Appalachian Imagination's Jason Bowman Interviews William Golden of the Oak Ridge Boys: A Melody for Every Emotion

William Lee Golden joined the Oak Ridge Boys in 1965. It is now 59 years later, and Mr. Golden is still going strong! During the week of this interview, he and his family (The Goldens) had done shows in Florida, Alabama, and Tennessee. After that, he was headed to Ohio to meet up with the Oaks to continue their tour. 
The Oak Ridge Boys' longtime tenor vocalist, Joe Bonsall, died on July 9[th], and William's son, Rusty Golden, died on July 1[st], 2024. This has definitely been a hard year for him, but he refuses to let the music stop. 
Mr. Golden shares the story of how it all got started for him with music. His sister, who was and still is three and a half years older than him, needed a guitarist and harmony singer. She selected William and that started his musical journey at a very early age. 
With Joe's health starting to fail last year, he passed the microphone to a young very qualified singer named Ben James. Ben has received some high compliments from one of Nashville's top producers, Tony Brown, who said Ben's vocal talent ranks up there with Vince Gill's (That high lonesome sound). 
In October 2024, The Oak Ridge Boys released a brand new album titled Mama's Boys. When you give it a listen, you will see that the guys have held true to their roots and delivered another Oak Ridge Boys classic. William sang lead vocals on a track written by David Lee Murphy titled "Come On Home." He will soon be 86 years old, but his baritone voice is still warm and pleasant as ever. 
Ending the interview, Mr. Golden offers a word of encouragement to up-and-coming artists, but I won't spoil that for you. 
Tune in, turn it up, and Stay Awesome Appalachia!