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The Highway QCs are a gospel quartet - although they expanded their numbers from time to time - who came together in Chicago in 1945 and which provided an early grounding in music for later would and R&B stars like Sam Cooke, who left in 1951, Lou Rawls, who departed in 1953 and Johnnie Taylor, who performed and recorded with the group from 1955-57, so appears on this collection. Although they were popular performers, they did not record until doing their first sessions for Vee Jay in 1955. This 43-track 2-CD collection features the A and B sides of their Vee Jay singles from these years and the tracks from their Vee Jay albums “Highway QCs”, “Jesus Is Waiting” and “Oh Lord I Pray” not otherwise featured on singles. The group members and songwriters during these years, as well as Johnnie Taylor, include Spencer Taylor, Creadell Copeland, Ray Crume, Arthur Crume, James Walker and Chris Flowers. This comprehensive collection of their early work, which features their big sellers “Somewhere To Lay My Head” and “The Way Up The Hill”, captures them at a crucial stage in their career, as they established their reputation on record, and is an inspiring and uplifting showcase for their distinctive approach to gospel music.
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