Sharon Watts Meads sang soprano for The Hoppers from 1983-86. Hear her life story!
Transcript
Lightly edited for clarity.
Daniel Mount (00:04)
Thank you for listening to Southern Gospel Journal. My name is Daniel Mount, and I have the honor of being joined this evening by Sharon Watts Meads. Good evening!
Sharon Watts Meads (00:13)
Good evening. Thanks for having me.
Daniel Mount (00:15)
Thank you for coming on. It’s an honor to talk to you.
Sharon Watts Meads (00:17)
Thank you.
Daniel Mount (00:17)
Could we start with your background? You know, where you’re from and how you came to love Gospel Music and came to love the Lord.
Sharon Watts Meads (00:26)
Sure. I loved Gospel Music before I could even remember. But my earliest remembrances are being in church and singing with my two sisters. I’m one of three girls and I’m in the middle. I tried to think back to the first time I remember singing and I don’t even remember it, it was that far back. But I sang with them until my sister married Bruce Northam. Are you familiar with the Northams?
Daniel Mount (00:54)
I’ve heard the name, yes. Little bit.
Sharon Watts Meads
Okay. He had a group with his brother and some other guys, a male group, and we were a female trio. And in 1979, my sister Connie married Bruce Northam. So we decided to merge the groups and make a mixed group. And so I traveled with them until I went with the Hoppers in 1983.
Daniel Mount
Two questions. Where were you from and where were the Northams based out of?
Sharon Watts Meads (01:23)
Okay, the Northams were based out of Houston. My brother-in-law lives in Houston. I was born in Houston, raised in Clute, Texas, right down on the Gulf Coast, and about 60 miles south of Houston. And so we were in Houston a lot because our town was so small at the time.
Daniel Mount (01:26)
Okay.
So in your years with your sisters, did you make any recordings with them? Or was that not really until you joined the Northams?
Sharon Watts Meads (01:51)
We did, we recorded one record when I was 14. We were, let me think, making sure I got those ages right, 13, 14, and 16.
Daniel Mount (01:54)
Okay. Do remember the name of your group or the name of the record?
Sharon Watts Meads (02:10)
The name of the record was Born to Serve the Lord.
Daniel Mount (02:14)
Yeah, I remember that song!
Sharon Watts Meads
I’m trying to think what year that would have been. Well, I was born in 61, and so that was in the mid 70s.
Daniel Mount
Okay, neat! And then the Northams, I’ve heard that name, so you probably made some recordings with them then, right?
Sharon Watts Meads (02:29)
Yes, we did. We recorded, my goodness, probably three, maybe four albums. Yeah.
Daniel Mount (02:36)
Okay. Were you doing original songs at that point or doing, you know, the national groups’ biggest big songs in those days?
Sharon Watts Meads (02:47)
Well, we did some of those, the ones that were popular, and we did do some original ones. My brother-in-law, Bruce, his mom wrote songs, and so we recorded some of the songs that she wrote.
Daniel Mount (02:50)
Mm-hmm. Were you singing the highest part in each of those groups or did you have a sister who sang even higher than you?
Sharon Watts Meads (03:06)
No, I always sang the high part.
And I always wanted to sing loud. I loved Vestal Goodman. And yes, and so my mom reminded me years ago, I had forgotten about it, that I used to, when I was vacuuming, I used to try to sing above the vacuum cleaner because I wanted to sing loud like her. And, but yes, I always sang the high part.
Daniel Mount (03:14)
Do you have a favorite song you loved hearing Vestal sing? A favorite memory from those days?
Sharon Watts Meads (03:35)
My goodness, there’s so many of them. I could name all of them.
Daniel Mount (03:37)
Definitely. Do you have any favorite memories, then, from your days with the Northams? Any funny stories, moving stories, anything else that really sticks out as a big memory from those days?
Sharon Watts Meads (03:52)
Well, there are a lot of those, too. We traveled on an older bus, so we were always broken down a lot. And my brother-in-law could fix it sometimes and sometimes not. But one of the memories is a very scary one. We were in West Virginia. I’m a flatland Texas girl. And so we were in West Virginia, which to me is beautiful to look at, but I don’t really like traveling in it. So we lost the brakes on the bus. We were going down the side of the mountain and we were all praying right out loud and we made it.
But another great memory is we were at a singing in West Virginia. I don’t remember where it was, but something that has been etched in my mind since this happened, we had, I don’t know when we were on the program that day but it was like a singing that went through the day and into the night. And there had been all of these real fast up-tempo songs. These groups had just been singing and singing and singing and singing.
And my brother-in-law looked at us and he said, we’re gonna start with “Majesty.” And we had an arrangement. Steve Hurst taught all of us voice. And he taught at the National School of Christian Music at Murray State University years ago. And now Charles Novell, are you familiar with him?
Daniel Mount (05:01)
I don’t know him personally, but I definitely know who he is, yes.
Sharon Watts Meads (05:16)
Yes, he was the director of that school and now his son Rob is carrying that school on now that Charles is in heaven with the Lord. So Steve Hurst was teaching there and he taught us an arrangement that was amazing. And there were multiple times in the years that I sang that I remember when God just showed up, and that was one of them. The Holy Spirit just came and there was a quiet hush.
I don’t know how many people were there, but there were a lot of people there. And it was just a holy moment as the Holy Spirit moved in. So that is etched in my mind every time I think of that song, or I hear the word “Majesty” in a song. I think of that.
Daniel Mount (05:45)
Yes. I think sometimes the quiet moments are the best ones. The ones where everybody present is saying, “What’s just happened?”
Sharon Watts Meads (05:58)
Yes, it was beautiful.
Daniel Mount (06:02)
So you mentioned touring in West Virginia, which is a pretty long drive from Texas. So you must have toured pretty widely with them; it wasn’t like you were just singing in Texas.
Sharon Watts Meads (06:14)
We did.
