Legendary singer Bobby Womack died today at the age of 70. Rolling Stone Magazine first reported that the 2009 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee passed away tonight. No cause of death has been released.
Womack rose to fame under the tutelage of another soul legend, Sam Cooke, before becoming a star in his own right. His career would ultimately span seven decades.
Born in Cleveland, he was the son of two musicians and began his career as a member of Curtis Womack and the Womack Brothers with his siblings Curtis, Harry, Cecil and Friendly Jr.
After Sam Cooke signed the group to his SAR Records in 1960, they released a handful of gospel singles before changing their name to the Valentinos and earning success with a more secular, soul- and pop-influenced sound. In 1964, one month after the Valentinos released their hit “It’s All Over Now,” the Rolling Stones put out their version, which went to Number One on the U.K. singles charts.
He left the Valentinos to become a successful session musician – playing guitar on several soul classic albums, including Aretha Franklin’s seminal LP Lady Soul.
Womack’s solo career began with the debut album Fly Me to the Moon in 1968. A string of successful R&B albums would follow, including Understanding and Across 110th Street, both released in 1972, 1973’s Facts of Life and 1974’s Lookin for a Love Again.
After nearly a decade of obscurity, Womack returned to the top of the charts with the 1981R&B classic “If You Think You’re Lonely Now.”
But it would be another twenty years before he would return to the charts. In 2012 he released “The Bravest Man in the Universe.”
Womack survived drug addiction, a series of health problems including diabetes, pneumonia, and colon cancer in the time between the 1980s and his most recent career revival.
“The Bravest Man in the Universe” was named among Rolling Stone Magazine’s 50 Best Albums of 2012 and Womack toured with the album before being diagnosed with the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease.
Information from Rolling Stone and USA Today contributed to this report.
