At Last, Etta James is resting in peace.
73 Year old Etta James, known for her ability to belt out just about anything, passed away on Friday, January 20, 2012 due to complications from leukemia according to her manager and friend Lupe De Leon in a statement to CNN. The soulful songbird’s cancer was declared incurable in December.
James, Born Jamesetta Hawkins on January 25, 1938, climbed her way to the top in the 1950’s blowing minds with her gospel, blues and jazz ballads and ability to be versatile in the music industry. Responsible for ballads such as “I Never Meant to Love Him”, “Sunday Kind Of Love”, and the jazzy cover of “At Last”, James was a vocal powerhouse in her own right.
She was depicted in the 2008 biopic “Cadillac Records” along with other past greats such as Muddy Waters, Little Walter and Chuck Berry just to name a few. The film gave us a glimpse into James’ life, giving us a brief look into her heroin addiction and other demons that were plaguing her life while signed to Chess Records. James was played by Beyonce, who also performed her hit timeless hit “At Last” for President Obama at his inaugural ball. It caused quite a stir up, with James stating “She couldnt stand Beyonce singing my song that I’ve been singing forever,” but later told The New York Daily that she was “just kidding,” but she was indeed hurt that she could participate.
It was then that her health started to fade, with her son making a statement about his mother’s condition saying that she had been a victim of drugged induced dementia”. Her health continued to decline and by 2011, she had a home doctor caring for her daily as she continued to battle not only leukemia, but also dementia and kidney problems.
In October 2011, the singer who has quite a few awards to be proud of such as a Grammy in 2002 for Best Contemporary Album, a Grammy in 2003 for Lifetime Achievement and a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame reported that she was retiring from recording.
By December 2011, her physician announced that her leukemia was terminal.
James passed away at the Parkview Community Hospital in Riverdale with her children by her side.