We didn’t always go that far away. But we did sing a lot in like Arkansas and Louisiana and Oklahoma, the states surrounding Texas, Mississippi, right down in there. But we did go, to be honest now that I’m thinking about it, I don’t know what we were doing up there, how we got on that. But as the years went on, we got invited to some other places, spread out a little bit.
Daniel Mount (06:25)
Yeah. Texas to West Virginia is a pretty long drive.
Sharon Watts Meads (06:43)
It sure is. Yeah.
Daniel Mount (06:44)
Sure is.
So, when did you first come across the Hoppers? When did you first hear their music?
Sharon Watts Meads (06:51)
I had listened to all of the groups. I knew I had listened to their music, but I didn’t know them, had never met them. And we did a concert in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and we opened for the Hoppers. I didn’t know hardly anything about them. And that night I just met them, just kind of in passing. I didn’t really talk to any of them. I enjoyed hearing them sing because I always enjoyed all the music.
We got home from whatever tour we were on, about two weeks after that, the phone rang at our home in Clute, Texas. My mom kind of managed the group. She did a lot of the booking and things like that and so our phone number was on the card that you called to book the Northams. First the Watts sisters, but then the Northams.
And so one of my sisters answered the phone and told me that it was Claude Hopper. And I said, “Yeah, right.”
And it was Claude Hopper. And he just said that the girl that was singing with them at the time, which was Diane Heavener, are you familiar with her?
Daniel Mount (07:41)
I knew that Debra Talley had been there not too terribly long before you were, but I think Greg Bentley actually told me that there was a young lady who was there for a short while. I don’t think I knew her name though. So Diane Heavener was her name?
Sharon Watts Meads (08:06)
Right. I can’t remember her last name, her married name. She has since, sadly, passed away. But I went to music school with her. I knew her from music school, the National School of Christian Music, when we went at Murray State University.
But she was leaving the group. She was there just a short time. I’m not sure exactly how long, I think less than a year.
But you’re right. She came right after Debra. So Claude said that she was going to be leaving and asked if I would like to come audition for their group because they heard me sing at that concert. And my first thought was no, because I couldn’t imagine leaving my family. And we had always sung together.
And he said, “Will you at least just come audition?”
And I said, “Let me think about that.”
And then he called me back and I said, “OK, I’ll come audition, but I want you to know that I don’t know that I can lead my family group.”
And he said, “Well, just come audition, and we’ll see what happens.”
So I got on a plane, 21 years old, first time I had flown. My dad took me to the airport. And another thing that’s etched in my mind, that I thought of all through my life, is my dad – that was when people could go back to the gate. Like if somebody was with you at the airport, they could go sit with you.
Daniel Mount (09:10)
Yes. Before 9/11, yeah.
Sharon Watts Meads (09:33)
Right. And my dad, I was about to go down to get on the plane and he called me, he always called me baby. He said, “Hey, baby.” And I turned around and he said, “When you know what you’re supposed to do, walk forward and never look back.” So I got on the plane and I thought about that.
And I had a little Walkman. And I was learning the Hoppers’ music as I flew up there, because I didn’t know any of their songs. So I was listening to it and learning the music. But what my dad said to me just kept going over and over in my mind. And I just said, “God, you’ll let me know what I’m supposed to do.”
And so I went and auditioned and stayed in Claude and Connie’s home.
And funny story about the night there. It was in the spring, so it wasn’t really still cold, but it wasn’t at night. It was a little bit cooler, but I stayed in an upstairs room and it got really hot in there. And so I decided to open the window and I didn’t know there wasn’t a screen on the window. So I let a lot of yellow jackets in. And thankfully I was able to get them out.
But I enjoyed the audition. You know, I enjoyed them. Connie is amazing. But anybody you talk to is going to tell you Connie Hopper is amazing. And she was great. She cooked dinner. She’s a great cook. And best I remember, she made fried chicken and mashed potatoes. And it was great. But then when I left, we left it where I would go pray about it and think it through and then they would touch base with me.
But as soon as I got back on the plane, I knew I was supposed to go. But I was very torn because I didn’t want to leave my family group. But I felt the tug in my heart. We all know how God deals with us and I felt the Holy Spirit and I felt the tug that I needed to go.
Daniel Mount (11:10)
Yeah.
Sharon Watts Meads (11:22)
There’ll be a lot more in between, but I will tell you that I know God brought me to North Carolina to be part of that ministry for those years and to meet my husband.
Daniel Mount (11:31)
Yes. Very neat. I’m curious. Do you remember your audition process? Did you sing one song with them? Did you sing for an hour? What was it like to audition with the Hoppers back in those days?
Sharon Watts Meads (11:42)
We probably sang for about 45 minutes, maybe. I don’t think we did an hour. I mean, that’s not much difference, but it wasn’t a long, drawn-out thing. They asked me which of their songs that I knew. So I told them that I had been learning them on the way up there. And so we just did, I can’t remember what songs I sang, but the song that I did that was usually my solo was at first was “Then I Met the Master.”
Daniel Mount (11:45)
Yes, I know that song well.
Sharon Watts Meads (12:07)
So I think what we went through that that night or afternoon was, we went over to their church, a small little country church, and sung around the piano. Roger Talley was playing the piano at the time.
Daniel Mount (12:12)
So he was still there even after Debra had left? I don’t think I actually knew that.
Sharon Watts Meads (12:24)
Yes.
Daniel Mount
So did Debra leave when Lauren was born, and then Roger left when they formed the Talleys?
Sharon Watts Meads
Yes, that’s right.
Daniel Mount
I don’t think I actually knew that. That’s interesting. I just assumed they left at the same time. I just never asked, I guess.
Sharon Watts Meads
Right, yeah, that’s it. And I guess probably a lot of people didn’t realize that Lauren was born in December ’82. I joined the Hoppers in June of ’83. And so, she was born in ’82, because Lauren was about six months old when I joined the Hoppers.
