Songwriter Nick Ashford Dies; Had Throat Cancer "Ain't No Mountain High Enough"

[The Straight Story]

Songwriter Nick Ashford Dies; Had Throat Cancer

Nick Ashford, one-half of the legendary Motown songwriting duo Ashford & Simpson that penned elegant, soulful classics for the likes of Diana Ross and Marvin Gaye and funk hits for Chaka Khan and others, died Monday at age 70, his former publicist said.

Liz Rosenberg, who also was Ashford's longtime friend, told The Associated Press that Ashford — who along with wife Valerie Simpson wrote some of Motown's biggest hits — died in a New York City hospital. He had been suffering from throat cancer and had undergone radiation treatment.

Though they had some of their greatest success at Motown with classics like "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and "Reach Out And Touch Somebody's Hand" by Ross and "You're All I Need To Get By" by Gaye and Tammi Terrell, Ashford & Simpson also created classics for others, like the anthem "I'm Every Woman" by Khan (and later remade by Whitney Houston).

They also had success writing for themselves: Perhaps the biggest known hit sung by them was the 1980s hit "Solid As A Rock."

http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=14359825


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGBXIK5TZjs

[FrenchieCat]

1. NOOooooooo!

Of the Ashford and Simpson duo? Nooooo!

[KT2000]

2. Oh no -

he left behind some good songs.
RIP

[madrchsod]

3. got to go with marvin and tami.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xz-UvQYAmbg

[marmar]

4. RIP Nick.....I'm going to play "It Seems to Hang On" right now.

nt

[tilsammans]

5. Oh, no!

He and Valerie Simpson were simply magical.

[bettyellen]

6. did you know when he met his wife, he was homeless? I met him once and he was so charasmatic

a big old very happy guy, larger than life, and a joy to be around.

[villager]

7. Ah, shit! I'm gonna go spin some sides myself...

n/t

[spanone]

8. RIP made some grrrrrreat music....

[spanone]

9. we lost jerry leiber too....leiber & stoller

LOS ANGELES — Jerry Leiber, who with longtime partner Mike Stoller wrote "Hound Dog," "Jailhouse Rock," "Yakety Yak" and other hit songs that came to define early rock 'n' roll, died Monday. He was 78.

He was surrounded by family when he died unexpectedly of cardiopulmonary failure at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, said his longtime publicist, Bobbi Marcus.

With Leiber as lyricist and Stoller as composer, the team channeled their blues and jazz backgrounds into pop songs performed by such artists as Elvis Presley, Dion and the Belmonts, the Coasters, the Drifters and Ben E. King in a way that would help create a joyous new musical style.

From their breakout hit, blues great Big Mama Thornton's 1953 rendition of "Hound Dog," until their songwriting took a more serious turn in 1969 with Peggy Lee's recording of "Is That All There Is?" the pair remained one of the most successful teams in pop music history.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/44234977/ns/today-entertainment/#.TlMUg3Ptjf8

[hlthe2b]

10. RIP, Mr. Ashford.... I enjoyed your music...