The Drinkard Singers

The Drinkard Singers were an American gospel singing group, most successful in the late 1950s, renowned for being the first gospel group to perform at Carnegie Hall and the Newport Jazz Festival and the first gospel group signed to a major record label, recording and releasing the album, A Joyful Noise, on RCA Records in 1958. The group would launch the careers of soul singers Cissy Houston and her adopted niece Judy Clay as well as mentor fellow soul singers Dionne Warwick and Dee Dee Warwick.[edit]