Tony Cummings reports on the recently deceased King Of Rock 'n' Soul, SOLOMON BURKE

Solomon was featured in the 2004 movie Lightning In A Bottle singing Bobby Bland's "Turn On Your Love Light" and his old Atlantic hit "Down In The Valley". Also in 2004, Solomon guested on the Blind Boys Of Alabama album 'Go Tell It On The Mountain'. Solomon's subsequent albums 'Make Do With What You Got' (Shout! Factory, 2005), a country set produced by Buddy Miller 'Nashville' (Shout! Factory, 2006) which featured guest vocals from Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, Patty Loveless and others, 'Like A Fire' (Shout! Factory, 2008), produced by drummer Steve Jordan with songs specially written for Burke by Ben Harper, Eric Clapton, Keb' Mo' and others, and 'Nothing's Impossible' (E1, 2010), produced by Memphis' legendary hitmaker for Al Green, Willie Mitchell, followed. All had their moments without quite recapturing the magic of 'Don't Give Up On Me'.

Burke celebrated his 70th birthday in March 2010 and toured Japan for the first time in May 2010. His final album 'Hold On Tight' was written by Dutch pop/soul band De Dijk and is due to be released. On 10th October 2010 the King Of Rock 'n' Soul set off on a flight from Los Angeles to Switzerland to perform with De Dijk on 12th October. On landing at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, the veteran got into his wheel chair, closed his eyes and died. His huge family, which includes 21 children (14 daughters and seven sons), 90 grandchildren and 19 great grandchildren, have assured the media that Solomon died of natural causes.

In a Rolling Stone interview in 2010 he spoke about his denomination The House Of Prayer For All People and World Wide Center For Life And Truth which he presided over as Archbishop from its Los Angeles HQ. "I don't believe in organised religion. I believe in free religion, because I can't find anywhere in the Gospels where it says that I should have a church that's organised. It doesn't say I have to preach on Sunday. Every day I'm on the phone ministering to people. I've had so many people say to me, 'What should I believe in?' I tell them, 'Just believe in what's real and makes you feel good. Whatever moves you, go there.'" Whatever Archbishop Burke's abundance of charisma, the article also sadly revealed the unbiblical flaws of his theology. Pointing to an African totem in the corner of his room, he told the Rolling Stone journalist, "You see that whammy stick over there? You go rub it. Go back to your girlfriend. She'll have a baby. You laugh, but a lot of people have witnessed that stick. I can call them up right now and let you hear their children."

The era where Solomon Burke was at his creative peak - the '60s - was an era when hundreds, indeed thousands, of African American singers left the field of gospel singing to take a shot at the emergent R&B/soul market. Obviously only a small percentage of the show biz hopefuls ever found the hit records and financial success they were seeking and quite a number of those who did hit the big time not only gave up on singing gospel music but gave up on church attendance and anything that resembled an authentic Christian lifestyle. So alongside Christian soul singing stars like Al Green and Garnet Mimms there were other singers like Wilson Pickett and James Brown whose excessive lifestyles (womanising, drug abuse, etc) seemed to indicate that their gospel-singing early years were more a matter of cultural circumstance than an expression of a life of discipleship. Solomon Burke doesn't fit easily into either of these categories. He started and ended his life immersed in church though few, other than its loyal members, would claim that Solomon's The House Of Prayer For All People was an orthodox fellowship. Most evangelicals would struggle with some of Burke's ideas and teachings.

What we can say authoritatively though is that Solomon Burke was a truly great vocal talent whose soulful, emotion-drenched music will connect with listeners for decades to come. Charles M Young wrote in Rolling Stone, "He could fill up a room with love, whether the room was a sanctuary or a nightclub or his parlour." Few entertainers can claim as much.