Brook Benton was an R&B singer from South Carolina who began his career in the late ’40s when he moved to New York and began writing songs for the likes of Clyde McPhatter and Nat King Cole. It wasn’t until 1959 that Benton scored a hit of his own with the release of “It’s Just A Matter Of Time” which shot up the #3 on the Billboardsingles chart. Benton’s last major hit came in 1970 with the release of “Rainy Night In Georgia.” He passed away on April 9, 1988 from spinal meningitis at the age of 56, but not before charting 49 songs on the Billboard singles chart.
Dave Prater is best known as half of the R&B duo, Sam & Dave. He and his vocal partner, Sam Moore made classic recordings for twenty years, beginning in 1961. Of those songs, they are best known for “Soul Man,” that reached an even bigger audience when it became an unlikely hit in 1978 for the Blues Brothers (Dan Aykroyd andJohn Belushi). Over the years, Sam & Dave were awarded several gold records, a Grammy, and an induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame among other accolades. “Soul Man” itself has been recognized as one of the most influential songs of the first half century of rock ‘n’ roll and has earned a place in the Grammy Hall of Fame. Dave Prater died on April 9, 1988 when the car he was driving veered off the road near Syracuse, GA. He was 50.
Edwin Starr (Born Charles Hatcher) January 31, 1942 – April 2, 2003
Edwin Starr gave the world “War,” the incomparable anti-Vietnam War protest song written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong. It was reportedly recorded in just one take. The song was an anthem for the anti-war movement of the ’60s and was later resurrected to serve the same purpose by Bruce Springsteen. Edwin Starr died of a heart attack at the age of 61.
Beginning in the early 1960s, Marvin Gaye was one of Motown’s most celebrated songwriters and later one of their premier recording artists. In the early years, he was responsible for such classic Motown hits as “I Heard It Through The Grapevine,” and “How Sweet It Is (To Be In Love By You).” He also had several duet hits with Tammi Terrell including “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.” But unlike the other artists on the label, he fought for and maintained his own vision and called the shots when creating his own albums. The results? What’s Going On?, Trouble Man, and Let’s Get It On. His astounding body of work continued through the mid ’80s with the release of Midnight Love and its hit single, “Sexual Healing” for which he won a Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 1983. After the untimely death of Tammi Terrell (1970) along with other personal troubles, not the least of which was his own crumbling marriage, Gaye took some time to reevaluate his position in life. After spending most of the year in seclusion, he resurfaced with What’s Going On?, one of pop music’s landmark albums and one that would change what we think of as “black” music forever. Allmusic.com calls it “A highly percussive album that incorporated jazz and classical elements to forge a remarkably sophisticated and fluid soul sound, [it] was a conceptual masterpiece that brought Gaye’s deeply held spiritual beliefs to the fore to explore issues ranging from poverty and discrimination to the environment, drug abuse, and political corruption; chief among the record’s concerns was the conflict in Vietnam.” Gaye continued to write and record great music throughout the ‘7os and early ’80s, but instead of being afforded the chance to enjoy his success, he spent much of his later years battling legal issues from his divorce, substance abuse, and tax troubles that caused him to flee to Europe in 1981. Within the next couple of years, Gaye patched up his differences with Motown head Barry Gordy and decided to move back to the US and into his parents home to get his life and career back on track. In 1983, a little over a year before his death, the troubled singer made a rare public appearance by singing the National Anthem before the NBA All-Star game at the Fabulous Forum in Los Angeles. It was the greatest (and in some circles the worst) rendition ever performed. At the time, the world was used to very straight ahead versions of the song, but Gaye took it into the stratosphere by injecting his own soul into it. Instead of capitalizing on that moment, Gaye’s downward spiral into depression only got worse as did his rocky relationship with his father. They fought on numerous occasions until the afternoon of April 1, 1984 when Marvin Sr. shot and killed Marvin Jr. after one of their many arguments. Gaye left behind a daughter; singer and actress, Nona Gaye.
Sean Levert was the son of O’Jays singer, Eddie Levert. Along with his older brother Gerald Levert and friend Marc Gordon, he formed the group LeVert and scored a handful of R&B hit in the late ’80s/early ’90s, The group earned two gold albums and received a Grammy nomination. In March of 2008, Levert entered prison to serve a year for unpaid child support in excess of $89,000. Within days of entering the prison, Levert was taken to a hospital suffering from high blood pressure and hallucinations. He died in the hospital on March 31, 2008. The cause was determined to be a combination of high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, sarcoidosis and withdrawal from Xanax. The sentencing judge claimed to have had no knowledge of his health problems prior to her ruling.
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Brook Benton was an R&B singer from South Carolina who began his career in the late ’40s when he moved to New York and began writing songs for the likes of Clyde McPhatter and Nat King Cole. It wasn’t until 1959 that Benton scored a hit of his own with the release of “It’s Just A Matter Of Time” which shot up the #3 on the Billboard singles chart. Benton’s last major hit came in 1970 with the release of “Rainy Night In Georgia.” He passed away on April 9, 1988 from spinal meningitis at the age of 56, but not before charting 49 songs on the Billboard singles chart.
Dave Prater is best known as half of the R&B duo, Sam & Dave. He and his vocal partner, Sam Moore made classic recordings for twenty years, beginning in 1961. Of those songs, they are best known for “Soul Man,” that reached an even bigger audience when it became an unlikely hit in 1978 for the Blues Brothers (Dan Aykroyd and 
Beginning in the early 1960s, Marvin Gaye was one of Motown’s most celebrated songwriters and later one of their premier recording artists. In the early years, he was responsible for such classic Motown hits as “I Heard It Through The Grapevine,” and “How Sweet It Is (To Be In Love By You).” He also had several duet hits with 
