Folk-Blues Legend Odetta, R.I.P.

Known simply as "Odetta," she was considered by many to be the voice of the civil rights movement. A classically-trained vocalist who left audiences awestruck whenever she performed, folk-blues legend Odetta Gordon died on December 2, 2008 of heart disease at the age of 77.

She had been admitted to Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City in mid-November for a check up and subsequently suffered from kidney failure. While going through daily dialysis treatment, Odetta prepared to perform at President Elect Obama's inauguration in January. Read more....

Odetta photo by Paul Hawthorne, courtesy Getty Images