Mahalia Jackson
“All Hail, the Queen of Gospel”! Does Aretha Franklin spark a thought? Shirley Caesar? Mahalia Jackson is the woman who has earned that title among others in American Gospel. This biography of Jackson aims to clarify the height of success that Jackson acquired and why she is called the “World’s Greatest Gospel Singer,” we begin with the early influences of New Orleans and her breakthrough moments in Chicago,
Mahalia Jackson was born October 11, 1912, on Waters Street of New Orleans, Louisiana. Jackson was the third of six children and lived in what she called a three room “shotgun shack” near the Mississippi River levee. Both sets of Jackson’s grandparents were born into slavery and freed after the Civil War. Jackson learned the struggles of the family’s history through her Uncle Porter, her mother’s brother. Jackson’s mother died suddenly when she was five years old of an unknown illness, and her father, a barber who was not often present during her life brought her to live with a relative, Mahalia Paul or “Aunt Duke.” Young Jackson went was far as the eighth grade until she was hired a laundress to bring income to the household in addition to helping with her aunt as a domestic worker in various positions. Her father often contributed money for Jackson and her brother, William. Jackson stayed with Aunt Duke for the years she remained in New Orleans.
In New Orleans, there was a multicultural influence on Jackson’s music education and New Orleans was full of music while she was growing up. The brass bands were prominent. There was still music on the showboats on the Mississippi, there were all the cabarets, and cafes, where musicians such as Jelly Roll Morton and King Oliver played Ragtime music, jazz, and the blues were played all over town. Jackson enjoyed All Saints Day, where thousands of residents came to picnic and sing songs. This day tied together her loved of gospel with the fellowship of the festivities. Jackson loved to sing amongst the congregation.
Mahalia Jackson was born October 11, 1912, on Waters Street of New Orleans, Louisiana. Jackson was the third of six children and lived in what she called a three room “shotgun shack” near the Mississippi River levee. Both sets of Jackson’s grandparents were born into slavery and freed after the Civil War. Jackson learned the struggles of the family’s history through her Uncle Porter, her mother’s brother. Jackson’s mother died suddenly when she was five years old of an unknown illness, and her father, a barber who was not often present during her life brought her to live with a relative, Mahalia Paul or “Aunt Duke.” Young Jackson went was far as the eighth grade until she was hired a laundress to bring income to the household in addition to helping with her aunt as a domestic worker in various positions. Her father often contributed money for Jackson and her brother, William. Jackson stayed with Aunt Duke for the years she remained in New Orleans.
In New Orleans, there was a multicultural influence on Jackson’s music education and New Orleans was full of music while she was growing up. The brass bands were prominent. There was still music on the showboats on the Mississippi, there were all the cabarets, and cafes, where musicians such as Jelly Roll Morton and King Oliver played Ragtime music, jazz, and the blues were played all over town. Jackson enjoyed All Saints Day, where thousands of residents came to picnic and sing songs. This day tied together her loved of gospel with the fellowship of the festivities. Jackson loved to sing amongst the congregation.
Cited: Goreau, Laurraine. Just Mahalia, Baby. Waco, TX: Word Books, 1975. Jackson, Mahalia, and Evan McLeod Wylie. Movin ' on Up. First Ed. New York: Hawthorn Books, 1966. Schwerin, Jules Victor. Got to Tell it: Mahalia Jackson, Queen of Gospel. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992. "Mahalia Jackson.” 2007. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. 19 May 2008 <http://www.rockhall.com/inductee/mahalia-jackson>. Jackson, Mahalia. Queen of Gospel. Mahalia Jackson. CD. Watford, U.K.: Music Club, 1997 Broughton, Viv. Black Gospel. New York: Sterling, 1985. Unknown. Two Cities Pay Tribute to Mahalia Jackson. Ebony Magazine. April 1972. Ebony Magazine 30 May 2008. <http://www.geocities.com/bourbonstreet/2675/ebony/ebony.html> Unknown. “Two Cities Pay Tribute to Mahalia Jackson: Death ends 45-year career of World’s Greatest Gospel Singer." Ebony Magazine. April 1972.