Soul great Bobby Byrd dead at 73

Mike Isaac

on September 13, 2007 1:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Classic soul singer Bobby Byrd, founding member of the Famous Flames and sidekick to "Godfather of Soul" James Brown, died Wednesday in his Loganville, Ga. home, succumbing to cancer. He was 73.

Byrd's death comes less than a year after his famous band leader Brown, who died last year on Christmas morning. Byrd served as the band leader of The Avons, the precursor to what would later become Brown's Famous Flames.

During Brown's live performances, Byrd was regularly given a solo spot during the show, seen below performing "Soul Man":

Byrd's most famous song, "I Know You Got Soul," has been prolifically sampled by big name contemporary artists, including Public Enemy, Ice Cube and A Tribe Called Quest.

Byrd is survived by his wife, Vickie Anderson, and family.

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