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The Five Blind Boys of Mississippi was one of the most popular and influential post-war gospel quartets. Powered by the vocals of lead singer Archie Brownlee, their single "Our Father" reached the Billboard R&B charts in the early 1950s, one of the first gospel records to do so.

The group originated in the 1930s as a quartet of students from the Piney Woods School for the blind near Jackson, Mississippi. The students &mdash Brownlee, Joseph Ford, Lawrence Abrams, and Lloyd Woodard — originally sang under the name "the Cotton Blossom Singers", performing both jubilee quartet and secular material, to raise money for the school. On March 9, 1937, Brownlee and the others recorded sacred tunes (as the Blind Boys) and three secular numbers (as Abraham, Woodard, and Patterson) for Library of Congress researcher Alan Lomax. After graduation in the early forties, they began performing professionally, often backed by a female jazz band known as "The International Sweethearts of Rhythm."singing pop music as the Cotton Blossom Singers and religious material under the name the Jackson Harmoneers.

In the mid-40s, the Brownlee and the others relocated to Chicago, changing their name to the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi. Under the influence of R.H. Harris of the Soul Stirrers, Brownlee moved away from the jubilee style of singing and towards a more popular hard gospel style. Even though Harris' influence was pervasive -- the Blind Boys at first covered Soul Stirrers songs almost exclusively -- Brownlee's high voice, which could move from a sweet croon to a devastating scream, gave the group a distinctive sound. With the addition of hard gospel shouter Rev. Percell Perkins, the Blind Boys moved into their period of greatest fame. Signing with the Peacock Records label, they recorded the hit "Our Father" during their first session in the early 50s, and continued to be successful throughout the decade. Though there were some personnel changes -- most notably the addition of J.T. Clinkscales -- Brownlee remained the focal point of the group. Tragically, he died of pneumonia on February 8, 1960 at the age of 39. Though the group continued touring and recording, they never reached the same heights again.

The Five Blind Boys of Mississippi should not be confused with the Five Blind Boys of Alabama, a group led by Clarence Fountain. There is some dispute as to which of the two groups was named first. According to Fountain, the two groups were actually christened simultaneously during a Newark, New Jersey quartet contest in 1948.

Sources

http://www.mp3.com/archie-brownlee/artists/45363/biography.html

Anthony Heilbut, Liner Notes to "Kings of the Gospel Highway" CD, Shanachie, c. 2000

Lee Hildebrand and Opal Nations, Liner Notes to "The Original Five Blind Boys of Alabama" CD, Specialty, 1993