About Alliance Quartet
The group Alliance was established on March 7, 2006.Through the years we have been blessed to be a part of church homecomings, decorations, revivals and singings all over North and Central Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee…gaining friends and followers that we proudly consider family. Many changes have taken place within the group since 2006 but we have maintained the familiar Southern Gospel sound that we have always been known for. This can be heard in our latest project, Reborn. Several of the songs on this recording were written by group members and have quickly became requested favorites. Our current group consists of James Hillis as tenor… Josh Kirby as lead… David Kirby as baritone and Mike Smith as bass. The group is now singing with a live band. Phillip Willingham plays the keyboard…Danny Ewing plays bass guitar and Wayne McCaffrey Lead Guitar and Mike Mahan finishes out the group by playing the drums.
Meet the Alliance Team
“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” – Isaiah 40:31
Singers
James Hillis - Tenor
David Kirby - Baritone
David joined Alliance as baritone singer in July of 2020.He brings with him many years of singing and song writing experience. His singing began in 1985 with The Sacred Aires from Grant, Alabama. He and his wife Pam then moved to Georgia where he joined The Proclaimers and later on The Seekers Quartet, singing with them for several years before returning to Alabama. David then formed his own group called The Master’s Touch and sang with them for about five years before starting a solo ministry. That ministry led his family to Oregon in 2006 where he was pastor at Fairhaven Church of God for thirteen years. During that time he sang in a family trio with their son Josh and daughter Hannah. In November of 2019 David and Pam moved back to Albertville, Alabama to be with family. He is excited to be a part of Alliance and is looking forward to what God has in store.
Josh Kirby - Lead
Josh joined Alliance as lead singer toward the end of 2017. He was born in Georgia but grew up in Albertville, Alabama. His parents, Pam and David, instilled a love of Southern Gospel Music in him from a very early age. Some of his fondest memories are of traveling with his dad’s group, Masters Touch to hear them sing the gospel. As a child, he learned harmony and as he got older he attended the Steve Hurst School of Music for two years, encouraging and directing his gift of song writing. In 2006 his family moved to Oregon where Josh served as worship pastor for seven years at Fairhaven Church of God. During this time he sang with his dad and sister as a trio and also had his own group called Masters Touch Second Generation. In April of 2017 he made the decision to move back home. He currently resides in Sardis, Alabama.
Mike Smith - Bass
Mike recently joined Alliance as bass singer. He was born in Bowden, Georgia where his love of gospel music started early at the age of six when he began singing with his family’s quartet. Through the years he sang with a number of local groups before joining the Prestige Quartet and singing with them for almost twenty years before the group retired in 2016. Mike announced his calling to preach in 1987 combining his love to sing of our Lord and Savior with ecouraging people to come to the alter…not only for their salvation but to come with their every need. His favorite verse is 2Chronicles 7:14…”If my people, which are called by my name shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from Heaven and forgive their sin and will heal their land.” He is retired but enjoys building hot rods and working with antique cars in his spare time. Mike has been married to his wife Michelle for 41 years. They have two children and three grandchildren and currently reside in Bremen, Georgia.
Musicians
Phillip Willingham - Keyboard
Phillip recently joined Alliance as our keyboard player. He brings with him a long history of experience and love for Southern Gospel Music. He started piano lessons at the age of thirteen and had a semester of piano in college…leading to an Associates Degree in Commercial Music from Snead State Community College and a Bachelors Degree in Recreation Administration with a minor in History from Jacksonville State University. He has played songs with the Kingsmen Quartet, The Lore Family, The Down East Boys, Barry Rowland and Deliverance, Debra Perry and Jaidyn’s Call as well as several local groups across North Alabama. Phillip also sings tenor and has sang with Snead State Community Choir and other gospel groups…bringing much talent to the Alliance family. For the past ten years he has been the Life Enrichment Coordinator for Magnolia Trace in Huntsville, Alabama. He has three children that he adores and currently resides in Attalla, Alabama.
