Country vocal quartet The Oak Ridge Boys sang a soaring rendition of «Amazing Grace» on Thursday to honor former President George H. W. Bush at his funeral in Texas, the final time they’d perform for a man who’d become a friend.
«Here comes George Bush running towards us, saying, ‘I can’t make it tonight, but I’m a huge country fan, I’m a big Oak fan. Will you sing some of your songs?’ » Bonsall recounted.
The band — who had been setting up for a sound check — happily obliged, singing their hits of the day and lesser known songs like «Freckles,» as Bush rattled off the names of tracks he wanted to hear.
«He started listing album cuts, so he wasn’t kidding,» Bonsall said. «We were just blown away that the vice president knew our music.»
When they sang for Bush one last time on Thursday, their promise to sing at his funeral was the final marker on three decades of very musical friendship between four country singers and the former leader of the free world.
The band had concerts in Washington state scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday night, which made the idea of attending Thursday morning’s service seem like a stretch at first. But a longtime friend of the band leased a private plane to get them to Texas on time, flying all night to arrive at 4:30 a.m.
