Search - Odetta :: Beautiful Star

A collection of traditional and original spirituals sung by the majestic Odetta, whom Martin Luther King, Jr. called "the Queen of American Folk Music." This album has been unavailable for years! Recorded in 1989, this album was originally released on Alcazar Records under the title Christmas Spirituals. However, Odetta had previously recorded a different album entitled Christmas Spirituals for Vanguard Records, leading to much confusion. Now, in cooperation with producer Rachel Faro's Ashe imprint, Silverwolf Records is reissuing this magnificent collection as a tribute to Odetta on the occasion of her passing in December 2008, and in honor of the historic election of Barack Obama, which represented a great fulfillment of Odetta's life work as activist, spokesperson, and muse to the civil rights movement. "Rosa Parks was her No. 1 fan, and Martin Luther King Jr. called her the queen of American folk music. Odetta's stage presence was regal enough: planted onstage like an oak tree no one would dare cut down, wearing a guitar high on her chest, she could envelop Carnegie Hall with her powerful contralto as other vocalists might fill a phone booth ... Some folks sing songs. Odetta testified." -- TIME "A powerful voice for justice." -- NPR