Joe Bonsall, 50-Year Member of The Oak Ridge Boys, Dead at 76

The Oak Ridge Boys' Joe Bonsall (Courtesy of Daniel Tommasino)

Joe Bonsall, a 50-year member of the Oak Ridge Boys, died at home on Tuesday at age 76, in Hendersonville, Tennessee, from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) complications.

Mr. Bonsall, who was originally from Philadelphia, announced his retirement from the popular music group on Jan. 3 in a post on X.

“I don’t think they anticipated the end being quite so near because he was still calling and texting people as of last week,” said Mr. Bonsall’s publicist, Jeremy Westby.

Mr. Bonsall had announced his ALS diagnosis on X at the time of retirement.

He had been battling a slow onset since 2020.

“I am now to a point that walking is impossible so I have basically retired from the road,” Mr. Bonsall wrote. “It has just gotten too difficult. It has been a great 50 years and I am thankful to all the Oak Ridge Boys band crew and staff for the constant love and support shown to me through it all. I will never forget and for those of you who have been constantly holding me up in prayer I thank you and ask for you to keep on praying.”

The band’s greatest hits include “You’re The One” and “Dream On.”

Ben James, 28, of Hickory, North Carolina, was introduced as Mr. Bonsall’s replacement in the Oak Ridge Boys’ Farewell Tour on Dec. 30, 2023.

“He needs your love and encouragement … his sound is different than mine but he brings a ton of talent to the table,” Mr. Bonsall stated in the Jan. 3 post. “The @oakridgeboys will finish the Farewell Tour without me but rest assured I am good with all of it! God’s Got It!!”

Mr. James told The Epoch Times that it’s impossible to fill Mr. Bonsall’s shoes.

“Everybody’s got their own pair of shoes and Joe’s cannot be replaced,” he said. “He had that specific sound that only a kid from Philly who grew up the way he did could have. You could hear it in his vocals and it’s just amazing.”

“Joe was one of a kind,” Mr. Westby, who had been Mr. Bonsall’s media representative since 2009, told The Epoch Times. “He was definitely the jokester of the group … always bright, always smiling, and encouraging.”

As a result of his illness, Mr. Bonsall had hand surgery that prevented him from playing the banjo, an instrument he said he loved in his essay called Banjo Thoughts.

“He was super optimistic during that timeframe,” Mr. Westby said. “His feet were no longer working the way he wanted them to and then it was his legs but he always stayed positive. He always stayed optimistic and always pointed to the Lord and pointed to God as far as his comfort and his guide.”

In addition to being a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, Mr. Bonsall was a member of the Grand Ole Opry and inducted into the Philadelphia Music Hall of Fame, the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.

CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Kyle Young, offered his condolences,“For fifty years, Joe Bonsall was the Oak Ridge Boys’ sparkplug,” Mr. Young wrote in a statement. “His tenor voice was high and clear, and his jovial spirit always provided a jolt of energy, rousing audiences to come on in and take a load off. He lightened our cares every time he sang.”

The Grand Ole Opry also wrote on X: “We express our deepest gratitude for the cherished memories, joyful moments, and undoubtedly, your remarkable tenor voice. We will miss you, Joe.”

The Oak Ridge Boys leader Duane Allen told The Epoch Times that the band plans to fulfill all of their 71 remaining play dates in 2024.

“We talk about Joe at every show,” Mr. Allen said. “We won’t do a tribute per se, but we do all the songs we had hits with, including the hits Joe sang. We will continue to work next year.”

Joe Bonsall (L) with rest of the The Oak Ridge Boys (Courtesy of Brandon Wood)

Mr. Bonsall was also the author of 11 books, including his latest, a memoir titled “I See Myself,” which will be released in November.

“He wrote his own obituary,” Mr. Westby added. “That was his wish. The only thing we were allowed to change was grammar and punctuation.”

The obituary can be viewed on The Oak Ridge Boys X page.

At Mr. Bonsall’s request, there will be no funeral. In lieu of flowers, he asked that donations be sent to the ALS Association or to the Vanderbilt Medical Center ALS and Neuroscience Research Center.

Mr. Bonsall is survived by his wife, Mary Ann, daughters Jennifer and Sabrina, granddaughter Breanne, grandson Luke, two great-grandsons, Chance, and Grey, and a sister, Nancy.