And Debra was so sweet to me though, because when we were home off the road, she wasn’t traveling, but when we would get home and now I look back and I think she probably just wanted to spend time with Roger, but she would have me over for dinner and because I was single and alone and away from home.
I started calling Lauren – for some reason, I gave her the nickname Lois and it has stuck. I don’t know why I called her that. But on her birthday I saw a post on Facebook and I wished her a happy birthday. I said “Happy Birthday, Lois,” and she said that her dad and Kirk still call her Lois.
Daniel Mount (13:23)
Wow! So you actually started it and they still call her that. That’s neat. So was it a challenging conversation with your family, then, to tell them that you were going to move on and join the Hoppers, or were they understanding?
Sharon Watts Meads (13:39)
Yeah, so.
They were very understanding and they knew that it was the right thing for me. But it was hard, you know, and I cried and they cried. I missed them a lot. And I had been waiting for Connie and Bruce, my sister, my brother-in-law to have children. I had been so excited. I love children and I’ve been so excited.
Daniel Mount (13:58)
Mm-hmm.
Sharon Watts Meads (14:11)
And my niece, Jamie, who also was part of the Northams, became part of the Northams, but she was born 10 days before I left to go with the Hoppers. So it was so hard to leave her. So yeah, it was hard, but everybody knew it was the right thing.
Daniel Mount (14:21)
Yeah. So you were there for a little while before Greg joined, because I think Greg told me, Greg Bentley told me that he filled in when Connie had, I believe it was some health issues. So you were already well established as the soprano by that point.
And so part of what sparked this episode was: I interviewed Greg Bentley a couple of weeks ago. You and he were talking in the comments on that about when he first sang with the group, did “Looking for a City,” and I’d love to hear that story from your perspective, your recollection of that story.
Sharon Watts Meads (15:04)
Okay, it was actually his dad. Greg’s dad is the one that slipped up behind me. I was backstage at that concert and he said, he didn’t say anything else except he got just right behind me and he said, “Hey, would you sing Looking for a City with the tenor from the Christianaires”? And I remember it so well. I said, “Sure.”
As Greg told you, I didn’t know how high he could sing. And I’m not kidding; when we were singing it, I took it up and I knew he could take it again. And then I took it up and I knew he could take it that time. And then I took it up and I thought he won’t be able to take it again. And he did. And I was like, “Oh, no.” And that’s when he said the Hoppers were like, “Are you going to let him out sing you?” And I was like, “No, I’m trying not to.” But he’s amazing.
Daniel Mount (15:59)
Yes. So when Greg came, I guess he came out singing alto first if he was filling in for Connie. But then when he stayed on, and there were two people or three people between two positions, was it easy to adapt to that setup or was it a challenge? I didn’t actually ask Greg if you always doubled parts or you sometimes did a fifth part in there, for instance.
Sharon Watts Meads (16:23)
Well, he sometimes doubled the lead. That clip I sent you today, he was actually singing lead there. And I don’t know if Connie was having like any – sometimes she would have allergies or something. And you know, she would not be, you know, in good voice. And so he would double the lead if she was singing lead or something like that. But I don’t remember it being a hard transition at all. He kind of just fit in. Yeah.
Daniel Mount (16:26)
Yeah, you might not, well, guess I don’t know, remember if it came up in the interview or not, but I’ve known him for maybe 20-ish years, but I worked for Crossroads for six years. I worked with him every day for six years and got to know him in that context. And he’s above average, easy to get along with. He’s a very nice person to get along with.
Sharon Watts Meads (17:01)
Yes.
Daniel Mount (17:11)
So I’d like to ask you about a couple of specific songs that you recorded with the Hoppers. You were blessed with some really good songs that you’re featured on. One of the earlier ones was from the 1984 album Traveling Right. On that album I think it was titled “I Want Jesus,” but I’ve seen some, like the group called the Collingsworth Family did it maybe 10 years ago and called it “More Than Anything” in that context.
I love this song. I love how you sang it. Do you have any recollection about where you and the Hoppers came across that song and any recollections of recording it, singing it, how it was received, anything along those lines?
Sharon Watts Meads (17:48)
I do. We actually recorded it because it was something we were looking for a song for me. Connie was looking for a song for me to do on that album and I sang that when I was with my family group. And so she said, what about “I Want Jesus”?
And I said, “I would love to do that one.” So that’s how it happened.
Daniel Mount (18:00)
Do you remember where you first heard the song, who you first heard do it? Because a number of different people have done it through the years.
Sharon Watts Meads (18:14)
Goodness, I’m trying to think.
Daniel Mount (18:15)
No worries, no worries.
Sharon Watts Meads (18:17)
I don’t remember.
Daniel Mount (18:18)
No problem. There have been enough different people who have done it through the years that I don’t even know where I first heard it.
So another one I think is from the I Know What Lies Ahead album. You were featured on a song called “When He Comes Down.” That’s one the Hoppers have continued singing through the years, and even did another version of it not that many years ago. So do you have recollections of that song and how you ended up a feature on that one?
Sharon Watts Meads (18:48)
I loved that song. It is amazing. George Lewis wrote it. I think you and Greg were talking about George Lewis. Greg didn’t know this. He’s passed away. A very gifted songwriter and minister. And even after I left the Hoppers, my husband Danny and I, my husband is a pastor. We pastor a church here in Richmond and we went and ministered in his church.
Daniel Mount (18:49)
I’m sorry to hear that.
Sharon Watts Meads (19:15)
But at George Lewis’s church in Georgia. I think that’s where he was. But I’ll never forget, we were around the piano when he pitched that song to us. He would write songs and we would get around the piano when we saw him or when we, I guess, went to the church to sing or something. And he pitched several songs. But he pitched us that song that night and we all loved it. But the more we did it, it just, it became a favorite and it was one of my absolute favorites ever, the message of it.
