Singer-songwriter and Ramsgate local Linda Lewis has died at the age of 72.
The singer, known for her five-octave vocal range, had a career that spanned from the 1970s.
Covers and samples of her music have been used by artists including Joss Stone and Common, and she collaborated with Basement Jaxx, Turin Brakes and Jamiroquai.
Linda grew up in London’s East End. She went to stage school in the 1960s and as a teenager was cast in ‘A Taste of Honey’ and The Beatles’ film ‘A Hard Day’s Night’.
She produced albums including Say No More, inspired by living with fellow artists and musicians in a commune in Hampstead, widely acclaimed Lark and Fathoms Deep, and later works, Second Nature, Whatever and Kiss of Life.
Linda appeared on David Bowie’s ‘Aladdin Sane’, Cat Stevens’s ‘Catch Bull At Four’ and on recordings by Rod Stewart, Al Kooper, Chris Spedding, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, Roger Waters, Midfield General, Noel Gallagher and Paul Weller.
In 2002 Warner Music released Reach for the Truth – an anthology of Linda’s music from the early 1970s. The following year BMG released the retrospective The Best of Linda Lewis and later Legends – a three CD box set that includes all her hits and several rarities.
She appeared at Glastonbury, the Montreaux Jazz Festival, the Royal Festival Hall, the Barbican, the V&A and the Jazz Cafe.
A statement from Shirley Lewis says: “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.”
Details with thanks to http://lindalewis.co.uk/
