Bill Moss, 76; member of prominent gospel music family started Celestials

Bill Moss, 76, founder of the gospel group the Celestials and father of current hit gospel singer-songwriters J Moss and Bill Moss Jr., died Monday in a Detroit-area hospital after a bout of severe emphysema.

The Celestials played gospel with electric piano and electronic drums in a melodic and soul-moving style that contributed to the evolution of contemporary gospel music.

Moss was part of a family of gospel music greats that included his sister, Mattie Moss Clark, and her daughters, the Clark Sisters. He helped his sons get started in the music business.

The 2004 inductee into the International Gospel Music Hall of Fame formed the Celestials in Detroit in the 1960s with his wife, evangelist Essie Moss. The group, which later included the couple’s daughters, performed at such venues as the famous Apollo Theater in Harlem.

The Celestials also shared stages with the Rev. James Cleveland and Edwin Hawkins.

Bill Moss was born in 1931 in Selma, Ala., and sang as a child in a church led by his mother, the Rev. Mattie Moss.