Joe Bonsall, tenor singer for The Oak Ridge Boys, has announced his retirement from touring. Bonsall sang with the group for 50 years and is retiring due to a neuromuscular disorder. In a statement, shared on Wednesday (Jan. 3), Bonsall told fans that “many of you know I have been battling a slow onset (over four years now) of a neuromuscular disorder.” He shared that he is “now at a point where walking is impossible, so I have basically retired from the road.”
Bonsall Shares Statement With Fans After Announcing Retirement
“It has just gotten too difficult. It has been a great 50 years, and I am thankful to all the Oak Ridge Boys, band, crew, and staff for the constant love and support shown to me through it all,” his message continued. “I will never forget, and for those of you who have been constantly holding me up in prayer, I thank you and ask for you to keep on praying.”
Bonsall’s final show with The Oak Ridge Boys was on December 17. He joined the Country Music Hall of Fame group in 1973 after leaving his position with gospel group The Keystones. He performed with his Oak Ridge Boys bandmates Duane Allen, William Lee Golden and Richard Sterban for five decades, save for an eight-year period during which Golden was replaced by the now-deceased Steve Sanders.

Bonsall Has Been Part Of The Country Music Hall of Fame Group For Over 50 Years
The Oak Ridge Boys have sold over 41 million units worldwide and have won five Grammy awards, four Country Music Association awards, two Academy of Country Music awards, nine GMA DOVE Awards and two American Music Awards. They were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2000 and the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2015.
Joe Bonsall’s Replacement, Revealed As Ben James
Following Bonsall’s departure from The Oak Ridge Boys’ touring schedule, Ben James will now perform in his place. James was introduced by The Oak Ridge Boys’ Duane Allen, William Lee Golden, and Richard Sterban during a show in Greenville, Mississippi at Harlow’s Casino Resort on December 30.
“There is a young man named Ben James singing for me out there, and he needs your love and encouragement … his sound is different than mine, but he brings a ton of talent to the table!” Bonsall told fans. “The Oak Ridge Boys will finish the Farewell Tour without me, but rest assured, I am good with all of it! God’s Got It!!!”

James, who has worked with Doyle Lawson and Dailey & Vincent, was introduced to The Oak Ridge Boys in 2022 during a concert in Wheeling, West Virginia, where Daily & Vincent were also on the bill. He is also a singer/songwriter and recently released his solo album, Wonderland.
“Joe handed me the mic and said, ‘You’ve got the next verse,’” James said in a statement. “And I’m not sure I will ever get over that moment. ‘Elvira’ was always on repeat when I was growing up. It’s still one of those timeless songs that never grow old.”
The Oak Ridge Boys Farewell Tour
The Oak Ridge Boys American Made Farewell Tour is currently scheduled through June, and the group is prepping to return to the studio with Grammy-winning producer Dave Cobb in late January. This will be their fifth time working with Cobb.
The band announced their farewell tour in September, and Golden told Billboard at the time that “when you’re saying farewell, there’s a lot of people you want to say farewell to.”
“It’s all the people that supported you along the way, the ones that called the radio stations, the one[s] that come and bought tickets to see us sing and sat in the rain with the rest of us while we were able to play and sing music,” he continued. “It’s a lot of emotions, because we as the Oak Ridge Boys are a family.”