‘It’s In His Kiss’ hitmaker Linda Lewis has died aged 72.
The adored singer-songwriter, who had an impressive five-octave vocal range and was a backing singer for David Bowie and Rod Stewart, passed away peacefully on Wednesday (03.05.23).
Linda’s sister, Dee Lewis Clay, confirmed the sad news of her death in a Facebook post that read: “It is with the greatest sadness and regret we share the news that our beloved beautiful sister Linda Lewis passed away today peacefully at her home.
“The family asks that you respect our privacy and allow us to grieve at this heartbreaking time.”
No cause of death was given.
After attending stage school, the Londoner played a screaming fan in the iconic 1964 musical Beatles film, ‘A Hard Day’s Night’, among other film roles.
Then came chart success in the UK in the 70s, with Top 10 hit ‘It’s In His Kiss’, a disco version of ‘The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s in His Kiss)’, as well as ‘Rock-A-Doodle-Doo’, ‘Baby I’m Yours’ and ‘I’d Be Surprisingly Good For You’.
Her vocal prowess led her to work with a range of artists including Joan Armatrading, Basement Jaxx, Turin Brakes, and Jamiroquai.
A self-taught guitarist and keyboard player, Linda released 10 studio albums, her last being 1999’s ‘Kiss of Life’.
Linda lived in a commune in Hampstead, north London, which would be frequented by the likes of Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam), Marc Bolan and Sir Elton John.
Linda dated fellow star Cat/Yusuf, however, they disagreed over his conversion to Islam.
She once wrote: “To put it kindly, he was searching for greater meaning in life. To put it bluntly, he was becoming a pain.”
Tributes have flooded in, with Armatrading tweeted: “I’m so sad to hear of the death of Linda Lewis. She had a beautiful voice and was a really lovely person. RIP Linda x.”
Midge Ure wrote: “Really sad to hear this.
“I had a massive crush on Linda Lewis. ‘Not a little girl anymore’ was a great song and beautifully sung by her.”