British singer Joe Cocker dies of lung cancer at age 70
LONDON (KABC) -- Joe Cocker, known for the teary ballad "You Are So Beautiful" and his rendition of the Beatles' "With a Little Help From My Friends," has died. He was 70.
The British singer died of lung cancer early Monday at his home in Colorado, his agent Barrie Marshall confirmed.
Cocker, who was born John Robert Cocker in 1944, rose to fame in the 1960s when he covered "With a Little Help From My Friends." Featuring a gospel-styled arrangement and furious call and response between Cocker and the backup singers, the song became a No. 1 hit in England. His version was later used as the theme song for the series "The Wonder Years."
In a statement Monday, Paul McCartney remembered hearing Cocker's cover of the song he and John Lennon co-wrote for Ringo Starr and finding it "just mind blowing," a "soul anthem."
"I was forever grateful for him for doing that," McCartney said. "I knew him through the years as a good mate, and I was so sad to hear that he had been ill and really sad to hear today that he had passed away."
The raspy-voiced singer had a top 10 hit in 1975 on "You Are So Beautiful" and earned a Grammy Award in 1983 for his "Up Where We Belong" duet with Jennifer Warnes, the theme song for the movie "An Officer and a Gentlemen."
Cocker, who received an Order of the British Empire in 2011 for his contribution to music, released 40 albums and continued to tour after the hits stopped. His other popular covers included "Feelin' Alright," ''The Letter" and "Cry Me a River," a song previously recorded by one of Cocker's greatest influences, Ray Charles.
He last released an album, "Fire It Up," in 2012, and had been performing live last year.
Cocker moved to Crawford, Colorado, a town of fewer than 500 people, in the early 1990s. He and his wife, Pam, ran a children's educational foundation - the Cocker Kids Foundation - that raised funds for the town and schools, and ran the Mad Dog Cafe for several years in town, said Tom Wills, publisher of The North Fork Merchant Herald, a local community newspaper.
Wills said Cocker bought about 40 acres of property and built a hillside mansion - which he called Mad Dog Ranch - when he moved to Colorado.
Cocker is survived by his wife, Pam; a brother; a step daughter and two grandchildren. A private memorial is planned.
Celebrities turned to Twitter to pay their respects.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
