13 Facts About Daryl Coley

Daryl Lynn Coley was an American Christian singer.

At 14, Coley was a member of the ensemble "Helen Stephens and the Voices of Christ".

Daryl Coley began performing with Edwin Hawkins in the Edwin Hawkins Singers and then worked with James Cleveland, Tramaine Hawkins, Sylvester, Pete Escovedo and others.

Daryl Coley was born in Berkeley, California on October 30,1955.

Daryl Coley's parents separated when he was five years old, with he and his two siblings being raised by his mother in a solid Christian home.

In December 1969, at the age of 13, Daryl Coley first heard Helen Stephens And The Voices Of Christ, and by February of the next year had become a member of the nationally acclaimed ensemble.

Daryl Coley was a top student, was pursuing a business degree, and even helped out with the teaching of college courses.

Daryl Coley eventually began performing with Edwin Hawkins in the Edwin Hawkins Singers.

Daryl Coley played keyboards for The Hawkins Family from 1977 until he left to collaborate with James Cleveland in 1983.

Concurrently, Daryl Coley branched out in secular circles, singing in jazz clubs, working with artists like Sylvester, Pete Escovedo, and others.

Daryl Coley provided the singing voice of Bleeding Gums Murphy in The Simpsons episode "Dancin' Homer", wherein he performs a comedically over-long version of "The Star-Spangled Banner".

In 1991, when his albums released under Sparrow Records were achieving national success, Daryl Coley fell sick, experiencing flu-like symptoms.

On March 15,2016, Daryl Coley succumbed to diabetes and died in hospice care from renal failure.