Daniel Mount (19:46)
It’s one of my favorite songs the Hoppers have ever done, too. Did you ever hear him, because I’ll never get the chance to ask him this side of eternity, did you ever hear him share anything about the story behind that song?
Sharon Watts Meads (20:18)
No, I didn’t. I wish I knew.
Daniel Mount (20:19)
No worries, no worries.
So then another song I would love to ask you about is one that Greg and I talked about a little bit. Another of my favorites from this era of the Hoppers is a song called “Citizen of Two Worlds.” And I just love to hear any memories you have of the arrangement, because that was an interesting arrangement where you take some of the answer backs and Greg took some. And Dean’s featured on the verses. So there’s a lot going on with that song. Just curious any recollections you have of that one.
Sharon Watts Meads (20:44)
I enjoyed that song. I loved songs like that and with that feel to it; “Heavenly Honey” was one of those songs. Sometimes we would just start with “Heavenly Honey” and we would just walk out and start with that. And I just love that calm, smooth feel. But it was neat because that’s what we love to do. Like we would throw the part back and forth. And I love the repeat he did. And I love that he did it. You know, that never bothered me because we were all on the same team. But it was great. I love that song.
Daniel Mount (21:10)
I do too. Those are three that stand out to me.
I probably have or have heard most of the records from your days with the Hoppers, but there are definitely a few, especially the table projects, that are a little hard to come by. So I haven’t heard every song you did with the Hoppers. Do you have any other favorites? Any other songs that just really stand out as one that was meaningful to you then?
Okay, I’ll ask it this way. I’m curious what your favorite songs to sing at the time were, but also looking at it from the perspective of today. If there was a Hoppers reunion of the singers who have been to the group through the years and you could pick one song or a few songs to sing, which ones would you pick today and are they different than your favorites then?
Sharon Watts Meads (21:59)
My goodness. There’s so many songs. “When He Comes Down,” hands-down is one of my favorites. I don’t know if it’s my very favorite. I loved a song titled “God’s Grace” that Connie wrote. Do you know that song? Daniel Mount (22:00)
I’ve heard it, yeah.
Sharon Watts Meads
And my goodness, I love that and love the message of that song. And I loved singing “Then I Met the Master” because you know that the message of that song.
And wow, I don’t know how you pick even a few. There were so, so many good songs. Let me think just a minute. My husband just showed me a note: “His Touch.” [From Citizen of Two Worlds.] That’s one of my husband’s favorites. But that’s a powerful song. for me, and I think for most everybody in gospel music, anybody that sings God’s music, it’s the message of the song is why you love it. I loved hitting the high notes.
I’ll tell Greg sometimes and every now and then I’ll hear a Southern Gospel group, like driving down the road or whatever, and I’ll say to my husband, oh, I just want to bust a high F-sharp. And he’ll say, go ahead! So I loved the music, but I loved the message.
And I loved those songs. We did a song called “I’m on the Rock.” You know that one?
Daniel Mount (23:29)
I’ve heard it. Yeah.
Sharon Watts Meads (23:47)
And Claude always had us sing that; he would say “One more time!” about three times. And me and Greg were both – Greg was singing right under me and we were both just riding high notes. And so when he would say it, we would smile. But it was like. Are we going to do this again? Because it was so high. But that was a really good one. I don’t know who wrote that one.
Daniel Mount (23:52)
I was just checking. SGHistory says that it was written by Mark Bales and Nancy Bales McGuinness.
Sharon Watts Meads (24:03)
Okay, I don’t know them.
Daniel Mount (24:05)
Okay, but it does say the Hoppers published it, so that would be the right song probably.
Sharon Watts Meads (24:09)
Mm-hmm.
Daniel Mount (24:10)
So I would love to talk about any favorite memories you have, whether those are funny memories, serious memories, ministry memories. And one in particular we were talking about earlier today was when you had the chance to sing on the 1985 Dove Awards. But an unexpected challenge, a monkey wrench in the works there.
Sharon Watts Meads (24:27)
Yes, we got there, we had just, I don’t even know how many minutes to practice, like they were moving people on and off the stage. And we started to sing the song and as soon as that orchestra started to play it, we knew that it was pitched too high [a step and a half]. And so we told somebody and they said, there’s nothing we can do about it now. And so we had to sing it and we gave it all we had and we made it through it, but it was really, really high.
We sang “Oh, For a Thousand Tongues,” and I’ve always wondered why we sang that. In fact, Greg and I were texting about that. I sent him that clip that I sent you. The Nelons recorded the song.
Daniel Mount (24:57)
It was big for them, yeah.
Sharon Watts Meads (25:15)
And so they were in the audience. And they sang another song. They called to ask us to sing, ask us to sing that one. And so, but we just went ahead and did it and the Lord helped us. I was so nervous. I would have been nervous probably anyway, but I was very nervous because it was so high. And I knew that we just had to, we had to do, and then we had a few hours to have to think about it, you know, after we did the rehearsal.
But another thing was we had to come down those stairs. You know, they have the staircase in the middle of the stage and I had on very high heels and Greg said he remembered that I was nervous about walking down that in that dress that I had on too. But it all worked out fine.
Another memory, funny memory, it’s funny now because I was okay. The first year I went, I joined the Hoppers in June of ’83, as I said. And then in August of ’83, we did the Singing at Sea cruise. So I went on that and I didn’t know anything about what everybody did. I just knew we sang in each ballroom at night. And during the day, we just went and enjoyed the beach and all of that.
And a group of people, of different people from different groups said, “Hey, Sharon, we’re going to go parasailing. You do you want to go?”
And I said, I knew what it was, but I’d never been. I’ve always said, I’m glad I knew Jesus, because there’s no telling what I would have done, because I was kind of daring. I was just like, “Okay, let’s do it.” I’m older and wiser now though. So, but I got in the parasail, they strapped me in and the boat started to, you know, it starts to pull you and you go behind the boat. And all of a sudden, when I was almost all the way up, one of the straps came loose.
