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Obituaries
Viola Wills dies
By CMU Editorial | Published on Monday 11 May 2009
US disco star Viola Wills has died at the age of 69 after suffering from cancer.
The pop singer was born Viola Mae Wilkerson in Los Angeles, and was a married mother of six when she was discovered by Barry White, who signed her to Bronco Records.
In subsequent years she worked with the likes of Joe Cocker and Smokey Robinson, but it was following a move to London that the release of a version of ‘Gonna Get Along Without You Now’ in 1979 began a string of dance hits. She later moved on to a different style of music, a mix of jazz and gospel. Her ties to the UK were always strong, though, and over she years she made a number of appearances on UK television and at UK venues including Ronnie Scott’s.
Music Week quote Capital FM Programme Administrator Patrick Neville, who has paid tribute to the singer, saying: “She had a long association with the UK. Her diva status in the gay community was confirmed many years ago. ‘It’s My Pleasure,’ credited to My Friend Sam featuring Viola Wills, was a major dance hit and still features regularly on compilations here in the UK”.
