Starting Your Own Gospel Group Bio – Dan Keeton

At age 4, Dan Keeton would face his dad's alcoholism, the divorce of his parents, child abuse from a step-mother and a foster home.

At age 11, he moved to Kentucky where he found his Grandmother's box of gospel cassettes. On that first tape he heard Sister Vestal Goodman say that he could be one of God's children and be saved.

So when the tent was set up across the street from Grandma's house and they began playing some of this same music, Dan was compelled to go see. Not only did he see, but he found that Vestal was right; Dan gave his life to Christ that day.

For the rest of Dan’s bio: http://www.keetonsong.com/biography.cfm

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I'm In!

As a songwriter, I have been blind-sided by ideas for songs. Then out of the blue, they practically write themselves in just a few moments. These are the ones I consider to be "from God". I know they are all from Him, but these are the ones that seem, they've already been written and all I have to do is copy them down from God's songbook. There is no trying to rhyme words or "picking and choosing" which lines belong together.

It's happened before. I wrote, "Tellin the Old Story" recorded recently by The McKameys, when I was 17, sitting in my car beside a gas station. I was singing with my first group, "The Veterans Quartet" from Leitchfield, KY. It was easy! "I am headed for Glory, tellin the Old story, over and over again"! For many years after, God provided evidence that it came from Him, the acceptance and complements were blessings.

Another one was, "Mercy on America Again". I stopped to write this one on the side of Interstate 55, in southern Mississippi, at 3am in the morning. I've had several people comment that, I must have gotten great inspiration from September 11, 2001 to write this song. However, I wrote it long before 9-11 ever happened. It seemed like God knew we needed this message and prepared us for it. It's another piece of evidence, He is in it.

One more comes to mind, "Answer for the Lost". This one was written in 1995. I was traveling with Lowell Lundstrom, out of South Dakota, with his Impact America Crusades. I was inspired by one of his sermons based on Matthew:25. "do unto the least of these, you've done it unto me". Tony Gore and Majesty recorded it back in the 90's.

It happened the same way with, "Stand for the King", recorded in the 90's by the Palmetto state Quartet. That one took all of an hour to write.

I am sitting here at my desk with a list of ideas I've been collecting for years. Those seem to have hit a wall. They just don't come to me. Some have only a part of a chorus. But, it's these particular songs that come thru the right channel at the right time that are truly blessings from God, and are evidence of his hand.

Long before I joined The Dixie Melody Boys, I wrote, "Following in Their Footsteps". This one came the same way, a few moments, a pen and a piece of paper. I had always dreamed of joining a group like DMB. I also dreamed of sitting backstage talking with and getting to know my heroes like, Vestal, Howard, Glen, George, Rex, Kenny, I could go on and on. And as a songwriter, I dreamed of learning from people like Ronnie Hinson, Dottie Rambo and other great writers.

Today, I am looking at another piece of evidence. After forming The Dan Keeton Quartet, arrangements were confirmed for us to perform on The Jim Bakker Television Show in Branson, MO. So, we planned on singing our theme song, "Following in their Footsteps". Then last Sunday, one of my heroes, Dottie Rambo, died in a bus crash on Mothers Day. In surfing the internet just yesterday, I learned, Dottie appeared regularly on the Jim Bakker Show. This past Monday May 12th, (you really should see it - www.jimbakkershow.com) they dedicated the entire show to remembering Dottie Rambo.

After filling a bath towel with tears, I raised my head and realized, in three days...The Dan Keeton Quartet will perform, "Following in Their Footsteps" on the same platform where Dottie performed...

I will need another bath towel.

I have no idea what God is up to, but.......I'M IN!

Dan Keeton
The Dan Keeton Quartet
www.dankeeton.com