Born and reared in
Knoxville, Tennessee, Turner got his early experience in a local band performing on the southeastern college concert and club circuit. He toured Europe as a youth soloist and classical guitarist for the
University of Tennessee choir. After graduating with honors, majoring in Engineering Management and working summers in Music, he moved to the capital city of
Nashville and launched a career in the lounges of
country music, "jamming" with
Doug Kershaw,
Johnny Cash, and
Kris Kristofferson. He found immediate success as a songwriter,
session musician and recording artist. Booked on a trip to New York performing with a variety show, Turner auditioned on Broadway for
Jesus Christ Superstar, singing the only ballad from
Pilate (not with the rehearsal pianist, but his classically played acoustic guitar). Turner was the only lead role cast at that time. He went on to play the
bass part of
Caiphas, plus the screaming
tenor of
Pilate. After the Los Angeles run of
Superstar, Turner decided to stay on the West Coast but returned to his country music roots while adding folk and rock to his acoustic guitar and vocals. He was entertaining on the Los Angeles club circuit (the Palomino, the Pasadena Ice House, the Troubadour), plus colleges, fairs and clubs throughout the country. Turner was signed to the GRC record label, and was produced by both Neil Wilburn and Larry Cox. In 1979, he was discovered at a "gig" by Welk reedman, Russ Klein, who suggested he audition for his boss,
Lawrence Welk. Turner sang the Broadway ballad, "My Cup Runneth Over", with a classical arrangement he had worked out on his guitar while still in college. Turner became the show's featured country/pop singer for its final three years on
syndicated television. Episodes in which he appeared are sometimes seen in weekly reruns in most states on
PBS. On the show, and on its concert tours, he also performed duets with
Ava Barber and sang with
The Aldridge Sisters and with
Gail Farrell in addition to his solo numbers. During the
1982 World's Fair, Turner starred in the Broadway pre-run of
Drumwright, a project of two-time
Tony Award winner,
John Cullum. This original musical was booked for the next season at the Performing Arts Center. Instead of playing a "character" again, Turner returned to Los Angeles to sing, where he went on to headline in his own shows at
Knott's Berry Farm, the former
Opryland USA, plus long-term commitments on the
General Jackson Showboat and at the
Louise Mandrell Sunday Morning Show in the
Grand Ole Opry. He was next cast as "Jud" in
Oklahoma in Nashville. He also completed several tours all across the United States, on
cruise ships, and in symphonic concerts, plus more recently, his Christian country concerts. Turner is also an ordained
minister from the Church of Jesus of Nazareth, a
non-denominational church in nearby
Madison, Tennessee. He also obtained his doctorate in Contemporary Music from Oxford, England in 1993 upon submission of his body of work and thesis. His Master's work was accomplished at the Dick Grove School of Music in Hollywood, with a Major in Harmony. He is married to the former Terri Lynn Fraser. When he first met her in 1980, she was an
audio engineer at
ABC. They live near Nashville. He permits his label, High Anchor Records, to be used by new talent. Turner continues releasing songs to radio in five genres. His album,
Sunday Best, was released in 2012. Turner's first radio song released on FrostByte Records received a Dove Award nomination for best singer. ==References==