Dixie Melody Boys band |

The Dixie Melody Boys was founded in 1961 by Avis Adkins with Eugene Payne, Ralph Walker and Tony Brown on piano; Ed O'Neal, their bass singer, joined in 1963, and subsequently became the group's leader and manager. Under O'Neal, the group has discovered singers who have gone on to become prominent in Gospel music, including McCray Dove with the Dove Brothers, Rodney Griffin with Greater Vision, Bryan Walker, who went on to become a contestant on Season 9 of American Idol and then later joined The Perrys, and Devin McGlamery with Signature Sound. The group was nicknamed the "Ed O'Neal University" because of the impact that Ed O'Neal has had on the industry of Southern Gospel music.

Here is a 1985 Dixie Melody Boys performance on Gospel Music USA with what came to be known as the DMB Band (Dixie Melody Boys Band).