Danny Ewing - Bass Guitar
Danny Ewing Started playing the bass at age of 13, He then began to play at several churches. In 1976 he attended Gospel Truth Lighthouse Church; Where he would become the bass player for Gospel Truth Singings and his home church. The group changed their name to The Perkins Family and he continued as their bass player for a total of 18 years. He has played for several churches since then and is currently the bass player for Free Life Worship Center.
Wayne McCaffrey - Lead Guitar
Wayne was born in Albertville, Alabama….and joined Alliance in February of 2023. His interest in music began at the early age of twelve and
continues today. He is experienced on the fiddle, mandolin, banjo and dobor and has been playing bass, rhythm and lead guitar for over thirty eight years. He also loves song writing and has written close to a hundred songs. He has musical roots in gospel, country, blues and rock and roll music, playing with Gospel Sounds, Sacred Fire, and Golden River Band to only name a very few! He has played in concerts with Atlanta, Con Hunley, Eddie Raven, George Strait and many more including the Price Brothers but the highlight of his career was meeting Charlie Daniels. Even recording in Nashville and performing at the
Stardust Theater and being a semi-finalist at the MOVA Arts Festival song writing competition three years in a row. In 2002 he received a diploma with honors for successfully completing a course in Audio Recording Engineering. This lead to working with local churches, individuals and groups in every aspect Including making CDS. In 2006 he opened The Center of Music with his wife of thirty two years, Debra. They have two sons, Chris and Lee. After his father passed in 2009 Wayne took some time off then started working on a Bachelors degree for Audio Productions at Snead State and The Arts Institute in Tennessee. After his mom got sick in 2015 he took another break to help with her care but is now back heavily involved in his music career after her recovery. He states that God has always been his inspiration…we are all happy to have Wayne and all the experience he brings as a part of the Alliance family.
Mike Mahan - Drums
Mike…..also known as Mikie..joined Alliance in the spring of 2023. He accepted the Lord in 1978 and started playing a snare drum at his home church, Welcome Bethel. That led to his traveling with his family group..The Believers…for 42 years. In 1987 Mike married his beautiful wife, Vickie and continued to travel with his family group, having his parents by his side almost the entire time. When his group didn’t have a singing he would fill in for other groups including The Christian Travelers, Gospel Four, Harmonettes and Steve, True Foundation, The Followers, The Spears Family and New Praise..who his wife sang with for several years before she joined The Believers. Mikie gives all praise and glory to the Lord for all His many blessings and opportunities over the years. He and Vickie reside in Grant, Al. Alliance is thrilled to have him join us as part of the Alliance family!
Tammy & Ronnie
Ronnie and his wife Tammy were introduced to the groupat a First Friday event in Gadsden, Alabama in 2011. Over the next few years they became good friends with the group and started helping out whenever possible. They attended all the singings that they could and took pictures and videos of the group for you tube. Fast forward to the present, Ronnie now maintains the website, continues to video each singing and helps with setting up the equipment. Tammy takes pictures for the group and is the contact person for booking Alliance for singings. Ronnie retired from sheet metal work of 40 Years, heating and air conditioning in 2005. Tammy has been a hairdresser for over 30 years and has her own shop in Attalla that Ronnie built in 2018. They live in Egypt, Alabama and are both from that area. They love Alliance and dedicate all the time possible to the group.
In Memory of Jeff Smith
The Alliance family was devastated at the passing of our bass singer and founding member, Jeff Smith on July 19, 2020. If you have ever heard Jeff sing… then you heard one of the best bass singers to ever grace God’s Earth… but also the most humble. You never heard him talk about his talent… but he took pride in the talent of the group. We referred to him as our leader or boss man but he would always deny that and say that the group belonged to each of us, no spot light for him. Everyone who truly knew Jeff, knew what a giving heart he possessed. He couldn’t stand the thought of someone doing without something that they needed… or something he thought they needed… from friends to strangers to animals, he truly had a servant’s heart. You could always turn to Jeff for advice, for prayer or if you simply needed someone to hear what you had to say… he was always there. For those of us who knew and loved Jeff he left us with the sound of his laughter, his smile and memories that will never fade. His was a golden voice… that was silenced way too soon. Alliance will continue Jeff’s legacy by continuing with the quartet.
November 19, 1961- July 19, 2020