Soul singer Fontella Bass dies at 72

PanARMENIAN.Net - US soul singer Fontella Bass, who hit the top of the R&B charts in 1965 with Rescue Me, has died at the age of 72, Belfast Telegraph said.

Bass died in a hospice in St Louis, Missouri, of complications from a heart attack suffered three weeks ago, her daughter, Neuka Mitchell, said. She had also suffered a series of strokes over the past seven years.

Rescue Me has been covered by many top artists, including Linda Ronstadt, Cher, Melissa Manchester and Pat Benatar. Franklin eventually sang a form of it - as Deliver Me in a Pizza Hut TV ad in 1991.

Bass was born into a family with deep musical roots. Her mother was gospel singer Martha Bass, one of the Clara Ward Singers. Her younger brother, David Peaston, had a string of R&B hits in the 1980s and 1990s. Peaston died in February aged 54.

Bass began performing at a young age, singing in her church's choir at the age of six. Her interest turned to R&B when she was a teenager. She eventually auditioned for Chess Records and landed a recording contract. Her duet with Bobby McClure, Don't Mess Up A Good Thing, reached No 5 in the R&B charts and No 33 in the Billboard Top 100 in 1965.

She co-wrote and later that year recorded Rescue Me, reaching No 1 in the R&B charts and No 4 in the Billboard pop singles chart. Her powerful voice bore a striking resemblance to that of Aretha Franklin, who is often misidentified as the singer of that chart-topping hit.

Bass haggled over royalty rights to Rescue Me for years before reaching a settlement in the late 1980s, her daughter said.

Bass lived briefly in Europe before returning to St Louis in the early 1970s. She recorded occasionally, including a 1995 gospel album, No Ways Tired, which earned a Grammy nomination.

She is survived by four children.