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Singer Solomon Burke Dies on Flight from L.A. to Amsterdam
Singer Solomon Burke died today while traveling from Los Angeles to Amsterdam, according to the AP as published on CBS. He was 70.
Born in Philadelphia, Burke was first a preacher, and then a gospel radio show host. He began recording professionally in the 1960s. "Burke was also an undertaker and had a mortuary business in Los Angeles. He was trained as a mortician early in his life and had worked in his uncle's funeral parlor," (Wikipedia). In 2001, Burke was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. What is to be his last album, "Hold On Tight," is slated to be released this month.
Burke was en route from Los Angeles to Amsterdam for a concert appearance on Tuesday. He reportedly died of natural causes on board the plane, and was pronounced dead at Schiphol Airport. Burke had 21 children, 90 grandchildren, and 19 great-grandchildren. "Although our hearts and lives will never be the same, his love, life and music will continue to live within us forever," his family posted on his website.
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