Legendary Singer Bobby Bland Dies At The Age Of 83 Years

Legendary Singer Bobby Bland Dies At The Age Of 83 Years

About Him:

Robert Calvin "Bobby" Bland, also known as Bobby "Blue" Bland, was an American singer of blues and soul. He was an original member of the Beale Streeters, and was sometimes referred to as the "Lion of the Blues". 

Born: January 27, 1930, Shelby County, Tennessee, United States
Died: June 23, 2013, Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Albums: Two Steps From the Blues, More
Movies: Bobby Blue Bland: Live on Beale Street
Awards: Rhythm and Blues Foundation Pioneer Award

Bobby Bland, the American blues singer, died in Memphis on Sunday following complications from an ongoing illness. He was 83.

Bland was born in Rosemark, Tennessee in 1930. Known as The Lion of The Blues, he was a contemporary of blues and soul icons BB King and Ray Charles, and joined blues group the Beale Streeters when he first moved to Memphis in 1947. Fifty years later, he won a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award for his services to music.

Bland's chart success came during the Fifties and late Sixties, at the point he mastered the smooth and dynamic vocals that made his name. He topped the charts with hits That's the Way Love Is and I Pity the Fool. A handful of Bland's other tracks – Turn on Your Love Light, Call on Me and Ain't Nothing You Can Do – made the Top 40.

Bobby "Blue" Bland, a distinguished singer who blended Southern blues and soul in songs such as "Turn on Your Love Light" and "Further On Up the Road," died Sunday. He was 83. Rodd Bland said his father died due to complications from an ongoing illness at his Memphis, Tenn., home. He was surrounded by relatives. Bland was known as the "the Sinatra of the blues" and was heavily influenced by Nat King Cole, often recording with lavish arrangements to accompany his smooth vocals. He even openly imitated Frank Sinatra on the "Two Steps From the Blues" album cover, standing in front of a building with a coat thrown over his shoulder. "He brought a certain level of class to the blues genre," said Lawrence "Boo" Mitchell, son of legendary musician and producer Willie Mitchell. Bland was a contemporary of B.B. King's, serving as the blues great's valet and chauffer at one point, and was one of the last of the living connections to the roots of the genre. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 and was an influence on scores of young rock 'n' rollers. Born in Rosemark, Tenn., he moved to nearby Memphis as a teenager and became a founding member of the Beale Streeters, a group that also included King and Johnny Ace. Upon his induction, the Rock Hall of Fame noted Bland was "second in stature only to B.B. King as a product of Memphis' Beale Street blues scene."