Ben E. King—the former member of The Drifters and the soul vocalist behind the classic single "Stand By Me"—has died at the age of 76 years old. His agent reported Friday morning that the vocalist had passed from natural causes.
King entered the show business as a member of the Five Crowns, a band that would become The Drifters when the latter group's manager fired the group and the Crowns assumed the title. He cowrote the group's hit "There Goes My Baby" while also performing on classic tracks such as "Save The Last Dance For Me" and "This Magic Moment." It wouldn't be too long before King had contractual issues with the rest of The Drifters, refusing to perform live (usually resulting in other members lip-syncing his parts on television). The vocalist would go solo in 1960.
"Stand By Me," the single most often associated with King, debuted during 1961. Although it remains his most popular song, it "only" peaked at no. 4 on the Hot 100 (The Drifters' "Save The Last Dance For Me" would be his only overall no. 1). The hit managed to crack the Top 10 during two different decades however, as its inclusion in the 1986 film of the same name led to it reaching no. 9 more than 25 years after it was introduced.
The song was also beloved by performers across a range of genres. John Lennon released a rock version, Mickey Gilley gave it the country treatment and Prince Royce made a Dominican bachata out of the single. Muhammad Ali even recorded a version during 1964 (performing under the name Cassius Clay at that point).
The last month has been a rough one for fans of soul and R&B. Percy Sledge, the performer behind the classic "When A Man Loves A Woman" passed away on April 14 at the age of 74.
