Thursday, April 09, 2009

Pop Winans (1934-2009)



The patriarch of the Winans dynasty, David "Pop" Winans passed away "at a hospice center in Nashville, TN, with his wife at his bedside" on April 8, 2009 at the age of 74; according to the Detroit Free Press. He moved to Nashville to be close to several of his children after suffering a series of strokes and a mild heart attack in October 2008.

Known for being the father of 10 children, who went on to become outstanding recording artists in the field of gospel music, "Pop" recorded two albums along with his wife, Delores, as Mom & Pop Winans on the Sparrow label and recorded a solo project, Uncensored; which was nominated for a Grammy for Best Traditional Gospel Album in 2000. Gospel remained strong to Pop Winans and can be traced all the way back to 1949 where he met with his wife, Delores, while singing with the legendary Lucille Lemon Gospel Chorus, which at one time was led by the late James Cleveland.

Winans also was best remembered for his moving vocal performance on Carlton Pearson's Live at Azusa 2 project (Warner Alliance) when he stormed through a moving remake of Sister Rosetta Tharpe's "This Train." In his latter years, he was featured on "Praise the Lord" programs with his wife on the Trinity Broadcasting Network.

“He was called Pop because that’s what he was, a father figure to all of us,” said Karen Clark Sheard, member of the famed Clark Sisters. “He was a man we all looked up to.”

Funeral arrangements for Pop Winans are scheduled to take place on Tuesday and Wednesday at Perfecting Church in Detroit, MI, where his son, Marvin L. Winans, serves as pastor.

[IN MEMORY OF POP]
Gospel giant Pop Winans dies [Detroit Free Press]
Gospel great Pop Winans dies [Tennessean.com]

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

We will ALL miss Pop Winans. We all feel as if we know him well. He was friendly yet one knew he was a true man of God. My family was blessed to meet him in his Barber Shop/Record Store some time ago and we took pictures and he was just very real which is what the young people crave from the Church today. He showed love and his legacy will live on. One memory I recall is his jumping onto the stage in Baltimore despite the fact that his son, Marvin was trying to gesture for him to go around the side and come up the stairs. Marvin turned his back and his dad jumped high up onto that stage and HE MADE IT!!! I believe he is still jumping for joy right now in The Presence of The Lord with his son, Ron. We pray God's best comfort for the whole family especially Mom Winans!