Legendary singer Etta James passed away today at the age of 73 from a long battle with Leukemia. Although her music rose to popularity way before any of the MMIBTY crew were born, you can find her vocals scattered throughout many songs today. Wikipedia gives us some insight into Etta James’ amazing career:
She was an “American singer whose style spanned a variety of music genres including blues, rhythm and blues, rock and roll, soul, gospel and jazz. Starting her career in the mid 1950s, she gained fame with hits such as ‘Dance With Me, Henry’, ‘At Last’, ‘Tell Mama’, and ‘I’d Rather Go Blind’ for which she claimed she wrote the lyrics.”
“She is regarded as having bridged the gap between rhythm and blues and rock and roll, and is the winner of six Grammys and 17 Blues Music Awards. She was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, the Blues Hall of Fame in 2001, and the Grammy Hall of Fame in both 1999 and 2008. Rolling Stone ranked James number 22 on their list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time and number 62 on the list of the 100 Greatest Artists.”
Here are some songs that sample James’ work:
Avicii – Levels (From the song “Something’s Got a Hold on Me”)
Pretty Lights – Finally Moving Remix (From the song “Something’s Got a Hold on Me”)
Kanye West – Addiction (From the song “My Funny Valentine”)
Plej – Song (From the song “At Last”)
And here is the new trippy video from Justice from their forthcoming EP “On ‘N’ On”: