The Rangers History and Heritage

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The Rangers are one of the oldest group names in the history and heritage of Southern Gospel Music, second only to the Blackwood Brothers.    The original group was started in 1936 by a group of Texas Rangers and throughout the years many well-known names within the industry have, at one time or another, been a member of this famous group.  A few of these names are;  Leroy Abernathy, Jimmy Jones, Bobby Clark, Ronnie Page, David Reese, Hovie Lister, Denver Crumpler, Doy Ott and Bill Nelson of the famous Swanee River Boys.  If you will notice, Hovie, Denver and Doy eventually became members of the later-formed Statesmen Quartet.  Through the years, ownership of the group was traditionally passed down from member to member, the most recent transfers being from David Reese to Bill Nelson and then on to Mike Nelson and eventually landing with Rick and Bobby as co-owners.  The current members of the group are Mike Nelson, tenor  *  Joe Cox, lead  *   Bobby Wilson, baritone  *   and Rick Bradley, bass.

Rick and Bobby have actually come “full circle” as they were members of The Bradley Family, a local Tennessee family group more than 55 years ago.  These men are much more than just guys that sing and worship together, they are more like four brothers that really love each other as family.  The group has also been honored by the Governors of two states having been commissioned “Ambassadors of Good Will” in both Texas and Tennessee.  The Rangers have truly been blessed by God and we continue to press on to spread His word.