English musician Joe Cocker, one of the heroes of British pop music in the 1960s, has died after a long battle with lung cancer.
Cocker, famous for his raspy voice and wild hip gyrations on stage,
rose to fame with his covers of popular songs, including the Beatles’
song With a Little Help From My Friends, which went to number one in
1968, and Leon Russell’s Delta Lady.
He received a Grammy in 1983 for Up Where We Belong, a duet with
Jennifer Warnes and was awarded an OBE for his contribution to music in
2007.
A longtime US resident, Cocker lived on a ranch in Colorado with his
second wife Pam. His death, age 70, was confirmed by his agent Barrie
Marshall, who said that he had died of an undisclosed illness.
Marshall said Cocker was “simply unique” and “it will be impossible to fill the space he leaves in our hearts.”
Born John Robert Cocker in 1944, he was raised in Sheffield, the son
of a civil servant. His first foray into music was under the stage name
Vance Arnold with his band Vance Arnold and the Avengers, mainly
covering Chuck Berry and Ray Charles, but the band landed their big
break in 1963 when they supported the Rolling Stones at Sheffield City
Hall.
Cocker signed a solo record deal a year later and went on to create 40 albums over his colourful, four-decade career.
A statement from his label Sony Music said: “John Robert Cocker,
known to family, friends, his community and fans around the world as Joe
Cocker, passed away on December 22, 2014 after a hard fought battle
with small cell lung cancer. Mr Cocker was 70 years old. His
international success as a blues/rock singer began in 1964 and continues
till this day. Joe created nearly 40 albums and toured extensively
around the globe.”
The singer is survived by wife Pam, his step-daughter, Zoey Schroeder and two grandchildren, Eva and Simon Schroeder.
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