Sallie Martin

Proclaimed "The Mother of Gospel" by the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses, Sallie Martin is widely credited with introducing spiritual music to the masses; while her rough, unmodulated voice lacked the finesse of many of the singers in her wake, she was an artist who nevertheless commanded absolute respect from both her audiences and peers, and her innovations forever altered not only the music but also the business behind it. Martin was born November 20, 1895 in Pittfield, Georgia; after quitting school during the eighth grade, she moved to Atlanta, where she began a succession of jobs including babysitting, cleaning houses and washing clothes. In 1916 she joined the Fire Baptized Holiness Church, relishing the spontaneity and spirit of the Sanctified singing she encountered there. During the 1920s, Martin, her husband and their son relocated to Chicago; following the couple's 1929 divorce, she began working at a nearby hospital, in her off hours continuing to pursue her interest in gospel. Through the grapevine, Martin had heard about Thomas A. Dorsey, a onetime blues pianist whose original gospel songs were electrifying the Chicago church circuit. Through a mutual friend, she arranged to audition for Dorsey; despite serious misgivings -- her style was thoroughly unrefined, complete with whooping, groaning and a great deal of physical movement (the latter a hallmark of the Pentecostal church), and to top it off, she couldn't even read music -- he eventually agreed to let her come aboard, and in early 1932 Martin made her debut with his group at the Ebenezer Baptist Church. A year passed before she was awarded her first solo, and for all of her lack of polish, Martin nevertheless instantly connected with audiences; over time Dorsey became increasingly...