When Jackie Wilson died in 1984, he was buried in a pauper's grave, devoid of even a simple marker. Yet, at his peak, he was one of the 20th century's finest singing talents who, between 1957 and 1968, achieved 24 Top 40 hits in the U.S. with tracks like "To Be Loved," "Higher and Higher," and "I Get the Sweetest Feeling." Wilson was the first major star groomed by Berry Gordy for his new Motown label, and scored the label's first hits, and thus is an integral part of this story. In live performance, Wilson's amazing vocal range and gliding, rapturous style influenced Elvis Presley himself-and later Michael Jackson. Offstage, Wilson lived a life bent on self-destruction. Professionally controlled by the Mafia and hounded by the IRS, he embarked on three marriages and untold extra-marital affairs. He suffered massive alcohol dependency and chronic addiction to amphetamines and cocaine. Shot and critically wounded by a former girlfriend in 1961, he later suffered a heart attack in 1975 and remained in a coma until his death nearly nine years later. Written with the cooperation of Wilson's family, friends, and former lovers, this is a vivid portrait of musical genius and human tragedy.

© ElvisBooks
24 July 2005