Song · Edwin Hawkins Singers
“Oh Happy Day” by Edwin Hawkins Singers
From the album Beginners guide to Gospel (2004)
“Oh Happy Day” by Edwin Hawkins Singers appears on 2 radio countdowns from 2 stations between 2001 and 2020. It was first released in 2004 on the album Beginners guide to Gospel. Its best result is #234 on the WFPK 2001 Greatest Songs of All Time. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #1,836 indie & aaa song of all time.
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"Oh Happy Day" turns a hymn that clergyman Philip Doddridge wrote in 1755 into full-throttle gospel: a 1967 arrangement recorded by the Edwin Hawkins Singers at Hawkins' own church, the Ephesian Church of God in Christ in Berkeley, California, with Edwin Hawkins producing. In 1969 it broke out of the church and went global: number 4 on the US singles chart, number one in France, Germany and the Netherlands.
It's a lesson in light and shade. Dorothy Combs Morrison sings lead from the left channel over a hushed bed of piano, drums and bass, then a huge choir comes roaring in, twice, before everyone climbs to a hand-clapping peak and it all sinks back to the opening hush. Cut on modest gear, it still sounds startlingly clear. It has since sold more than 7 million copies and settled in as a gospel standard, and only one gospel song has ever sold more.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 234 | WFPK | WFPK 2001 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2000 |
| 2020 | 645 | WXPN | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2020 |
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