ABOUT
The Edwin Hawkins Singers were a highly acclaimed and veteran multi-member gospel ensemble that became famous during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Best known for the uplifting "Oh Happy Day" (1969), a Top 5 smash featuring lead singer Dorothy Combs Morrison, they had another big hit with the anthemic "Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)" (1970), performed with folk/pop singer-songwriter Melanie Safka.
The Edwin Hawkins Singers were formed in 1967 in Berkeley, California by Edwin Hawkins (August 19, 1943 - January 15, 2018) and Betty Watson (April 14, 1937 - August 31, 2003) and originally known as the Northern California State Youth Choir of the Church of God in Christ (COGIC), which at that time included almost 50 members. They gained international fame in 1969 with "Oh Happy Day," an urban contemporary gospel remake of a 1755 hymn by clergyman Philip Doddridge which eventually sold over seven million copies worldwide and became a gospel standard. They also achieved success with other songs, including "Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)" in 1970, and Hawkins won four Grammy Awards throughout his career for his work with the Edwin Hawkins Singers and other gospel music projects. "Oh Happy Day" was among the recordings chosen in 2005 by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry. Hawkins was inducted into the Christian Music Hall of Fame in 2007.
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SONGS
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Edwin Hawkins Singers
- Oh Happy Day 1969
(This gospel-infused song later also became a hit for Glen Campbell (1970).)
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