And instead of sitting like this, I went sideways and I was like, I didn’t know this was going to happen. And it was happening so fast. And then it completely came off of me and dumped me in the ocean. And I wasn’t nervous because I know how to swim, but I was way out in the middle of the ocean. And so when I was falling down, I just thought, you know, I need to hold my breath. And it took a long time for me to come up. So I was fine. They said I was way up and it’s kind of a miracle; that if I had landed different, it might not have been so good. But it’s funny now, but some of the people that might hear this podcast were on the deck and they remember it. Steve Keen, are you familiar with him?
Daniel Mount (27:28)
I might have heard the name, but I don’t know him.
Sharon Watts Meads (27:37)
He played the piano for the Hoppers for a few of the years and then James Rainey came after him. But Steve talked to me about that recently. He said, I was on the deck when you fell out of the parasail.
So other memories, let me think. We did a singing every year the Saturday after Thanksgiving in Florence, Alabama. That was the other place I talked about how the Holy Spirit met us in a way that was life-changing for me and I will never forget. And that night when we started to sing “Then I Met the Master,” the same thing happened.
And it was, the only way I can describe it is the Holy Spirit was so thick and that huge auditorium that it was just amazing. And I just, I wept. When I came off the stage, my makeup was all over the place because I had just wept because of the presence of God.
Of course, the older I get, I look back and I think of how many times God just anointed a song. There were several that really stand out like the ones I’ve shared, but just came in and anointed a song. Not always that I was singing, that Connie was singing, that Dean was singing, know, Greg, whoever, Claude, but just special visitations from the Holy Spirit.
You know, he’s with us because he’s in us when we know Christ. But it was just a special anointing. And my husband would tell you that I have talked about that often through the years, that singing in Florence, Alabama.
I remember when I walked off the stage, Jeff Gibson with Heavenbound was standing right there and he was just weeping and we were both just shaking our head. I mean, it was just like you could, I couldn’t really speak. It was amazing. So that’s a beautiful memory that I have.
Daniel Mount (29:25)
Yeah. That’s neat.
Sharon Watts Meads (29:38)
Funny memories on the bus. One time, I don’t know, this is a really good one. I have talked about this through the years too. We went to sing at PTL. You familiar, remember PTL? Okay.
Daniel Mount (29:49)
Mm-hmm.
Sharon Watts Meads (29:51)
And for some reason, usually I got a room by myself because I was the only single girl. So Claude and Connie got a room. I got a room and all the boys had to go in the room together. So they told us just to go in, relax, take our time. We weren’t singing till later, but we were gonna be on live TV. And then all of a sudden I go in, I take a shower, I have heat rollers in my hair. And all of a sudden, I hear a frantic beating on the door.
And it was one of the guys, and he said, “We’ve got to go now! They gave us the wrong time.” So I had my hair in heat rollers and I grabbed my bag and with like my brush and my hairspray and I run out and I was like, “you know, “I got to put my dress on.” And I was carrying my dress and Connie ran out of their room and she had heat rollers in her hair and we got in the back seat. She and I got in the back seat of the car, one of the cars that was taking us over to wherever we were going to sing.
And we started jerking the heat rollers out and just putting our fingers through our hair. I had longer hair then. And she helped fix the front of mine and I fixed the front of hers. And we said, “Don’t worry about the back because nobody’s gonna see the back.” So we got there, we got dressed, we went on and it was just like, because with live TV, of course we couldn’t be late.
And so, about the second song, think it was, I was here, Dean was here, Connie, Claude. And about the second song, I turned to look at Connie while we were singing something, and out of our peripheral vision, we could see a camera coming in behind us. And so she and I started laughing. And it was one of those times where you get tickled and you can’t help it. There’s nothing you can do but laugh.
We laughed and we couldn’t sing. And finally, Claude stopped the song on live TV and he said, if we could get these girls to stop laughing, we’ll finish the song. And so we were trying to get it together, but we just couldn’t because, I mean, it wasn’t ever as funny to anybody else, but she and I knew that the back of our hair was a mess and they had brought that camera in.
But she was so great. I can’t say enough good things about her. I always tell people when they ask me about her, I say my life is richer because I spent three years with her.
Daniel Mount (32:05)
That was actually one of the things I was going to ask you about because part of the reason I’m doing these podcasts is for my children who are younger. four and five. So they’ll never… You know, there’s many wonderful people they still get the chance to meet and hear, but they’re a little too young to have known Connie and Claude. And when I get the chance to talk to people who toured with somebody who is either retired or – like with Greg was with Squire – has passed away. I love to ask, you if you describe for not just them, but for other people who come in new to this music, or who maybe come across this interview a few years from now, can you try to capture in words what made people love Connie so much and tell us, you know, tell us something of Claude’s personality too, if you wouldn’t mind.
Sharon Watts Meads (32:31)
Right. I’ll be glad to. Greg described them very well in his interview. Claude was a businessman and he was very business. And so you he was always thinking of what we were doing next and what he needed to do and all of that.
Connie was just leveled out. I think Greg called her the “road mom” or “bus mom.” One time, we got home off of a long road trip, and she said, “Sharon, you want to go to the beach?”
And I said, “Go to the beach?”
And she said, “Sure, let’s go to the beach for a few days.” She took me to Myrtle Beach, and we just spent a few days together.
She was just always the same. You know, she was funny. Some of my greatest memories are her knocking on my bedroom door on the bus and asking me if I wanted to go get breakfast. We had a bus driver, his name is Reb. He also played the bass guitar and was a minister when I was with the Hoppers. so he would like close out some of our concerts and pray and, you know, just give an opportunity for people to accept Christ.
