July 1, 2005 Renaldo “Obie” Benson, member of the Four Tops, died. Benson was born June 14, 1936 in Detroit, Michigan. In 1954, Benson and three friends formed a singing group called the Four Aims. Two years later, they changed their name to the Four Tops and signed with Motown Records. By the end of […]
Tag Archives | Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
June 21st in African American History – John Lee Hooker
June 21, 2001 John Lee Hooker, singer, songwriter and blues guitarist, died. Hooker was born August 22, 1917 in Coahoma County near Clarksdale, Mississippi. At the age of 15, Hooker ran away from home and in 1948 landed in Detroit, Michigan, working at the Ford Motor Company and playing in the blues venues and saloons […]
June 13th in African American History – Clyde McPhatter
June 13, 1972 Clyde McPhatter, rhythm and blues singer, died. McPhatter was born November 15, 1932 in Durham, North Carolina. From 1950 to 1953, he performed with Billy Ward & the Dominoes who recorded “Sixty Minute Man” (1951) and “Have Mercy Baby” (1952). In 1953, McPhatter quit that group and formed the Drifters who released […]
June 10th in African American History – Ray Charles
June 10, 2004 Ray Charles, pioneering R&B, gospel, blues and country musician, died. Born Ray Charles Robinson on September 23, 1930 in Albany, Georgia, Charles began to lose his sight at the age of five and was completely blind by the age of seven. In 1943, he began to perform around Tallahassee and Jacksonville, Florida. […]
June 7th in African American History – Prince Rogers Nelson (Prince)
June 7, 1958 Prince Rogers Nelson (Prince), singer, songwriter, and musician, was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Prince’s first album, “For You,” was released in 1978. He composed, produced, arranged, and played all 27 instruments on the recording. In 1979, he had his first major hit album, “Prince,” which contained the single “I Wanna Be Your […]
June 2nd in African American History – Bo Diddley
June 2, 2008 Bo Diddley, vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter, died. Diddley was born Elias Otha Bates on December 30, 1928 in McComb, Mississippi. In 1934, his family moved to Chicago where in the early 1940s he began to perform. In 1954, he recorded “Bo Diddley” which became a number one R&B hit in 1955. Diddley […]
June 1st in African American History – Davis Eli “David” Ruffin
June 1, 1991 Davis Eli “David” Ruffin, former lead singer of The Temptations, died. Ruffin was born January 18, 1941 in Whynot, Mississippi. He began singing as a young child with his siblings, father, and stepmother in a family gospel group. In 1957, he moved to Detroit and recorded his first single, “You and I” […]