Singer Teddy Pendergrass dies aged 59
Singer Teddy Pendergrass dies aged 59
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Thursday, 14, Jan 2010 09:26
By Lewis Bazley.
R 'n' B singer Teddy Pendergrass has died at the age of 59 after a "difficult recovery" from surgery, his son has confirmed.
The Grammy winner died in hospital in Philadelphia, his son Teddy Pendergrass II told the AP news agency, after struggling to recover from the after-effects of colon cancer surgery.
"To all his fans who loved his music, thank you," his son commented. "He will live on through his music."
A statement from Pendergrass' friend and former publicist Lisa Barbaris added: "Teddy Pendergrass passed away this evening at 21:59, after a long illness. His beloved family surrounded him.
"The world has lost one of its greatest voices and performers."
The lead singer of the Blue Notes, Pendergrass enjoyed success in the 70s with hits such as If You Don't Know Me By Now and Wake Up Everybody and was the first black male singer to record five consecutive multi-platinum albums in the US.
He was paralysed from the waist down in a 1982 car accident but appeared at Live Aid in his home city of Philadelphia in 1985 and also duetted with Whitney Houston in the same year.
The singer later founded the Teddy Pendergrass Alliance, which aided people with spinal cord injuries with education, employment and housing, and returned to full touring in 2001.
Pendergrass is survived by his mother Ida, his wife Joan, his three children Theodore Pendergrass Jr, Tishia and LaDonna Hollerway, and nine grandchildren.