The Sweet Inspirations evolved from groups such as the Drinkard Singers, Gospelaires, and Gospel Wonders to become top-tier session and touring background singers and an accomplished recording act in their own right. Widely known for their extensive work behind
Aretha Franklin and
Elvis Presley, the group is what also links Top Ten pop hits such as
Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,"
Van Morrison's "Brown Eyed Girl,"
Dusty Springfield's "Son of a Preacher Man," and
Frankie Valli's "Grease." Signed to Atlantic, they charted with nine singles for the label from 1967 through 1971. The majority of the A-sides were reinterpretations, but they had their greatest success with the bespoke
Dan Penn and
Spooner Oldham collaboration "Sweet Inspiration," a number 18 pop hit. Among their five Atlantic albums, which range chronologically from
The Sweet Inspirations to
Sweet Sweet Soul, they reaffirmed their church background with the entirely self-composed gospel set
Songs of Faith & Inspiration. Since brief affiliations with Stax and RSO in the 1970s, and a period of inactivity lasting from the 1980s through the mid-'90s, they've occasionally recorded and have been more active on-stage, most frequently participating in
Elvis tributes.
Cissy Houston, born Emily Drinkard, got her start with the Drinkard Four, a Newark-based sibling group that expanded in membership to become the Drinkard Jubilaires and the Drinkard Singers. Among the Drinkards recordings was A Joyful Noise, the first major-label album by a gospel group. In 1963, the same year
Houston released a single under the name Cecily Blair and gave birth to daughter
Whitney Houston, she formed a group with
Dionne and
Delia "Dee Dee" Warwick -- her nieces -- and
Doris Troy. The Warwicks previously performed with the Drinkards and had formed the Gospelaires, accompanied at points by
Houston.
Troy, also known as Doris Payne, had joined the Warwicks as a backup singer at recording sessions. By the start of 1967, the group's lineup was
Houston, Gospelaires members
Sylvia Shemwell and
Myrna Smith, and
Estelle Brown, previously of the Twilight Gems and Gospel Wonders. All four women had recorded as solo artists and in varying combinations as background vocalists. Their union coalesced in New York early that year when Atlantic Records'
Jerry Wexler, with help from singer
Chuck Jackson, named them
the Sweet Inspirations.
The Sweet Inspirations got off to a hot start backing
Aretha Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" in February and
Van Morrison's "Brown Eyed Girl" the next month before they recorded on their own. In April 1967, the women left Atlantic Recording Studios with interpretations of contemporary material that, depending on the source, either reaffirmed its gospel foundation or took it to church. "Why (Am I Treated So Bad)," written by
Pops Staples for his
Staple Singers, and "Let It Be Me," originally "Je t'appartiens," popularized in English by
the Everly Brothers before
Betty Everett and
Jerry Butler recorded it, were issued as singles and peaked respectively at numbers 36 and 13 on Billboard's soul chart (and at 57 and 94 on the Hot 100). The makeup and commercial reception of the A-sides, along with the 1967 parent album
The Sweet Inspirations, would typify the group's Atlantic output as a whole. Additionally that year, the group's session work broadened with the Jimi Hendrix Experience's "Burning of the Midnight Lamp."
In 1968,
the Sweet Inspirations scored their biggest hit with "Sweet Inspiration," the last single taken from the first album. It was one of the two originals with which they would chart; written by
Dan Penn and
Spooner Oldham, "Sweet Inspiration" reached number five on the soul chart and was the group's only Top 40 crossover hit, reaching number 18. Later in the year,
the Sweet Inspirations released the entirely self-written
Songs of Faith & Inspiration -- the gospel orientation of which was emphasized with the group billed as
Cissy Drinkard & the Sweet Inspirations -- as well as
What the World Needs Now Is Love. The latter album contained readings of
Bee Gees' "To Love Somebody" and
Alex North and
Hy Zaret's "Unchained Melody" (originally voiced by
Todd Duncan before
the Righteous Brothers' hit version), two of
the Sweet Inspirations' better performing singles.
Over the next two years,
Sweets for My Sweet and
Sweet Sweet Soul were issued as
the Sweet Inspirations' fourth and fifth Atlantic LPs. "Gotta Find (A Brand New Lover)," furnished by
Kenny Gamble and
Leon Huff -- and the last song
Cissy Houston recorded as a lead before her departure -- was the biggest A-side from these sets, hitting number 25 on the soul chart. During this period, and extending through 1971, the year the group issued their final charting single with "Evidence," Ann Williams both replaced
Houston and left the group a trio.
The Sweet Inspirations continued to work with
Aretha Franklin and began a long association with
Elvis Presley. Also in the studio, they frequently supported labelmates such as
Yusef Lateef and
Dusty Springfield, more famously contributing to the latter's
Dusty in Memphis.
Having left Atlantic,
Estelle Brown,
Myrna Smith, and
Sylvia Shemwell signed with Stax, and in 1973 released
Estelle, Myrna, and Sylvia.
Elvis Presley continued to be supported by the group until his death in 1977. Subsequently signed to RSO, they sang on
Frankie Valli's 1978 number one pop hit "Grease," and in 1979 toured with RSO's
Bee Gees, released the disco-flavored Hot Butterfly album, and split. Hot Butterfly featured
Smith and
Shemwell augmented by Pat Terry in place of
Estelle Brown, though it was Gloria Brown who filled the role on-stage during the year.
Brown,
Smith, and
Shemwell re-formed
the Sweet Inspirations in 1994 with the addition of
Portia Griffin, a veteran background vocalist who had recorded with the likes of
Kenny Rogers,
Jeffrey Osborne, and
Ray Charles.
Shemwell stopped performing with the group following a stroke in 2001. Remaining active primarily through assorted
Elvis Presley tribute concerts, they also sang backup on two songs off
the Killers' 2004 album
Hot Fuss, and released a new album, In the Right Place, in 2005.
Shemwell died in February 2010;
Smith, after a series of health issues, died that December.
Brown and
Griffin, joined by Kelly Jones, have continued performing as
the Sweet Inspirations into the 2020s. ~ Andy Kellman