And so he would drive all night and then he would sleep all day. But he would park somewhere where we could go into like a restaurant and get breakfast. And so she would pick on my door and see if I wanted to go in. We’d go in, no makeup, and just sit and talk. I loved to talk to her because she’s very wise.
She’s very, very wise. And I still love talking to her when I call her or when I text her, even through text. It feels like we’ve never lost any time. But I think that’s how everybody feels that knows her. Yeah.
Daniel Mount (34:36)
Mm-hmm. That’s neat.
One other thing, and I might be the only person who cares about this, but it’d just be cool for me, having worked with Greg in person every day for six years, I would love to hear you describe Greg as a teen or twenty-something, because I only knew him in his 40s-ish, whatever it might have been back when I was working there. So I only knew him a few years older. I’d love to hear you describe him in his younger years.
Sharon Watts Meads (35:03)
He was the same as he is now, really. Yeah, he was just, like you said, he’s just easy to get along with, leveled out, kind of the same thing I said about Connie. He’s a great guy. We were great friends, you know, just had good conversations and all of that. So, I mean, that’s what I would say. He’s just, he’s the person that you know. He’s always been that.
Daniel Mount (35:15)
Neat. Neat.
So I think you mentioned earlier in the conversation that you met your husband because you had moved up and joined the Hoppers. So I’d love to hear the story on that.
Sharon Watts Meads (35:38)
Okay, I’d love to tell you. We were singing in Fayetteville, North Carolina. And my husband is from the eastern part of North Carolina, Hertford, North Carolina, near Elizabeth City. And he, at the time, was an evangelist. And so he was traveling a lot. He did revivals and youth camps and things like that, young evangelist. But he was a big Hoppers fan.
And so he had one night off, he had been in revivals and youth camps or whatever for six weeks, and he had one night off and he and his friend came to the concert in Fayetteville. And I was walking through, after the concert was over, I was walking through a room on the side of the auditorium or something and a mutual friend of ours, Kathy Metz, was standing there with Danny, my husband, and his friend. And she said, “Hey, Sharon, come here. I want you to meet my friends.” And so I met them that night.
And when I met Danny, he said, he told me that he was a world famous evangelist. And he just laughed and he said, “No, really. I just got to preach in Egypt.” He had been on a trip to the Holy Land with a man that he knew, and this man let him preach in Egypt. And so, but he was teasing me, and I loved that. Because it’s interesting: When you’re in a position like that because people just, you know, sometimes act like you’re not just a regular person, you know, and he was so funny. I remember I got on the bus that night, and I was like, I really liked that guy. Cause he just wasn’t trying to be anything special. He was just being himself, and I loved it.
And so then he came to the Quartet Convention. He walked up and he said, “I’m sure you don’t remember me.”
And I said, “I do remember you.”
And so we talked a little bit, and then eventually he asked me, he said, You know, sometimes in my travels, I’m near Greensboro. You know, the Hoppers are based near Greensboro, North Carolina, in Madison. And he said, “Maybe sometime if I’m over there, we can have lunch.”
And I said, “I would like that. That would be great.” And so we did. And we ended up spending a whole day together. And at the end of that day, I remember just thinking, “You know, that guy’s great.” I just knew he was just so genuine and he still is.
I always tell our congregation, “If you think he’s great, you’re right. I live with him. He is great.” And so we just pretty much, after that, we were both seeking the Lord. We weren’t looking to get married. And my parents had just divorced after almost 30 years in marriage.
Daniel Mount (38:09)
Sorry to hear that!
Sharon Watts Meads (38:31)
Thank you. And so it was sad. And I was just – I wanted to be married, but it was just kind of a rough time.
And Danny had just come out of a singles conference, and they were just telling them, “You’re not half a person because you’re single. You’re just single right now,” and things like that. And then we met. And so the Lord just did it at a time when we were least expecting it. And he really ministered to me during that time.
You know, he really, he prayed with me, and he helped shoulder the sadness, and I didn’t really even know well. But he’s a true minister, and he has such a pastor’s heart. So he pastored me through that time.
Daniel Mount (39:02)
Neat. So did you end up getting married while you were still with the Hoppers, or was that the point at which you left?
Sharon Watts Meads (39:14)
Well, we got engaged in February of 1986, and we got married in December of 1986. And so I told Claude and Connie that I would stay through the summer so they would have time to replace me if they were gonna do that, but Greg was with the group. So they didn’t really need to do that, which they didn’t, you know, ultimately. I left after the cruise in August. And then we got married in December.
Daniel Mount (39:49)
So did you then you mentioned Richmond – that’s Richmond, Virginia?
Sharon Watts Meads (39:50)
Mm-hmm.
Daniel Mount
OK, did you go straight to Richmond? Is that is that where you ended up immediately? Or did you end up somewhere? Where have you been through the years since being with the Hoppers?
Sharon Watts Meads
Well, they lived in Madison and I lived in Mayodan, which was a little ways up the road in an apartment. And so we actually moved there and were based there. I just joined him in evangelism and we would sing together. And we have a friend, Kathy White, who actually worked for the Hoppers in their office. And she would travel with us some and sing, and we did services. He had been doing it for a long time by then. And so we just went to these different places.
And then in 1989, the beginning of 1989, we knew that a change was coming. The Lord started stirring our hearts, and we knew a change was coming to our ministry, but we didn’t know what it meant. And we were praying it through and seeking God to know what we should do.
And he became the youth pastor at a church here in Richmond. It was Richmond First Pentecostal Holiness Church. That’s a mouthful. But they called and asked if he would come interview to be the youth pastor. And so we made the trip and interviewed, and he ended up on staff at that church and we were there for four and a half years.
And then the Lord moved us to out of that church and we did youth and children’s ministry at a church here in Richmond. The name of it is Victory Tabernacle, and Danny was the youth pastor, and I was the children’s pastor. We both love children and love young people of any age and I always say adults are good, but kids are the best. And so we were there.
