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Joe Cocker

Arguably one of the most dynamic singers of the late 1960s and beyond, English singer Joe Cocker's raw, soul-drenched vocals and near spastic stage persona elevated him to worldwide fame in the 1970s before he transitioned successfully into a mainstream rock/pop artist with the Oscar-winning "Up Where We Belong" (1982) and other songs throughout the 1990s and beyond. After toiling in obscurity throughout the 1960s, Cocker landed his first No 1 U.K. single with a passionate cover of the Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends," which minted him as a world-class interpreter of other rock acts' material. Subsequent hits with Leon Russell's "Delta Lady," The Box Tops' "The Letter" and Billy Preston's "You are so Beautiful" kept Cocker in the spotlight until the mid-1970s, when depression and substance abuse derailed his career. Fortunately, a new generation enjoyed his work when his duet with Jennifer Warnes, "Up Where We Belong," returned him to the top of the charts. Cocker continued to mine chart hits throughout the 1990s and beyond, his voice still imbuing its blend of bluesy grit and jazz-like inflection on original material and choice covers alike. A bona fide survivor of the turbulent 1960s and 1970s music scene, Joe Cocker remained one of rock-n-roll's most extraordinary vocal talents. His death on December 22, 2014 was mourned by generations of fans as well as his friends, family and peers.