Originally a gospel duet created in 1921 by the pastor of Fairfield Baptist Church in Nashville to occupy his sons, Harry and Rufus Carrethers. Among the many personnel changes over the years, perhaps the most significant was when the Reverend Sam McCrary joined the group in 1935. His voice was a powerful tenor, though initially he had wanted to sing baritone. His leadership brought the group to wide popularity, through radio broadcasts and recordings in the late 30s and early 40s. 

    In 1946 the group added James J. Hill, a baritone who became McCrary's right-hand man. Today he is the manager of the current Fairfield Four. The other current member that joined in the 40's is Isaac "Dickie" Freeman. An oustanding bass, probably the best bass in the business, he joined the group in 1949, leaving the Kings of Harmony. At this point, McCrary had formed a "super-group", made up of the best stars.

    Unfortunately, this group didn't stay together long, and by 1951, Freeman and Hill left to form the Fabulous Skylarks (alternately called the Famous Skylarks and simply The Skylarks.) In the 1950s and early 60s, the Skylarks added "Preacher" Richardson and Wilson Waters, two more members of the 1980s and 90s Farifield Four. The Skylarks broke up in the mid-1960s.

    McCrary had kept the Fairfield Four together through the 1950s, putting out their first album (as opposed to singles) on Old Town Records in 1960. After this album, the Fairfield Four broke up, a victim of the changing times, as the radio market for the Black Gospel quartet sound dried up.

    In 1980, the Fairfield Four was reunited, both from former members and from the Skylarks, for a concert in Birmingham, AL, by Black Gospel specialist Doug Seroff. The Reverend Sam McCrary, James J. Hill, Isaac Freeman, Wilson Waters, and Willie "Preacher" Richardson made up the group. They enjoyed being together again and so stayed together, adding at various times other singers, Robert Hamlett, Walter Settles, and Joseph Rice. 

    In 1989, they were designated as National Heritage Fellows by the National Endowment for the Arts.  In 1992, Warner Brothers put out Standing in the Safety Zone, which was nominated for a Grammy. In 1996, I Couldn't Hear Nobody Pray was produced, also by Warner Brothers, and this one won the Grammy. In 1998, Dead Reckoning Records released a live album, Wreckin' the House, which had been recorded in 1989, just as the Fairfield Four decided to go back on the road.

    The Rev. McCrary passed on in 1991, and Preacher Richardson died in 1994, God bless their souls. Walter Settles is recovering from a stroke suffered in 1996. The current group is James J. Hill, Isaac Freeman, Wilson Waters, Robert Hamlett, and Joseph Rice.

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