And then in 1999 God called us to plant a church and so we planted the Celebration Center, which is the church that we pastor now.
Daniel Mount (41:54)
Okay. And that would be more in a senior pastor role?
Sharon Watts Meads (42:04)
Yes. My husband wanted to be the oldest living youth pastor. He never wanted to be a lead pastor. He’s very good at it, but he never wanted, that was not something that he was trying to get to. But, you know, when God called us, we knew that’s what we were supposed to do.
Daniel Mount (42:09)
So another angle then. In your years after the Hoppers, I’m just curious what you’ve done musically, singing-wise, since then. Did you sing at your husband’s evangelistic events? Do you sing at your church? Did you sing with others locally or regionally, as the case may be, through the years?
Sharon Watts Meads (42:37)
I would sing with my family group when we would get back together with them, some. But I’m part of the worship team at church. I co-lead the worship team. Danny’s cousin, Chad Meads, is our worship leader, and he and I work together, and I play the keyboard. I am not a great keyboardist, but my mother made sure that – my mother was a great pianist and she did not sing, but she played the piano, made sure that all of us girls took piano lessons. And none of us really wanted to play, but we had the foundation. And so in 2020, when our keyboardist left the church, I felt the Lord saying, “You’re up, like you need to sit back down at the piano.” So I did.
And so I do that, and I love the worship team. We have an amazing worship team, and I love worship. And so, you know, that’s what I’ve done. And I’ve had some opportunities along, you know, just to sing for different things. And of course, a lot of weddings and things like that, but through the years – and still love Southern Gospel.
Daniel Mount (43:44)
Southern Gospel doesn’t have to be a constraint on this question. It can be Southern Gospel, hymns, worship music, whatever. What are some of your favorite songs to sing these days?
Sharon Watts Meads (43:55)
My word, the Faithfulness of God. “All my life you have been faithful.” My goodness. And it’s been sung a lot, but I will never get tired of that song because it reminds me how God guided every step of my life.
I love “Firm Foundation” because there was some rocky times in my family growing up and all of that. And that just reminds me that, you know, Jesus has always really been my rock. I love that.
I love Phil Wickham songs.
Daniel Mount (44:25)
Yeah, I’ve heard and I really appreciate a number of his songs. Yeah.
Sharon Watts Meads (44:29)
Yeah, I really love his songs. And for the most part, I picked the music that the worship team does. You know, different people pitch me songs or whatever. And of course, Chad, the worship leader, he’s picked a lot of our songs. But Phil Wickham, we don’t do this song, but “The Jesus Way” is one that has really blessed me because it just reminds me, you know, why we’re doing this and what we need to do. How we’re supposed to act and how we’re supposed to minister and all of that.
Daniel Mount (44:56)
Neat. Now, just, my hope here is to just tell your story as well as I can. Are there questions I didn’t ask but maybe should have? Are there other aspects of your life or of your singing music, as the case, may be that would be good to talk about that I just might not have thought to bring up?
Sharon Watts Meads (45:13)
That is a very good question. I can’t think of anything. I’ll think of it as soon as we get off here.
Daniel Mount (45:16)
No worries, it happens. Well, I guess I have one other Hoppers-related question.
After you left, I believe Greg said that Claude or Connie, one of them had a niece who came and filled in for a little while, but ultimately didn’t stay on due to not having graduated school yet, being rather young. So more or less, as far as a full-time member of the group, it was just Greg then, for a number of years, in that part, until he left the group after Kim Hopper joined.
And of course, you know, Kim has been with them enough years that younger fans of the music might only think of the Kim years, which she’s been there since 1990.
But I’m curious: They’ve had a lot of success, a lot of amazing moments in the years since then, be it not just radio hits, but going with Gaithers to Jerusalem and singing their song “Jerusalem” in Jerusalem.
You know, there’ve been a number of really cool things they’ve done through the years. And you have an interesting perspective on what they’ve done through the years since you were really the last soprano – Greg was in the same part, but you were the last female soprano in that role before Kim joined the group.
So I’m just curious what it’s been like for you through the years watching what they’ve done with the group since then, and watching what Kim’s become through the group and just how they’ve grown and increased what they do through the years. It’d be interesting to hear about your perspective, just your vantage point on that.
Sharon Watts Meads (46:50)
I have tried to keep up with them. I love Facebook for that reason, keeping up with different people. it has been, it was amazing how many opportunities they got, that they’ve gotten through the years. And then to see Karlye come into the picture and all of that.
So it was just a lot of the years, I didn’t really lose touch over the years, but you get busy. We have three children in ministry and all of that. So I’ve always been in touch with Connie, but not in close, close touch. Closer now, she has more time, I guess, since she’s off the road.
Daniel Mount (47:15)
Neat.
Sharon Watts Meads (47:33)
But yeah, it was really neat how God opened all of those opportunities for them. And I was always so glad for them. And I kept in touch with Kim some. I’ve seen them in concert, you know, over the years. They came to Suffolk, Virginia. And so Danny and I drove down there to see them.
Connie was actually not there that night. I texted her and I said, “I’m at the Hopper concert and you’re not here.” But she was with her brother, who was ill. And one thing about Connie that I would love to say is that, you know, some people never liked to see us without Connie when I was with the group. You know, they wanted Connie there. And one night I remember saying to Greg, “We better just pack up and go. Cause I don’t know if anybody wants us without Connie.”
But you know, her family was very important to her. When her mom was still living, if her mom needed her at home, she would stay home. And she had that opportunity because Greg could jump in and sing whatever part we needed him to sing, except bass. But she always took care of her, like her family.
She had a brother that had a mental challenge. He was precious; his name is Charles, he’s in Heaven now. But, you know, she would always see to him and take care of him.
I love seeing her off the road because, you know, people just see her on the stage, but she was just a normal lady, loving her family, cooking country home-cooked meals when she was home. And I’m glad I got to see that.
