Eartha Kitt (1927 - 2008)

Eartha Kitt: 'Santa Baby' (1953)


Eartha Kitt as Catwoman in Batman (1967)

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Levi Stubbs (1936 - 2008)

The Four Tops: 'Reach Out, I'll Be There' (1966)


The Four Tops: 'It's The Same Old Song' (1965)

Just after Isaac Hayes and Norman Whitfield, another great soul man is gone. Levi Stubbs (born as Levi Stubbles; 6 June 1936 – 17 October 2008), the lead vocalist for Motown's legendary R&B group The Four Tops, has passed away. He was also the subject of Billy Bragg's song 'Levi Stubb's Tears'.

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Also gone: Neal Hefti (29 October 1922 - 11 October 2008), who wrote the memorable theme music to the 1960s campy TV series version of Batman.

Norman Whitfield (1940 - 2008)

Marvin Gaye: 'I Heard Through The Grapevine' (1968)


Edwin Starr: 'War' (1970)


The Temptations: 'Ball of Confusion' (1970)

More songs written by Norman Whitfield (with lyrical collaborator Barrett Strong):

Rose Royce: 'Car Wash' (1976)

The Temptations: 'Ain't Too Proud To Beg' (1966)

The Temptations: 'Cloud Nine' (1968)

The Temptations: 'Papa Was A Rolling Stone' (1972)

Undisputed Truth: 'Smiling Faces Sometimes' (1971)

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Blues Section: 'Semi-Circle Solitude' (1968)

Blues Section: 'Semi-Circle Solitude' (1968)


Blues Section: 'Cherry Cup-Cake Twist' (1968)


Blues Section: 'Hey Hey Hey' (1967)


Blues Section: 'Call Me On Your Telephone' (1967)

'Semi-Circle Solitude' is probably my all-time favourite track from Blues Section, a late-60s Finnish rhythm & blues/psychedelic band fronted by a great British ex-pat singer-songwriter, Jim Pembroke (later of Wigwam, another band worth checking out and don't let the "progessive rock" tag put you off, because there's some memorable songwriting here, too). The film excerpts for 'Semi-Circle Solitude' and 'Cherry Cup-Cake Twist' are from Jaakko Pakkasvirta's documentary film Eläköön nuoruus ("Viva Youth", 1968). 'Hey Hey Hey' was used in Mikko Niskanen's 1967 film Lapualaismorsian, in a sequence depicting how students in Helsinki celebrate Mayday.

YouTube also has Blues Section's 'Kuka kertoisi minulle?' ("Who would tell me?"; as vocalist Pepe Willberg, formerly of The Jormas), from Timo Bergholm's drama film Punahilkka ("Little Red Riding Hood"), another movie from 1968. Furthermore, there's a clip of 'End of a Poem', from their 1996 comeback gig.

Lyrics @ Mikko Meriläinen's excellent Blues Section/Wigwam site

60s Garage Rock & Psychedelia in Finland @ pHinnWeb

And as bonus, more Jim Pembroke songwriting, 'Simple Human Kindness' from Wigwam's "deep pop" album Nuclear Nightclub (1975); this studio live is from 1976:


Wigwam: 'Simple Human Kindness' (1976, off Pop-Liisa TV show)

Bo Diddley (1928 - 2008)

Bo Diddley: 'Road Runner' (1960)

More Bo Diddley video clips @ YouTube

Wikipedia