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Nelons Up For 4 SGM Fan Fair Awards

The Nelons are honored to be nominated by our friends at Christian Voice Magazine in the following categories of the 2010 SGM Fan Fair Awards:

Favorite Trio
Favorite Female Vocalist (Kelly Nelon Clark)
Favorite Alto (Kelly Nelon Clark)
Favorite Soprano (Amber Nelon Thompson)

Cast your ballot here!

Nelons Vie For Visionary Award

The 2010 Visionary Awards nominations have been released by the Christian Music Hall of Fame with the winners being announced live during the annual award show to be held on November 6, 2010.

Andy Woolard, Director of Operations for the Christian Music Hall of Fame states, “We are honored to announce these nominations and look forward to fans voting for their favorite artists.” Woolard said the voting for the Visionary Awards will begin on March 1 and end at the end of April.

This is the second Visionary Awards show and the third show inducting artists into the Hall of Fame. The hosts for the 2010 Visionary Awards were announced last week and will be hosted by award winning artists David Meece and Babbie Mason. The show will be live in the Dallas, Texas area and the location will be announced in the next few weeks.

There are 17 categories and 5 artists are nominated in each category. Fans are urged to go to the charity web site at www.hallmuseum.com and vote for their favorites in each category.

The Nelons are honored to be nominated in the following category:

Southern Gospel Group of the Year
Booth Brothers
Legacy 5
The Nelons
Gaither Vocal Band
Brothers Forever

ABOUT THE CHRISTIAN MUSIC HALL OF FAME

The Christian Music Hall of Fame is a non profit 501(C)(3) charity paying tribute to Christian artists in all genres of music. Funds are currently being raised to open a museum highlighting the careers of numerous artists. For more information, please visit their web site at www.hallmuseum.com or contact Andy Woolard at andy@hallmuseum.com.

Gospel Music's "Partridge Family" Heads West

2010 is proving to be a year on the move for multiple Grammy nominees and Dove Award winners the Nelons. First, they relocated from their long-time home in Atlanta to their new base in Jacksonville, Florida. Now, they’re setting their sights on the west.

Just days before the official release of their new CD Beside Still Waters, the Nelons will kick off their four-week, 18-city West Coast Tour. In all, the Nelons will criss-cross five states to play nearly two dozen dates.

For 20-year-old Amber Nelon Thompson, this tour marks a return to the place where she made her debut as the group’s full-time soprano. Amber first sang with her family at Fresno, California’s Great Western Quartet Convention in 2002. She says that turned out to be only a pre-cursor to what her life is now.

“Sometimes I feel a little bit like I’m starring in a modern day remake of The Partridge Family. Let’s face it, I’m living every twenty year old’s dream-- trapped on a bus for weeks at a time with my parents and my little sister! But seriously, I love them, and I love what we do. I wouldn’t have it any other way!”

After more than three decades of coming to the West Coast, Amber’s mom Kelly Nelon Clark looks forward to seeing lots of familiar faces.

“We have so many friends out there that it’s always like a reunion for us. The audiences are so receptive and warm, and they’ve become like family to us. I just want to hug every one of them, so look out!”

For Kelly’s husband Jason Clark, the West Coast Tour turns his thoughts toward one of his favorite hobbies and time spent with the group’s late patriarch, Gospel Music Hall of Famer Rex Nelon.

“When Rex was still touring with us, he and I would wake up every morning and play the local golf courses. We had so much fun and really got to play some of the most beautiful courses in America!”

The Nelons sophomore Vine Records CD Beside Still Waters will be released during the West Coast Tour. A virtual radio tour and a relaunch of the thenelons.com will coincide with the album’s February 16 street date.

