Evelyn Tornquist Karlsson (born Evelyn Tornquist on March 29, 1956),

mononymously A mononym is a name composed of only one word. An individual who is known and addressed by a mononym is a mononymous person. In some cases, a mononym selected by an individual may have originally been from a polynym, a word which refers to one o ...

known as Evie, is an American

contemporary Christian music Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and s ...

singer who was known in the late 1970s and early 1980s for songs such as "Mirror", "Step into the Sunshine" and "Four Foot Eleven". Born in the United States to Norwegian immigrants, Evie began her singing career as a young teenager while visiting her parents' homeland. She released her English language debut album at 16 in 1972, and went on to release more than 30 albums, including several in various

Scandinavian languages The North Germanic languages make up one of the three branches of the Germanic languages—a sub-family of the Indo-European languages—along with the West Germanic languages and the extinct East Germanic languages. The language group is also r ...

. Evie was recognized as the

Dove Award A Dove Award is an accolade by the Gospel Music Association (GMA) of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the Christian music industry. The awards are presented annually. Formerly held in Nashville, Tennessee, the Dove Awards ...

recipient of Female Vocalist of the Year for 1977 and 1978. In November 1978, she become the first gospel artist to achieve a gold album in Australia for ''Gentle Moments''. She married Swedish pastor and musician Pelle Karlsson in 1979 and retired from performing music in 1981 to pursue other avenues of ministry, such as

Sky Angel Sky Angel was a U.S. operator of Christian television networks; it operated three channels, Angel One, Angel Two, and KTV, all of which were exclusive to Dish Network. The company's corporate headquarters were located in Naples, Florida. The com ...

. Evie later became a mentor to Christian musician Rebecca St. James, joining her for an event series geared toward helping girls and women apply biblical principles in the 21st century. Evie was officially inducted into the

Gospel Music Hall of Fame The Gospel Music Hall of Fame, created in 1972 by the Gospel Music Association, is a Hall of Fame dedicated exclusively to recognizing meaningful contributions by individuals and groups in all forms of gospel music. Inductees This is an incompl ...

on February 22, 2005, and was one of the inaugural inductees to the Christian Music Hall of Fame. Three of her albums were nominated for Grammy Award for best Contemporary Gospel performance: ''Mirror'' (1978), ''Come On, Ring Those Bells'' (1979), ''Never the Same'' (1980).

Discography

*''Evie Sings Gospel'' (1971) *''Evie på svenska'' (1972) *''Everything Is Beautiful'' (1972) *''A Song for Everyone'' (1973) *''Evie'' (1974) *''Du skulle vara med i sången'' (1975) *''Evie Again'' (1975) *''Gentle Moments'' (1976) *''Mirror'' (1977) *''Come On, Ring Those Bells'' (1977) *''A Little Song of Joy for My Little Friends'' (1978) *''Never the Same'' (1979) - AUS No. 95 *''Teach Us Your Way'' (1980) *''Unfailing Love'' (1981) *''Hymns'' (1983) *''Restoration'' (1983) *''Christmas: A Happy Time'' (1984) *''When All Is Said and Done'' (1986) *''Celebrate the Family'' (1990) *''Songs for His Family'' (1996) *''Kingdom Connection'' (2002) *''Songs from the Hymn Book'' (2013) ;Compilations *''Evie Favorites Volume 1'' (1980) *''Complete - Volume 2'' (1982) *''Loving Promises'' (1985) *''

Christmas Memories ''Christmas Memories'' is the second Christmas music, Christmas album and twenty-ninth studio release by American singer Barbra Streisand. It was released on October 30, 2001, by Columbia Records, Columbia. Streisand recorded the album during Ju ...

'' (1987) *''Special Christmas Delivery'' (1995) *''Day By Day'' (1996) *''Our Recollections'' (1996) *''Come On Ring Those Bells'' (2004) *''Give Them All to Jesus'' (2005)

References

External links

*
An audio version of an interview with Evie Tornquist Karlsson, December 2006
with radio personality Cindy Swanson

{{DEFAULTSORT:Evie 1956 births Living people American people of Norwegian descent American performers of Christian music Singers from New Jersey People from Rahway, New Jersey 21st-century American women singers 21st-century American singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers