Mahalia Jackson

Mahalia Jackson (October 26, 1911–January 13, 1972) was an African American gospel singer, widely regarded as one of the best in the history of the genre. She grew up in the "Black Pearl" section of the Carrollton neighborh

Mahalia Jackson (October 26, 1911–January 13, 1972) was an African American gospel singer, widely regarded as one of the best in the history of the genre. She grew up in the "Black Pearl" section of the Carrollton neighborhood of uptown New Orleans, Louisiana and began singing in a Baptist church. She moved to Chicago, Illinois in 1927 where she sang with The Johnson Brothers, one of the earliest professional gospel groups.

The Johnson Brothers broke up in the mid 1930s, and Jackson began her solo career, recording for Decca in 1937. The result, God's Gonna Separate the Wheat from the Tares was only a moderate success, but Jackson became a popular concert draw. She experienced a recording hiatus until 1946 when she signed with Apollo Records, releasing several singles that are now highly regarded, though sales were sluggish at the time. Move on up a Little Higher (1948) became a huge success however, and stores couldn't stock enough of it to meet demand. Jackson rocketed to fame in the US, and soon after in Europe. I Can Put My Trust in Jesus won a prize from the French Academy, while Silent Night was one of the best-selling singles in the history of Norway. She began a radio series on CBS, and signed to Columbia Records in 1954. With her mainstream success came an inevitable backlash from gospel purists who felt she had watered down her sound for popular accessibility.