Albertina Walker, a gospel singer with a lush contralto voice whose group, the Caravans, recorded a string of hits in the 1950s and 1960s and nourished the careers of such greats as the Rev. James Cleveland, Inez Andrews and Pastor Shirley Caesar, died on Friday in Chicago. She was 81.
The cause was respiratory failure, her friend Pam Morris told The Associated Press.
Early on, Walker was a standout even in Chicago’s teeming, competitive gospel scene, and she became a protégé of Mahalia Jackson. With her good friend James Cleveland at the piano, she spent many evenings singing and socializing at Jackson’s house, listening to critical advice.
After touring with the Willie Webb Singers, with whom she recorded her first single, “He’ll Be There,” she joined Robert Anderson and His Gospel Caravan. With the other three singers backing up Anderson — Elyse Yancey, Nellie Grace Daniels and Ora Lee Hopkins Samson Walker — she formed the Caravans in 1951.
The Caravans’ first big hit, “Mary Don’t You Weep,” helped make them the most popular gospel group in the United States, with hits like “I Won’t Be Back,” “(I Know) The Lord Will Provide,” “Show Me Some Sign,” “Sweeping Through the City,” “No Coward Soldier,” “Tell Him What You Want” and Walker’s great signature song, “Lord Keep Me Day by Day.”
Her first solo venture, “Put a Little Love in Your Heart,” released in 1975, was followed by more than 50 albums, including “I Can Go to God in Prayer” and “Joy Will Come.” “Songs of the Church: Live in Memphis” won a Grammy Award in 1995 for the Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album, and in 2001 she was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. President George W. Bush honored Walker for her contribution to gospel music in a White House ceremony in 2002.
Albertina Walker, known as Tina, was born on Aug. 29, 1929, on the South Side of Chicago, where she lived her entire life. She was the youngest of nine children. At the age of four she was singing with the youth choir of the West Point Baptist Church, under the direction of Pete Williams, and before long was performing with the Williams Singers. By 17, she was singing with Anderson.
She followed his example as leader of the Caravans, stepping aside and letting her top performers shine.
Walker can be heard in her prime on the album “The Best of the Caravans” (Savoy), and on the CD and DVD compilation “How Sweet It Was: The Sights and Sounds of Gospel’s Golden Age” (Shanachie), which includes the previously unreleased Caravans song “The Angels Keep Watching Over Me.”
