Soul singer Solomon Burke influenced music legends

AMSTERDAM - Solomon Burke was born to the sound of music in an upstairs room of a Philadelphia church and went on to become one of the greatest soul singers of the 1960s, renowned as among music's premier vocalists.

Yet his popularity never matched that of those he influenced, contemporaries including James Brown and Marvin Gaye, a reality he accepted with grace and some frustration, colleagues said.

Burke, 70, died early Sunday of natural causes at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, his family said in a statement on the singer's website.

"This is a time of great sorrow for our entire family. We truly appreciate all of the support and well wishes from his friends and fans," the statement said.

Atlantic Records producer Jerry Wexler once called Burke, "the best soul singer of all time." Anti-Records president Andy Kaulkin, whose label produced Burke's comeback record, "Don't Give Up on Me," which won him his only Grammy, said, "Popular music today wouldn't be where it is without Solomon Burke."

Two of Burke's best-known songs reached a wider audience when they were featured in hit movies.

He wrote "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" in 1964, and it was later featured in the Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi movie "The Blues Brothers." The Rolling Stones and Wilson Pickett also recorded it.

A bare-chested Patrick Swayze danced seductively with Jennifer Grey to Burke's "Cry to Me" in one of the most memorable scenes from "Dirty Dancing."

According to his website, Burke was born March 21, 1940, "to the sounds of horns and bass drums" at the United Praying Band the House of God for All People in West Philadelphia.

He remained closely linked to the church as a preacher. In 2000, he played for Pope John Paul II at the Vatican.

Burke was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 and won a Best Contemporary Blues Album Grammy a year later for "Don't Give Up on Me."

Burke was the patriarch of a family of 21 children, 90 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren. "Loving people," he said at a recent performance in London, "is what I do."