Gospel singer Edwin Hawkins dies aged 74

American gospel music star Edwin Hawkins has died at his home in California, at the age of 74. He had been suffering from pancreatic cancer.

In the 1960s, Hawkins co-founded the Northern California State Youth Choir, who merged traditional gospel with rhythm’n’blues. Their arrangement of a traditional hymn, “Oh Happy Day”, became a runaway hit in 1969 under the name The Edwin Hawkins Singers.

It reached No. 2 in the UK, eventually selling over seven million copies worldwide and winning Hawkins a Grammy.

The Edwin Hawkins Singers enjoyed a second top ten hit backing Melanie on her 1970 single “Lay Down (Candles In The Rain)”.

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