RIP Wilson Pickett - DM's Beatles forums

Wilson Pickett Dies of Heart Attack at 64

Jan 19, 6:55 PM EST

The Associated Press

RESTON, Va. -- Wilson Pickett, the soul pioneer best known for the fiery
hits "Mustang Sally" and "In The Midnight Hour," died of a heart attack
Thursday, according to his management company. He was 64.

Chris Tuthill of the management company Talent Source said Pickett had been
suffering from health problems for the past year.

"He did his part. It was a great ride, a great trip, I loved him and I'm
sure he was well-loved, and I just hope that he's given his props," Michael
Wilson Pickett, the fourth of the singer's six children, told WRC-TV in
Washington after his death.

Pickett - known as the "Wicked Pickett" - became a star with his soulful
hits in the 1960s. "In the Midnight Hour" made the top 25 on the Billboard
pop charts in 1965 and "Mustang Sally" did the same the following year.

"A fellow Detroiter, Wilson Pickett was one of the greatest soul singers of
all time." Aretha Franklin said in a statement. "He will absolutely be
missed. I am thankful that I got the chance to speak to him not too long
ago."

Pickett was defined by his raspy voice and passionate delivery. But the
Alabama-born picket got his start singing gospel music in church. After
moving to Detroit as a teen, he joined the group the Falcons, which scored
the hit "I Found a Love" with Pickett on lead vocals in 1962.

He went solo a year later, and would soon find his greatest success. In
1965, he linked with legendary soul producer Jerry Wexler at the equally
legendary soul label Stax Records in Memphis, and recorded one of his
greatest hits, "In the Midnight Hour," for Atlantic Records. A string of
hits followed, including "634-5789," "Funky Broadway" and "Mustang Sally."
His sensuous soul was in sharp contrast to the genteel soul songs of his
Detroit counterparts at Motown Records.

As Pickett entered a new decade, he had less success on the charts, but
still had hits, including the song "Don't Let The Green Grass Fool You."

Without appearing in the film, he cast a long shadow and served as a role
model in "The Commitments" in 1991, the same year he was inducted into the
Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame.

But Pickett suffered through some tough times.

Also in '91, he was arrested for allegedly yelling death threats while
driving a car over the mayor's front lawn in Englewood, N.J., and less than
a year later was charged with assaulting his girlfriend.

In 1993, he was convicted of drunk driving and sentenced to a year in jail
and five years' probation after hitting an 86-year-old man with his car.

In 1987, he was given two years' probation and fined $1,000 for carrying a
loaded shotgun in his car.

Besides his induction into the Hall of Fame in 1991, he was also given the
Pioneer award by the Rhythm and Blues Foundation two years later.

"If I wasn't in show business I don't know what I would have been - a
wanderer or something, you know?" he said in a 2001 interview. "But God
blessed me with the talent and the chance. I knocked on enough doors, and
this is what I can give myself credit for."