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Home › Politics

Politics | 12/04/2008 9:45 am

Odetta Holmes, Soulful Voice of Civil Rights, Dies at 77

By The Staff at wowOwow.com
Odetta Holmes/YouTube

Odetta Holmes, the African American singer who is remembered as the soulful voice of the civil rights movement, passed away on Tuesday — nearly one month before Barack Obama’s Inauguration, an event the late singer hoped to perform at. The folk singer, universally known as Odetta, died at the age of 77 from heart disease after being admitted to Lenox Hill Hospital in New York for kidney failure two weeks ago, the Associated Press reports. Odetta was known for her deep vocals and civil-rights activism. Her performance at the Inauguration would have come about 45 years after she sang at the historic March on Washington in August, 1963 – when Dr. Martin Luther King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech.

Odetta was born in Birmingham, AL, in 1930 and was raised in Los Angeles during the Great Depression. Her rough upbringing served as inspiration throughout her career as she sang about the struggles many faced in the fight for equality. She also sang along with legendary greats including Harry Belafonte, Bob Dylan and Janis Joplin.

Odetta is also the voice behind the popular song, "This Little Light of Mine (I’m Gonna Let It Shine)."

Rest in peace, Odetta.

In memory of Odetta, watch this clip of a performance below:

Read more about: Blues, Civil rights, Dr. Martin Luther King, Entertainment, Folk Music, I Have a Dream, Inauguration, Martin Luther King, Music, News, Odetta Holmes, Singer, Video

15 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Brooklyn Gal
How sad that she didn’t live to perform at the Inauguration. It’s also sad that both his grandmother and Odetta could not be part of that great day. Odetta’s performance would have really marked a new beginning in our history. On my screen, the video is just a blank square. Is it my computer or do I have to add on the Viewpoint Media player for this site? I get all the other videos without the ad ons.
By Brooklyn Gal on 12/04/2008 9:56 am
Ms. Dee
A great soul. A great voice. Bound to rise and never fall. She leaves a nation truly blessed by her powerful existence.
By Ms. Dee on 12/04/2008 10:42 am
Frannie Em
Sad Have a friend who knew her. I received an email a few weeks ago regarding Odetta’s health from that friend. She wanted so much for Odetta to sing at the inauguration. I am sorry to hear it, but thank God for Odetta.
By Frannie Em on 12/04/2008 11:50 am
Ms. Dee
Maybe somebody will put together a multi-media presentation so Odetta could still appear. Wouldn’t be that hard, once they figured out where to position the screen and the speakers. I’m sure we’ll all be thinking of her on that day…and so many others who will have made this particular innauguration possible.
By Ms. Dee on 12/04/2008 12:25 pm
Brooklyn Gal
Thanks! The video is working now. Very powerful indeed. And thank you Mary Lou for asking Wow to pay tribute.
By Brooklyn Gal on 12/04/2008 11:33 am
Belinda Joy
She had such a soulful and beautiful voice and manner about her. She will be missed!
By Belinda Joy on 12/04/2008 12:26 pm
Susan Gabriel
What a great lady.
By Susan Gabriel on 12/04/2008 12:27 pm
mary lou s
not only did odetta sing along with bob dylan and joan baez; she profoundly influenced them. it was odetta’s singing that brought bob dylan to folk. i saw her live at the ark in ann arbor, michigan. at the time someone tried to get her to put out her cigarette, and with a combination of gentleness and suppressed anger she faced white privilege as expressed in the way the request was made. but most of all, she inspired us.
By mary lou s on 12/04/2008 2:15 pm
Maurine H
Her voice was so strong and beautiful. Odetta was an inspiration and it seems all wrong that she won’t be singing at President Obama’s inauguration. To lose both Odetta and Miriam Makeba is just devastating.
By Maurine H on 12/04/2008 5:29 pm
Brooklyn Gal
I too love the hat on your pooch. Puts me into the spirit.
By Brooklyn Gal on 12/04/2008 6:50 pm
Agyness O
Maureen, I love the christmas hat your little pooch has donned for the holidays! And, I, too am very sad that Odetta who worked so hard for this kind of world will not be here to help us celebrate it. She is a part of all that helped us reach this point.
By Agyness O on 12/04/2008 5:43 pm
Maurine H
Thanks Agy and Brooklyn - I actually drew the hat on my cyber tablet. Then I tried to upload it here. Total nightmare - took all day and I was gnashing my teeth until I finally figured out that I had to do a web-resize. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing!! Mo
By Maurine H on 12/04/2008 7:43 pm
Mugsy Peabody
I can’t stand this. I remember seeing Odetta in Chicago circa 1968, and walking four blocks in the wrong direction when I left. She sang “Nobody Knows You When You’re Down and Out” that night; I bought the vinyl and wore it out…. “Odetta Sings the Blues,” I think was the album. There are artists born who walk their own path, do their own work, and after a good while of it, they turn around find a crowd following them. It was so with her. You could just see she had no choice. She was Odetta, and she sang. End of story. Everything else was just extra. I think one of the reasons she was so influential in the Civil Rights movement was very very very simple. If she didn’t have the same rights I had, well then, things had to change. Odetta touched a lot of hearts in that way. Her voice is still a boat with the power to carry me through the low times.
By Mugsy Peabody on 12/04/2008 11:18 pm
georgia fatwood
When I dared to imagine the playlist for the inaugural…dared to imagine……. Odetta was first on my list….. And you do know that the eulogy is really about the eulogist…… So…I’m not going to bore you with the details…. But … I bought my first twelve-string guitar so that I might make up for being a white girl who just wanted nothing more in life than to be like Odetta…….. Not easy for a white girl…..but I tried…..I would have settled for backup singer……woulda done anything to be in her presence…… What’s your playlist?//// Simply put…my heart is broken…..all the people who did not get to see it……
By georgia fatwood on 12/05/2008 4:05 am
Mugsy Peabody
Georgia, I don’t really know. But I’ll tell you, I’ve been listening a lot to Cass Elliott singing “There’s a New World Coming,” which she recorded in I think 1968…. So it only took 40 years… As for “being a white girl” I have to say being soulful really does transcend everything. So keep on singing, keep on dreaming, keep on keepin’ on. You never know when you’re going to be the one who sings the song for everyone.
By Mugsy Peabody on 12/05/2008 5:20 am