Clara Ward

The Clara Ward Singers have been called the greatest group, together with The Roberta Martin Singers, produced by gospel. She herself was a magnificent singer -- the inspiration for Aretha Franklin -- and among those who came out of the group was the superb Marion Williams. Stylistically, the Ward Singers represented an early stage in the move to a deliberate and dramatic use of a fervor that had once been purely religious. ~ John Storm Roberts, Original Music, Rovi