Amazon.com Mahalia Jackson spent almost half a century singing gospel songs and spirituals, her unmistakable timbre and phrasing influenced by blues greats Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith. Jackson was gospel's first crossover superstar, and though she's been dead since 1972, her rich, smoky contralto has not been surpassed. Since her passing, Jackson's recordings have been reissued and/or compiled into collections many times over. In My Home Over There includes alternate versions of songs (e.g., "His Eye Is on the Sparrow," "In the Upper Room") reissued elsewhere, yet here they sound more full vocally and instrumentally. "In the Upper Room," for example, employs not only piano but organ and backing choir as well, made all the more resonant by the crackle of old vinyl and tape hiss. The title track is worth the entire disc, so great is the depth it conveys. --Paige La Grone