Rock and Roll Hall of famer Wilson Pickett dies of a heart attack ...

[undergroundrailroad]

Rock and Roll Hall of famer Wilson Pickett dies of a heart attack in his Virginia home


BY GLENN GAMBOA
STAFF WRITER

January 20, 2006

Before there was 50 Cent, before there was LL Cool J, there was swaggering soul singer Wilson Pickett boasting about being a "midnight mover, all-night groover" and promising, "I'm gonna wait 'til the midnight hour."

Pickett died yesterday from a heart attack at a hospital near his home in Virginia, his New York-based manager said yesterday. He was 64.

Known as "The Wicked Pickett" for his intense, gruff vocal style, as well as his suggestive lyrics, the Alabama native was an R&B chart-topper through the '60s and early '70s, with "In the Midnight Hour," "Mustang Sally" and "Land of 1000 Dances." In 1991, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

"Wilson Pickett was one of the greatest soul singers of all time," Aretha Franklin said in a statement. "He will absolutely be missed."

Pickett was born March 18, 1941, in Prattville, Ala., where he began singing gospel in Southern Baptist churches before moving to Detroit as a teenager. He joined the vocal group The Falcons and sang lead on their hit "I Found A Love" before later pursuing a solo career on Atlantic Records.