Wilson Pickett

A big howling, joyous voice of 1960s soul, Wilson Pickett grew up singing in Baptist church choirs in Alabama before joining the gospel group The Falcons and penning the Solomon Burke hit If You Need Me. Solo success first came with the 1963 single It's Too Late, but it was when he started working at the legendary Stax Records studios in Memphis that Pickett's talent really shone through, with the classics In The Midnight Hour, Mustang Sally and Land Of 1000 Dances. Funky Broadway gave him another big hit in 1967 and he counted The Rolling Stones, James Brown, The Beatles and later Paul Weller, Bruce Springsteen and Led Zeppelin as huge fans. His fame had a resurgence when his songs were heavily used in the hit Irish comedy The Commitments (1991) and he made an appearance in Blues Brothers 2000 before his death from a heart attack in 2006.