But I’m glad that she has this time, even now, to enjoy being at home because she loved being in her home. Traveling is hard. People see it as a glamorous thing or whatever. But I enjoyed what I did because it was the ministry that God had called me to at that point. But it’s kind of a hard life sometimes because you’re up late, you don’t have normal hours, and it’s just different than people would think. It’s great, but it’s just different.
Daniel Mount (49:42)
Mm-hmm.
Yeah, I was actually thinking about it as I was listening through the records you did with the Hoppers in preparation for this.
In Southern Gospel, people tend to know and think about most the singers who spend their whole life on the road. And God calls a few people to do that. And it’s wonderful that He equips them with the endurance and special skill set and a mindset to somehow make it 50 or 60 years on a bus. That’s not most people.
And the only way that Southern Gospel could keep going back then or can keep going today is through the contributions of a few lifers and a lot of people who God leads and calls to do it for two years, three years, five years, 10 years.
Sharon Watts Meads (50:12)
Right.
Daniel Mount (50:29)
And I was thinking – then, now, any point – even if you’re only looking at the biggest named national groups, it’s still at any given point, it’s probably 75% of the people in groups are people God calls there for a season.
And that’s not a bad thing. You know, God’s gifts and calling are irrevocable. But He’ll call people and use them in different ways through the years. And, that’s all good. Southern Gospel would not move forward without the contributions of people who’ve been there for a few years.
And for your part, thank you for the years you put in to make the music better and the years you’ve spent serving the kingdom since then.
Sharon Watts Meads (51:01)
Thank you for that. I hadn’t really thought about that a lot until you just said that. And that is so true. And you know, Claude and Connie have always – one of the concerts we went to, Claude told the crowd that I was there. And he said, “I’m thankful for the people that have helped our group, you know, at different points.”
Of course, all the Talleys were with the Hoppers, because Kirk started with them.
That’s a real neat thought because people come and go, but it’s like you said, it’s not a bad thing, it’s a good thing.
And my heart’s desire from the time I was a little girl, I asked God to let me be a wife and a mom. And that’s what I wanted more than anything else.
Daniel Mount (51:27)
Neat!
Sharon Watts Meads (51:49)
And I love to sing, I love to sing, but I wanted very much to have a family. And it’s another long story for another time, but God really gave us a miracle in all of our children because I really physically should not have ever been able to have children. And years on down the road, I had a surgery that confirmed that.
Daniel Mount (52:06)
Wow.
Sharon Watts Meads (52:14)
And so God was so gracious to give me my heart’s desire and to let me continue in ministry. Because my heart’s desire is ministry.
You ask me what I’m doing now and that is to be part of the worship team at church. But I also get to spend time with young women and get to sow into them.
Daniel Mount (52:22)
That’s neat.
Sharon Watts Meads (52:35)
And we should always be mentoring and we should always be being mentored. And I have some amazing mentors in my life. And I have spent all of these years since I left the Hoppers investing in children in some capacity. For a while, I tutored math in our county, and just anything to keep me involved with kids. I say, “That’s why I’m so smart, because I’ve always hung out with kids. I’ve learned a lot from y’all.”
I love talking to teenagers. I love staying in touch with their generation. And so God has really given me a lot of the desires in the heart, you know, to let me do those things. And now my grandbabies, I’m loving, we have 11 grandbabies.
Daniel Mount (53:17)
That’s so cool. I was gonna ask, because you mentioned having three children. I was meaning to ask if you had any grandchildren.
Sharon Watts Meads (53:22)
Yes, we have two daughters and a son in the middle of those two daughters. And we have three grandchildren in Richmond. Our oldest daughter lives in Richmond. Five grandchildren in Dallas, Texas. Our son is a pastor, the pastor of Grace Point Church in Dallas, Texas. And our baby girl is in Annapolis, Maryland. Their church is in Annapolis, Maryland. Her husband is a worship pastor, and they have two of our grandchildren up there. And we have one grandbaby that’s in heaven.
Daniel Mount (53:52)
I’m sorry to hear that.
Sharon Watts Meads (53:54)
So we have eleven total. And they are grand.
Daniel Mount (53:56)
It’s a blessing. It’s a blessing that you can have some of them local, too.
Sharon Watts Meads (54:03)
And we travel, yes, and we travel to see them. The ones in Maryland we can see often because they’re only three hours away. I try to see them, Danny and I both, but if it’s a time where he can’t get away, I try to run up and see him at least once a month. And we see the ones in Texas two or three times a year. We make sure that we get to see them.
Daniel Mount (54:27)
All right, is there anything else that’s come to mind that you’d like to share before we wrap up?
Sharon Watts Meads (54:34)
I will just say thank you for what you’re doing. And what a blessing your children will have to have all of this to see someday and really appreciate about Southern gospel music. So thank you, and thank you for reaching out to me. And this has taken me down memory lane. And I really appreciate that because you know, we live our lives where we are and we need to remember.
Of course, God teaches us to remember and that helps us to remember his faithfulness. And it has taken me back to the story of how I got to North Carolina and how God used me those three years there. And then I met Danny and how God put us in the different ministries that he’s put us in here. And I’ve really been reminiscing over the last few days.
And I shared with you when we were messaging and back and forth about me talking to Greg and just so many memories. And so thank you for that. So many things I hadn’t thought of in a long time.
Daniel Mount (55:40)
Well, it was a pleasure to have the conversation and an honor to be able to share your story. I really appreciate it.
Sharon Watts Meads (55:47)
Thank you so much. I’m so grateful.
Daniel Mount (55:48)
Thank you. Me too.
And I will say in conclusion, to the listener: Thank you for listening to Southern Gospel Journal. You can keep up with the latest episodes on YouTube, Facebook, your favorite podcast platform, or on southerngospeljournal.com. Thank you for listening.