Support for LAist comes from
Become a sponsor
Made of L.A.
Donate
Stay Connected

LAist is part of Southern California Public Radio, a member-supported public media network. For the latest national news from NPR and our live radio broadcast, visit LAist.com/radio

Keep up with our local independent news

The Top 5 newsletter catches you up with LA’s top 5 stories in just 3 minutes.
Donate

Share This

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

News

Singer Solomon Burke Dies on Flight from L.A. to Amsterdam

By  Lindsay William-Ross
Published Oct 9, 2010 11:00 PM
Our June member drive is live: protect this resource!
Right now, we need your help during our short June member drive to keep the local news you read here every day going. This has been a challenging year, but with your help, we can get one step closer to closing our budget gap. Today, put a dollar value on the trustworthy reporting you rely on all year long. We can't hold those in power accountable and uplift voices from the community without your partnership.

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.

Most Read
Best of LAist