THE MIDNIGHT HOUR has finally passed for the veteran US soul singer Wilson Pickett, who has died after suffering a heart attack in Virginia. He was 64.

His management said that the singer, renowned for his gravelly voice and raw charisma, had suffered health problems for the past year.

Michael Wilson Pickett, the fourth of the singer’s six children, said: “He did his part. It was a great ride, a great trip.”

Up until he fell ill Pickett had contined to tour and perform, playing to a new generation of fans who had fallen in love with his swaggering ballads through The Commitments, the 1991 film about an amateur soul band in Dublin.

Pickett was born in Alabama in 1941 and developed his vocal style with the Baptist choirs in his native Prattville.

After moving to Detroit with his family as a teenager he joined various gospel and soul groups and was eventually signed to Atlantic Records. He was nicknamed “the Wicked Pickett” for his uninhibited, boastful style, which some commentators say paved the way for many hiphop stars’ image.

But it was the Stax sessions of 1965 that brought Pickett real success. He linked with the legendary soul producer Jerry Wexler and the Booker T and the MG’s guitarist Steve Cropper at the equally legendary soul label Stax Records in Memphis, and recorded In the Midnight Hour for Atlantic Records. A string of hits followed, including 634-5789, Funky Broadway, and Mustang Sally. In later years he battled substance abuse; in 1994 he served time in jail on an assault charge. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.

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