Died On This Date (November 27, 1998) Barbara Acklin / ’60s Soul Singer
themusicsover Barbara Acklin
February 28, 1944 – November 27, 1998
Barbara Acklin was a popular soul singer and successful songwriter during the ’60s and ’70s. After singing in church and then Chicago area nightclubs while still a teenager, Acklin was hired by Chess Records to sing backup for the likes of Etta James and Fontella Bass. In 1966, Acklin was hired as a receptionist for Brunswick Records where she had to chance to hand a song she had co-written to Jackie Wilson. That song was “Whispers (Gettin’ Louder)” which Wilson made into a top 5 R&B and #11 pop hit. That was enough to land Acklin a recording contract with Brunswick. Acklin released several charting singles over the next decade, including “Show Me the Way” (a duet with Gene Chandler), “Love Makes a Woman,” and “Am I the Same Girl,” which was later covered by Dusty Springfield, the Manhattan Transfer, and Swing Out Sister. Acklin’s biggest hit as a songwriter came with the release of “Have You Seen Her,” a song she co-wrote with Eugene Record and turned into a chart topping hit by his group, the Chi-Lites. Barbara Acklin was 54 when she died of pneumonia.
What You Should Own
Bess Lomax Hawes was a folk musician, educator and folklorist. As the daughter and sister of noted folk historians, John A. Lomax and 
John Rostill was an English musician and songwriter who is perhaps best remembered as a bassist for one of England’s most successful rock groups, the Shadows. With 69 UK charting singles (including 17 #1s) they have been recognized as England’s third most successful charted singles act in history. Only Cliff Richard and 
