Acclaimed soul singer and mother of pop sensation Whitney Houston, Cissy Houston has away. She came out as 91.
Under hospice care for Alzheimer’s illness, Houston passed Monday morning at her New Jersey residence. Her daughter-in–law, Pat Houston, confirmed in a statement to USA TODAY via Gwendolyn Quinn, a spokesperson for Whitney Houston’s estate.
“Pain and sorrow abound in our souls. “We lost the matriarch of our family,” Pat stated in a statement. “In our lives, Mother Cissy has been a towering and powerful presence. a woman of tremendous conviction and faith who gave family, service, and community top importance. Her more than seven-decade career in music and entertainment will always be at top of mind.
Born Emily Drinkard in Newark, New Jersey in September 1933, Houston’s father Nitcholas “Nitch” Drinkard urged her to sing and perform in churches. Originally raised under the Methodist Episcopal branch of Christianity, Houston subsequently worked at New Hope Baptist Church as Minister of Sacred Music.
Beginning her musical career with her siblings Anne, Larry, and Nick in the family group The Drinkard Singers, Houston Following their 1958 release of the album “A Joyful Noise” on RCA Records, the group became among the first gospel groups to have an album put on a major label.
Houston once more teamed with her family as a member of the R&B girl group The Sweet Inspirations to create musical synergy in the early 1960s. Among its lineup were Houston’s nieces Dee Dee and Dionne Warwick, two solo musicians who would subsequently be Grammy-nominated. Acts including Otis Redding, The Drifters, Dusty Springfield, Elvis Presley and the Jimi Hendrix Experience had backup vocals supplied by the ensemble.
Houston started her solo career with her 1970 album, “Presenting Cissy Houston,” after serving as a backup singer for music legends. The LP brought Houston two top-charting singles, “I’ll Be There” and “Be My Baby.”
Houston recorded and published her performance of the Jim Weatherly song “Midnight Train to Georgia,” which would subsequently become a hit for fellow soul-pop great Gladys Knight & the Pips in 1972.
With three disco-influenced albums produced by Michael Zager—1978’s “Think it Over,” 1979’s “Warning – Danger,” and 1980’s “Step Away for a Lady”— Houston broadened her sonic boundaries.
Houston would go on to win two Grammy Awards for her musical efforts; her sixth album “Face to Face” earned a best traditional soul gospel album award in 1997.