Wings Over Jordan, Hall Johnson Choir Member John Patton Dead at 75

From Sam Edwards of Friends of Negro Spirituals:

John Patton, Lyric Tenor
February 18, 1930 – April 21, 2005

Lyric tenor John Patton, one of the foremost authorities on the Negro Spirituals heritage, died on Thursday, April 21, 2005, at an unknown time, apparently in his apartment in Richmond, California. Patton, who was born on February 18, 1930 in Garland City, Arkansas on a sharecropper farm, had been a long time resident of Richmond, California in which he attended high school and played football while a student. He was a member of Oakland, California’s Down Memorial United Methodist Church.

He was the father of a son and three daughters.

A man who genuinely LOVED music, revered Spirituals, and welcomed opportunities to talk about his vast experiences, Patton was known across the Bay Area and in many parts of the country.

His history is rare and distinguished. In addition to being quick witted and one who enjoyed joking around and laughing, he was the first to make an album of art songs arranged by African-American composers and arrangers. He was a voice student of the great tenor Roland Hayes, the renowned choral conductor and arranger Hall Johnson, and of famed New Orleans singer, arranger, and composer Edward Boatner.

Patton was a former member of the Hall Johnson Choir, the Wings Over Jordan, the Jester Hairston Chorus, the Albert McNeal Singers, and the William “Bill” Bell’s Oakland Bay Area Community Chorus. In more recent years, he would perform as a solo artist in concerts in many parts of the Bay Area and in other states. For a period of time, he hosted a popular radio show in Los Angles. He performed the role of Shug Avery’s father, The Preacher, in The Color Purple. He was a voice coach. He presented the first Spirituals educational forum for the Friends of Negro Spirituals educational organization.

Patton was scholar, researcher, and a vocal artist.

Information about funeral services is unknown at this time.