Clawson is the daughter of Reverend and Mrs. Tom Clawson.[2] She was 3 years old when her father asked her to sing in the small church of which he was the minister. From that time, she sang in local neighborhood churches and in Robert Schuller's Hour of Power. She has a sister, Patti Clawson, a pianist who sometimes accompanies her in concerts.[3]
Clawson graduated from Milby High School in Houston, Texas,[4] and is a 1970 graduate of Howard Payne University[5] with a major in vocal performance and a minor in piano. She won the Arthur Godfrey Talent Show her senior year in college.[6]
Clawson was spotted by a CBS television producer who signed her to headline a summer 1971 replacement for The Carol Burnett Show called the CBS Newcomers.[5] That show led her to a recording contract with record producer Buryl Red. Around that time, Buryl was writing a new musical with lyricist, poet and playwright Ragan Courtney titled Celebrate Life; Clawson was invited to record the solos for the original cast album.
In 1985, Clawson's rendition of "Softly and Tenderly" was included in the soundtrack of the Academy Award winning movie The Trip to Bountiful. In 1992, she recorded "Somewhere in Between" on the soundtrack of "Where the Red Fern Grows: Part 2". In 2014, Clawson recorded the closing song "You Are Home" for the original score soundtrack of the movie "Heaven is Real.
In 1986, Clawson was featured in Lou Rawls Parade of Stars, along with The Judds, New Edition, Bill Cosby, Charlton Heston, and Natalie Cole. In later years, she became closely associated with Bill and Gloria Gaither and frequently sang with them in their Gaither Homecoming recordings and concerts. She has sung in a variety of prestigious venues, including a concert at London's Wembley Stadium.
In the early 1990s, she performed in a one-woman show, A Private Showing/A Public Confession, which was written for her.[7]
Cynthia has performed regularly as a guest artist for Conspirare, a Texas-based a capella choral ensemble with eight Grammy nominations, as well as with the Houston Chamber Choir.
In 1970, Clawson and the musical group, The Lively Ones from Baylor University, accompanied evangelist Billie Hanks on a tour of five Asian countries in cooperation with the Foreign Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention.[9] In 1972, she was featured soloist for the Meet Jesus Youth Crusade in Kerrville, Texas.[2]
Clawson was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from Houston Baptist University in 1995,[1] and was awarded the same degree from Howard Payne University in 2007.
Clawson and Courtney were married in 1973.[10] They were co-ministers of The Sanctuary in Austin, Texas, where they designed worship services using theatre and music as a means of religious expression.
Clawson has a son, Will, and a daughter, Lily. Lily graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Religious Studies and is a Family Therapist-based out of Santa Fe. Will and Lily released their own Indie rock CD called Brothers and Sisters, and Will currently tours, writes and records on his own.
