26 Facts About James Cleveland

Reverend James Edward Cleveland was an American gospel singer, musician, and composer.

James Cleveland was the first gospel musician to earn a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

James Cleveland was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 1984.

James Cleveland strained his vocal cords as a teenager while part of a local gospel group; this was said to contribute to the distinctive, gravelly voice which became a hallmark of his later in his career.

The change in his voice led James Cleveland to focus on his skills as a pianist, and later as a composer and arranger.

In 1950, James Cleveland joined the Gospelaires, a trio led by Norsalus McKissick and Bessie Folk.

James Cleveland's arrangements modernized such traditional standards as " Old Time Religion" and "It's Me, O Lord".

James Cleveland went to work with childhood friend Albertina Walker, popularly referred to as the "Queen of Gospel," "Starmaker," and founder of The Caravans, as a composer, arranger, pianist, and occasional singer as well as a narrator.

James Cleveland continued to record with The Caravans until States closed down in 1957.

James Cleveland became known by more than just the professionals within gospel music with his version of the Soul Stirrers' song, "The Love of God", backed by the Voices of Tabernacle from Detroit.

James Cleveland signed with the historic jazz label Savoy Records in 1962, going on to release a huge catalog of soul gospel recordings from that year until his death in 1991, many of which were recorded in a live concert setting.

James Cleveland moved to Los Angeles to become Minister of Music at Grace Memorial Church of God in Christ, where he attained even greater popularity working with keyboardist Billy Preston and the Angelic Choir of Nutley, New Jersey.

In 1965, James Cleveland added Clyde Brown and Charles Barnett to his group, which by then was traveling extensively throughout the United States and abroad into the late 1960s, performing in all major venues.

James Cleveland capitalized on his success by founding his own choir, the Southern California Community Choir.

James Cleveland recorded several albums with SCC between the years of 1970 and 1990.

In November 1970, James Cleveland founded his own ministry and church, Cornerstone Institutional Baptist Church, in Los Angeles which grew from ten to thousands of members throughout the remainder of his life.

Additionally, James Cleveland himself backed other acts, contributing to the recordings of well-known artists such as Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, and Elton John.

In 1972, James Cleveland collaborated with Aretha on her historic Grammy-winning and multi-million-selling album Amazing Grace, which is known as the Greatest Gospel Album of All Time.

Excerpts from the film soundtrack was released on Savoy Records and became a top seller, with James Cleveland having the majority feature on side two of the album.

In 1968, James Cleveland taught others how to achieve the modern gospel sound and preserve the industry's rich legacy through his annual workshop convention, The Gospel Music Workshop of America, an organization that he co-founded with Albertina Walker and which now has over 150 chapters with 30,000 members.

The last album James Cleveland recorded with the GMWA was their 1990 release from the previous year's annual convention in New Orleans.

The last song rendition he presented was Whitney Houston's "Didn't We Almost Have It All," known as "Aren't You Glad You Know the Lord," which James Cleveland recorded in 1989 with the Northern and Southern California Choirs of the GMWA on the album Breathe on Me, featuring Daryl Coley and current Savoy Records executive producer Milton Biggham.

On February 9,1991, James Cleveland died in Culver City, California.

James Cleveland is interred at Inglewood Park Cemetery in Inglewood, California.

In October 1991, music producer Andre M Cleveland filed suit against James Cleveland's estate, claiming to be Cleveland's adopted son.

Ervin said that she believed that Andre M Cleveland was not adopted as he claimed, but was merely one of the many "homeless" children that the late-singer took into his home over the years.