Stops on the Nelons 2010 West Coast Tour:

2/14 - Tucson, AZ - Christ Community Church - 6:30PM
2/16 - Antioch, CA - First Missionary Baptist Church - 7:00PM
2/17 - Orchard, WA-Bible Baptist - 7:00PM
2/18 - St. Helens, OR - First Missionary Baptist Church - 7:00PM
2/19 - Yakima, WA- West Valley Nazarene - 7:00PM
2/20 - Shoreline, WA - Berean Bible Church - 6:00PM
2/21 - Gladstone, OR - Tri-Cities Baptist Temple - 6:00PM
2/22 - Springfield, OR - Berean Assembly of God - 7:00PM
2/23 - Wenatchee, WA - Wenatchee First Assembly of God - 7:00PM
2/24 - Carson City, NV - Good Shepherd Wesleyan Church - 7:00PM
2/25 - North Highlands, CA - Capital Free Will Baptist - 7:00PM
2/26 - Riverside, CA - Arlington Avenue Nazarene - 7:00PM
2/27 - Mesa, AZ - Celebration Christian Church - 6:00PM
2/28 - Tan Valley, AZ - Christ’s Church FWB (Jo Combs Middle School) - 10:00AM
3/2 - Beaumont, CA - Beaumont Assembly of God - 7:00PM
3/3 - Lake Havasu, AZ - Lakeview Community Church - 7:00PM
3/5 - Yuba City, CA - Crossroads Community Church - 7:00PM
3/6 - Yuba City, CA - Crossroads Community Church - 7:00PM
3/7 - Yuba City, CA - Crossroads Community Church - 9:00 & 11:00AM
3/7 - Red Bluff, CA - Red Bluff Church of God - 6:30PM

Beside Still Waters, From the Choir Loft

Three of Jason's songs from Beside Still Waters are already available for your church choir to sing!

“He Found Me” is in the Lillenas choral collection titled “The Old Landmark,” along with the Nelons’ 2008 hit “We Speak Your Name.” It also includes Janet Paschal’s remake of “Hide Me, Sweet Rock of Ages,” which she originally sang with the Rex Nelon Singers in the eighties.

“The Love of God for Me” and “There Is A Way” will soon be out in choral print from Prism Music Publishing as well.

In addition to their full-time concert schedule, the Nelons continue to perform with choirs and orchestras, and do choir workshops, retreats, and weekends. The Nelons are booked by Michael Davis at The Dominion Agency.

Kelly Nelon Clark Shaken, But Okay, After Robbery

Gospel Music veteran Kelly Nelon Clark is understandably shaken, but thankful to be alive after being robbed in the parking lot of a Jacksonville, Florida K-Mart Tuesday evening. An African-American male wearing a dark, hooded jacket approached Kelly as she left the store and demanded money. Kelly complied, and the man fled with nearly $750 and her husband Jason’s debit card.

“I hadn’t taken my purse. I’d just grabbed Jason’s wallet and I didn’t realize it still had a lot of the cash from last weekend’s CD sales in it,” she says. Within the next half hour, the thief also debited close to $500 from the Clarks’ checking account.

“You never realize how precious life is until something like this happens. I was terrified that this was it for me and I would never see my family again. But once again the Lord completely surrounded me and God provided a way of escape,” Kelly adds. “Thank you for all of your prayers and concerns. You are truly the greatest people in the world-- God’s people!”

Jason echoes Kelly’s sentiments. “I just praise the Lord for His protection over Kelly. The money is one thing but thank God she’s home safe with the girls and me. These are desperate times, and I think this should be a wake up call for us all.”

Long based in Atlanta, the Nelons recently returned to touring full-time and relocated to Jacksonville, where they are “Artists In Residence” at Trinity Baptist Church and College. Kelly and the Nelons will resume their normal schedule this Sunday at Elizabeth Baptist Church in Marietta, Georgia.

The Nelons’ sophomore Vine Records CD, Beside Still Waters, will be released February 16. It features the current hit single “He Found Me,” as well the Nelons’ interpretation of the Andre Crouch classic “My Tribute” and a remake of the Carroll McGruder favorite “I’m Going Home With Jesus.” In addition to the stellar soprano vocals of Amber Nelon Thompson, the project also includes the recording debut of Jason and Kelly’s youngest daughter Autumn. February will also find the Nelons embarking on a four-week tour of the West Coast and visiting with disc jockeys all across the country as they promote the new record.