Friday, May 1, 2015

Ben E. King (1938-2015)

Ben E. King started off as a vocalist with the Drifters before venturing out on a solo career. The one solo hit that stood out, "Stand By Me", was given a second life on the charts after the release of a namesake movie in 1986 that in turn was based on a short story by Stephen King (no relation, of course).

The music world is mourning the passing of Ben E. King, who passed away Thursday at 76. King co-wrote "Stand", which was covered by artists as diverse as John Lennon and Mickey Gilley before King's version was reissued. The following video interlocks footage of King's original performance of "Stand" from 1961 with new material that features two of the film's co-stars, River Phoenix and Wil Wheaton. After a montage of movie clips, Phoenix suddenly has a guitar in hand as King finishes the song. Phoenix would give music a try himself before his passing a few years later.




Rest in peace, Ben.

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