Ronnie Wood has paid tribute to the late soul singer Bobby Womack.
The 70-year-old soul music star – who was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2009 and enjoyed a career spanning seven decades – passed away in his sleep on Friday (27.06.14).
The Rolling Stones rocker took to Twitter to express his grief and recalled how the singer’s voice often reduced him to tears.
He wrote on the social networking site this morning (28.06.14): "I’m so sad to hear about my friend Bobby Womack ~ the man who could make you cry when he sang has brought tears to my eyes with his passing."
The late singer, who was in the process of recording a new album tentatively titled ‘The Best Is Yet to Come,’ with rumoured contributions by Stevie Wonder, Rod Stewart and Snoop Dogg, began his career as a member of Curtis Womack and the Womack Brothers with his brothers Curtis, Harry, Cecil and Friendly, Jr., but they changed their name to the Valentinos shortly after they scored their first record deal in 1960.
The Rolling Stones’ cover of their track ‘It’s All Over Now’ topped the UK charts in 1964, just one month after the original version was released.
The ‘If You Think You’re Lonely Now’ hitmaker sought treatment in rehab in the 1980s for drug addiction, and later battled a series of health problems, including colon cancer, diabetes, pneumonia and showed early signs of Alzheimer’s disease.
His 2012 release ‘The Bravest Man in the Universe’ was voted one of the 50 Best Albums of the year and he admitted he thought his songs were getting better with age.
He said at the time: "You know more at 65 than you did at 25. I understand the songs much better now. It’s not about 14 Rolls Royces and two Bentleys. Even if this album never sells a nickel, I know I put my best foot forward."
A spokesperson for the ‘Across 110th Street’ hitmaker’s record label XL Recordings told RollingStone.com that his cause of death is currently unknown.
Ronnie Wood pays tribute to Bobby Womack
