The Paramount Four initially consisted of Caldwell Jenkins Jr. (b. 1943) was born and raised in Gallatin, William Earl ‘Cat’ Turner (lead vocal; b. 1943 d. 2012), Sonny Brown (bass vocal) and Robert Lee Alexander (tenor/lead). They went to school together in Gallatin, Nashville, USA. Brown and Alexander were drafted to the military before they started recording, and so the group picked up James Wallace Simpson (tenor) and William Ellis Johnson (bass).