greatest Hits. Fortune has performed in every state in the United States, in Canadian Provinces and in front of audiences as large as 100,000. He sang on many of the Statlers’ gold, platinum and double-platinum recordings. Fortune’s career included The Nashville Network’s popular “The Statler Brothers Show,” which aired for seven seasons and debuted in 1991 as the highest-rated show for the network. He was privileged to perform at the White House on two occasions and also presented a special gift to actress Elizabeth Taylor by singing his song “Elizabeth” to her for a birthday celebration. Jimmy and the Statler Brothers were inducted into the GMA (Gospel Music Association) Hall of Fame on October 29, 2007, and were inducted into the CMA (Country Music Association) Hall of Fame on June 29, 2008. Jimmy, as a solo artist, was inducted into the Virginia Musical Hall of Fame in 2018.
ABOUT BRADLEY WALKER
Known for his unmistakable baritone, Bradley Walker is a storytelling performer. In 2017, the IBMA Male Vocalist of the Year honoree partnered with Rory Feek, his longtime friend, on a gospel music collection that garnered three GMA DOVE Award nominations. That same year, he worked with Isaacs on an album of traditional hymns, earning three more GMA DOVE Award nominations and his first GMA DOVE Award win for Bluegrass/Country/Roots Album of the Year. In 2019, he was featured on Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival where he was accompanied by Vince Gill on guitar.
ABOUT MIKE ROGERS
Mike Rogers may be known around Nashville as a drummer, but he is also a phenomenal guitar player and singer. He kicked off his Nashville career playing for the likes of country artists Craig Morgan and Kevin Denney as well as bluegrass legend Doyle Lawson. He appears regularly on the Grand Ole Opry, has been featured on Morgan’s TV show and has also gained notoriety for his work behind the scenes, penning songs for Morgan (“Bonfire”) as well as Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, The Lonesome River Band and Fortune.
ABOUT BEN ISAACS
A 12-time GRAMMY-nominated producer who has produced recordings from some of Nashville’s most-awarded artists, Ben Isaacs is also known as the bass player and vocalist for his award-winning family group The Isaacs. He has been singing all of his life, performing with his sisters, Sonya Isaacs Yeary and Rebecca Isaacs Bowman, and mother, Lily, at the Grand Ole Opry, on the Gaither Homecoming video and concert series and at LIVE shows throughout the world each year. The group has performed at CMA Fan Fest and Carnegie Hall and has won seven GMA DOVE Awards, in addition to being featured on recordings by Dolly Parton, Paul Simon, Vince Gill, Merle Haggard, Ralph Stanley, Reba McEntire and many others.
ABOUT RORY FEEK
Brotherly Love host Rory Feek is a Nashville singer-songwriter, a New York Times best-selling author, filmmaker and reality show star. As one-half of the country music duo Joey+Rory with his late wife Joey, Feek won GRAMMY Awards and starred in a weekly hit television show on RFD-TV. He has authored two books, This Life I Live and a children’s book, The Day God Made You, and is currently starring in a new RFD-TV docu-series, This Life I Live.
ABOUT GAITHER MUSIC GROUP
One of the largest independent Christian music companies in the world and a household name for millions of fans, Gaither Music Group, in partnership with Primary Wave Music Publishing, is known worldwide for its award-winning and top-selling recordings, including the Gaither Gospel Series, of which 133 products have been certified gold, platinum or multi-platinum. These recordings, which encompass more than 177 video copyrights, showcase gospel music pioneers; many of the finest performers in the gospel and country genres; up-and-coming acts; and country artists including The Oak Ridge Boys, Jimmy Fortune, Joey+Rory, Alabama, Alan Jackson, The Statler Brothers, George Jones, Vince Gill, Josh Turner, Tennessee Ernie Ford, The Isaacs and others. The brand has partnered with Sandi Patty, Gloria Gaynor, Steven Curtis Chapman and a host of acclaimed talents from various fields of music. Gaither Music Group has garnered sales of more than 40 million DVDs and CDs, including such PBS stalwarts as Billy Graham: God’s Ambassador, the only authorized video autobiography of Reverend Billy Graham; The Gospel Music of Johnny Cash; and three Elvis Presley projects, including He Touched Me and The Gospel Music of Elvis Presley, in conjunction with the Elvis Presley Estate. The company developed a partnership with Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® in 2008; and its alliances with Capitol Christian Music Group, Universal Music Group and Time Life Music remain bedrocks for the company.
ABOUT CIRCLE
Circle is a media network dedicated to celebrating the country lifestyle and putting fans inside the circle of everything country. Circle offers entertainment news, documentaries, movies, archival, new and licensed programming, Grand Ole Opry performances, and more. Circle is a joint venture between Opry Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of Ryman Hospitality Properties, and Gray TV.
For more details and to find out if Circle is available in your market, please visit www.CircleAllAccess.com.
