The Sensational Nightingales is a gospel music quartet that reached its peak of popularity in the 1950s, when it featured Julius Cheeks , the quintessential hard gospel shouter, as its lead singer. The Nightingales, with several changes of membership, continue to tour and record today.

The group was founded in 1942 by Barney Parks, who had formerly sung with the Dixie Hummingbirds. Julius "June" Cheeks, from Spartanburg, South Carolina, joined the group in 1946.

Cheeks was a baritone who, under Parks' tutelage, mixed falsettos, screams and growls in his singing. He also was one to "play the fool", i.e., engage in exaggerated stage business, running up the aisles and shaking hands with members of the audience, to go along with his message and to stir up the church. He left and returned to the group several times during its heyday, then left in 1960 to form his own group, "the Sensational Knights". His singing style and stage mannerisms had a lasting impact on artists such as James Brown. Wilson Pickett, David Ruffin and Bobby Bland.

The group presently consists of Joseph 'JoJo' Wallace, Larry Moore, Horace "Sug" Thompson, and guitarist Darrell Luster.

Further reading

• Boyer, Horace Clarence,How Sweet the Sound: The Golden Age of Gospel Elliott and Clark, 1995, ISBN 0252068777.

• Heilbut, Tony, The Gospel Sound: Good News and Bad Times Limelight Editions, 1997, ISBN 0879100346.