Cissy Houston

A voice that rang clear no matter the nature of the material with which she worked, whether it was gospel, soul, or disco, Cissy Houston was a driving force of the Drinkard Singers, the Gospelaires, and the Sweet Inspirations before her high-profile session work led to a solo career. Although she released her first single in 1963, the year she gave birth to Whitney Houston, she didn't make her solo album debut until 1970 with a self-titled recording that contained a resounding cover version of "Be My Baby." From 1976 through 1980, she cut five albums, including four with producer Michael Zager. "Think It Over" (1978), her biggest single of the era, was a Top Five disco hit. Houston, who also wrote, arranged, and produced, remained active with session background work, joined Whitney on occasion, and in the '90s issued the Grammy-winning gospel albums Face to Face (1996) and He Leadeth Me (1997).