Mahalia Jackson
Submitted by rustyc on 06/30/2008 05:21 PM
- Category: Philosophy
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Mahalia Jackson
Regarded as the greatest gospel singer to have ever lived, Mahalia Jackson was a mainstream success whose popularity extended beyond the color barrier and established her as gospel music's first superstar and most recognizable voice even decades after her death. With her singularly expressive contralto, Jackson was one of the first spiritual performers to introduce elements of blues with gospel, and in doing so coalesced it with an emotion liberty that had never been tested before. Throughout her celebrated career, she used her rich, forceful voice and inspiring interpretations of spirituals to move audiences around the world to the tears of joy. In the early days, as soloist and member of church choirs, she recognized the power of song as a means of gloriously reaffirming the faith of her flock. As a world figure, her natural gift brought people of different religious and political convictions together to revel in the beauty of the gospels and appreciate the warm spirit that underscored the way she lived her life.
The woman who would become known as the "Gospel Queen" was born on October 26, 1911, in a poor family in New Orleans, Louisiana. Originally named Mahala and nicknamed Halie, she was the daughter of Charity Clark, a laundress and maid, and Johnny Jackson, a Baptist preacher, barber, and longshoreman. She was raised without the presence of her father and at the age of five she lost her mother forcing her to be reared for the next ten years by a maternal aunt, Mahala Paul, known affectionately in the family as Aunt Duke. Jackson had a limited formal education, dropping out of McDonough School No. 24 in New Orleans in the eighth grade.
The strong musical life of New Orleans in the early 1900s made a profound impression upon the young Mahalia Jackson. She lived next door to a Holiness church whose rhythms and instruments appealed to her growing musical development. Jackson made her debut at the age of four in the Plymouth Rock...
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