Cissy Houston: Songs You Didn't Know She Sang Backup On
Photo: Photo by Gilles Petard/Redferns
Cissy Houston spent the last half of her life best known as the mother of Whitney Houston, a superstar so bright she overshadowed anybody who entered her orbit. But Cissy had long grown accustomed to occupying a supporting role, thanks to her own musical career singing backing vocals on hit records as a member of the harmony R&B group the Sweet Inspirations.
Houston, who died on October 7 at the age of 91, joined the Inspirations in 1963 after her niece Dionne Warwick left the group to pursue a solo career. Over the next few years, the lineup was fluid, finally settling into a quartet fronted by Houston in the mid-1960s. They became part of Atlantic Records’ in-house stable, releasing their own records too; they had a top-20 hit in 1968 with “Sweet Inspiration,” a Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham song that transformed the spiritual into the sensual. As a solo act, Houston also managed one hit — “Think It Over,” which arrived during the peak of disco — but she largely spent her time as a pop singer staying in the background, shaping the sound and feel of the rock-and-roll era.
As part of the Sweet Inspirations and on her own, Houston added depth, color, and texture to innumerable records, many of which became acknowledged classics. The ten songs here don’t touch upon all the territory Houston covered — she was as comfortable singing with the avant-jazz saxophonist Rahsaan Roland Kirk as she was with Burt Bacharach, the king of middle-of-the-road pop — but they do hint at her range, illustrating that most listeners know the work of Cissy Houston as intimately as they do the hits of her daughter Whitney.
Arriving toward the end of a remarkable year that saw Aretha Franklin ascend to stardom with the release of “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I Love You),” “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman” is one of the Queen of Soul’s quintessential numbers. Written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King, “Woman” is a thoroughly sensual song, an ode of devotion to the pleasures of discovering the right lover, but Franklin delivers it as if she were testifying at church. The Sweet Inspirations push the song’s gospel inflections to the forefront, engaging in a call-and-response with Franklin that makes the record soar.
Van Morrison’s exuberant delivery on “Brown Eyed Girl” tends to camouflage the bittersweet undercurrents that flow through his debut single, disguising how the song is not a celebration of a current romance but rather memories of a lost love. On the verses, Morrison can tap into reservoirs of melancholy, leaving the chorus as an expression of joy. That’s where the Sweet Inspirations enter the picture. Joining Morrison on the song’s cascading call of “sha la la la la la,” they help this reminiscence seem rapturous.
Released as a single in the U.K. between Are You Experienced and Axis: Bold As Love, then later placed on Electric Ladyland, “Burning of the Midnight Lamp” feels as if it’s floating in its own astral phrase. Much of that otherworldliness derives from Jimi Hendrix venturing forward into unknown sonic territory, blending a stately harpsichord with a plucked guitar, running his vocals through a phaser, and taking his new wah-wah pedal for a test run. All these elements give “Midnight Lamp” an uneasy vibe, a feeling accentuated by the wordless harmonies of the Sweet Inspirations. Sounding curiously spectral, the group is an essentially trippy element in the psychedelic swirl.
John Hurley and Ronnie Wilkins composed “Son of a Preacher Man” with hopes that the song would wind up in the hands of Aretha Franklin. But producer Jerry Wexler gave it to Dusty Springfield, the British singer who went to American Sound Studios in Memphis with the intent of creating a soul album in the vein of Aretha. Wexler, along with his co-producers Tom Dowd and Arif Mardin, adapted their approach to suit the slightly softer sound of Springfield, yet they retained the services of the Sweet Inspirations, whose give-and-take with Dusty makes this single feel like genuine southern soul.
When Elvis Presley assembled a supporting band for his return to live performance in 1969, he hired the Sweet Inspirations to fill the shoes of the absent Jordanaires. His regular supporting harmony group decided to not leave behind session work in favor for a residency at the International Hotel, which means the records that capture these initial comeback concerts — recently collected in total as the box Live 1969 — carry a different flavor than his accompanying studio sessions; they’re splashier but also have a gospel fervor, thanks in no small part to Houston’s group. The shows closed with a rousing rendition of “Suspicious Minds,” which effectively showcases what the Sweet Inspirations brought to the table.
Presley’s initial stint at the International Hotel marked the last big gig Cissy Houston had with the Sweet Inspirations. She left the group at the end of the year, releasing a solo album on Janus Records in 1970 and supporting herself through session work. Houston was in high demand, appearing on records by Wilson Pickett and Donny Hathaway while reuniting with Van Morrison for Moondance. But her vocals on Paul Simon’s “Mother and Child Reunion” stand apart from the pack. An early indication of Simon’s omnivorous musical appetite, “Mother and Child Reunion” spliced reggae with folk and gospel — a deft, idiosyncratic fusion Houston handles with ease.
Producer Arif Mardin brought John Prine to Nashville to record his third album Sweet Revenge, a move that gave the singer-songwriter a distinct backbeat and a rowdier spirit. The shift was evident on the album’s title track, where Prine wryly took stock of his status on rock’s fringes to blues changes that felt like a simultaneous tribute and send-up of gospel. As part of the backing choir, Houston helped drive home that churchy angle.
Linda Ronstadt revived the Chips Moman and Dan Penn classic “The Dark End of the Street” for her breakthrough Heart Like a Wheel, combining the resonant deep soul of James Carr’s original with the plaintive yearning of the country-rock cover by the Flying Burrito Brothers. Ronstadt’s voice has a keening clarity that’s given soulful dimension by the stately arrangement that places an emphasis on the backing vocals of Houston & Co.
Overblown in a manner that could’ve happened only in the mid-1980s, “Underground” is David Bowie’s bustling theme song to Labyrinth, the Jim Henson fantasy that also featured the rocker in a starring role. An expansion of the plastic-soul concept he invented with Young Americans, “Overblown” grafts gospel exhortations upon some stiff synth-pop. Stuffed with guest stars (Chaka Khan and Luther Vandross are here too), it’s a fascinating artifact of its time, capturing an era when studios had ample money to burn.
The sequel to “Wind Beneath My Wings,” the stirring No. 1 single from the Beaches soundtrack, is a bit more grounded than the previous Midler hit. While her rendition is grander than Nanci Griffith’s original, it nevertheless retains a sense of intimacy thanks in part to the interplay between Midler and Houston. The pair had a history — Houston appeared on The Divine Miss M, Midler’s 1972 debut — so perhaps that’s why they were comfortable with simple, empathetic harmonies that give this rendition dimension and heart.
