Artist News Obituaries

Percy Sledge 1940-2015

By Andy Malt | Published on Thursday 16 April 2015

Soul singer Percy Sledge died from liver cancer on Tuesday this week. He was 74.

Born in 1940 in Alabama, Sledge was performing at weekends with a band called The Esquires Combo when he was introduced to record producer Quin Ivy in 1965. Ivy signed Sledge to a solo performer contract, after which they went to Muscle Shoals Sound Studio and recorded ‘When A Man Loves A Woman’, which would remain the song he was best known for throughout his career.

With that recording originally licensed to Atlantic Records, the label quickly bought Sledge out of his record deal with Ivy, the track hitting number one in the pop and R&B charts and remaining in both for several months. However, although he had co-written the song, he had given all the credits to his Esquires Combo bandmates Cameron Lewis and Andrew Wright, something he later described to Blues & Soul magazine as “the worst decision I ever made”.

“I am not at all bitter”, he went on. “It was God’s will for me to give it to them. But if I had my time again, I wouldn’t do it. Because of my children”.

His mainstream popularity was fairly short-lived, chart positions diminishing as the 60s went on and largely eluding him after that, but he remained a favourite amongst soul fans. Over the years ‘When A Man Loves A Woman’ has entered the popular consciousness, enjoying increased attention at certain points over the years – thanks to being featured in a Levi’s advert, several films, and when Michael Bolton, quite inexplicably, won a Grammy for his cover of it.

Sledge was honoured with numerous awards during his life, including being inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2005 and Louisiana Music Hall Of Fame in 2007. He continued to record and perform until close to the end of his life. He played his final show last year, after undergoing surgery for liver cancer.

He is survived by his second wife Rosa and twelve children.