Bobby Smith of the Spinners R.I.P

[MadLad]

Just heard about Bobby Smith passing away.. this leaves Henry as the last man standing of the original group.

[stephanie]

I saw this on a reputable Facebook and couldnt find any media outlets and I wanted to post this but I was not sure. I have seen it on a youtube and other facebooks of people that I KNOW that know people who know him so it must be true, I have not seen what the cause was but this is a great loss to a great group. RIP Bobby I guess Henry will just carry on now. So sad.

[jsmith]

It is posted up on Bobbie's Wiki page that he passed last Wednesday .....
... BUT ... it seems the group had a gig on Thursday at a casino in Auburn [[WA) and from the casino's Facebook page, the show seems to have gone ahead [[though without a mention of the Spinners; its just noted that the organisation of the show was a bit off).

Surely if the lead singer of such a major hit making group had passed last Wednesday, it would have been reported in the press by now !!!

[marv2]

Amen.

Rest in Peace Bobby

[mysterysinger]

Very sad news indeed - I'll Always Love Bobby's voice.

The Spinners...
6368

[heikki]

Hi!

A confirmation from his family:
"Bobbie had the N1H1 virus and fought as long and as much as he could. He subcommed at 1:55 PM yesterday. I will make plans to take him to Detroit for funeral."
R.I.P. BOBBIE!

Heikki

[milven]

His voice, songs and group brought a lot of joy to me. Their Motown recordings were fine, but it wasn't til they went to Atlantic that I was hooked on their music. I'll Be Around will always be a favorite of mine. Sympathies to his family.

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

[edafan]

Bobbie

R.I.P.

edafan

[tsull1]

I posted on the main board on this, just found out this morning. As an enormous fan of a group that not only got me hooked on soul music, but brought me through a tough time in my life, I'll forever be thankful to Bobbie Smith and his bandmates. Thanks for the memories!

[marv2]

Bobby of the Spinners 1936-2013

[stephanie]

I didnt know that he had a single at one time with his name out front RIP

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmdwGNguYOs
Bobby and the Spinners

[marv2]

One of my favorite Bobby Smith leads...."I'll Be Around":


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfG47NsWVYA

[stephanie]

I cant understand why they have not posted his passing on mainstream media. A friend of mine said she saw something on the news but I have yet to see anything official about it. Oh well.

[tsull1]

Lack of mainstream media and lack of respect even on this site, few responders to Bobbie's death. He deserves better.

[the_classic_master]

great pics marv! one of my all time faavorite groups, i'm glad they were able to do a unsung episode while he was still here! RIP bobbie, thank you for the great music, we salute you!

[marv2]

great pics marv! one of my all time faavorite groups, i'm glad they were able to do a unsung episode while he was still here! RIP bobbie, thank you for the great music, we salute you!

Thanks. I met Bobbie and all of them when I was 14! My brothers then girlfriend was on the show with them as an opening act. We went backstage to find her and ended up with the Spinners in their dressing room! LOL! Guess who was the other opening act? John Edwards , solo artist who went on to become their lead singer.

[thomas96]

Very sad. RIP my brother.

[tlg30]

Rest In Peace to one of the Greatest singers I have ever heard in my life. Thank you so much for all of the wonderful songs that you were apart of from the Tri-Phi days on up until today. Bobbie Smith you were a one of a kind singer with a wonderful smooth and unique voice, and The Spinners music will live on forever. My sincere condolences to the family, friends and fellow fans of The Late Great Mr. Bobbie Smith.

[alanh]

More sad news. Bobbie was a great singer in one of the greatest groups.

[jaybs]

I Hoped it may not be true when the rumours started, what a class singer BOBBIE truly was, May he Truly Rest in Peace.

[dvus7]

Here is the news in the Detroit News

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130318/OBITUARIES/303180410

[stingbeelee]

And here is the news in the Detroit Free Press:

http://www.freep.com/article/20130318/ENT04/130318090/1035/rss04

[jillfoster]

I cant understand why they have not posted his passing on mainstream media. A friend of mine said she saw something on the news but I have yet to see anything official about it. Oh well.

Steph... sometimes the media has a bit of a lag time with celebrity deaths, unless they are big movie stars, etc.. notices usually start showing up in 24-48 hours, especially when there is some big news item that tends to dominate the news cycle[[Yesterday it was those boys in Ohio that were convicted for raping that girl). I'm seeing quite a few notices now. A holiday weekend might have also played a part, as so many newscasts were featuring St. Patty's day celebration reports.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/18/the-spinners-lead-singer-bobbie-smith-dies-in-orlando_n_2901277.html

What a glorious voice that man had... so easy to listen to, and such a smooth and friendly sounding phrasing style. Love this performance, the dance steps here were fierce!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pfT_mawgT0

[bradsupremes]

Sad to hear of Bobbie's passing. I always loved his voice; a perfect smooth lead voice he had. The Spinners were among my favorites of the underrated Motown groups and Bobbie's vocal on "Truly Yours" is one of the finest Motown recordings.

[jillfoster]

There was a spot on the NBC national newscast tonight:

http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nightly-news/51233061/#51233061

[stingbeelee]

Here are the funeral arraignments for Bobby Smith:

http://www.freep.com/article/20130319/ENT04/130319104/Spinners-frontman-Bobby-Smith-will-be-laid-to-rest-in-Detroit

What a wonderful voice! His lead on "Truly Yours" is so sublime. It seems as if he is floating over the melody. Motown at it's very very best!

[marv2]

Swanson's again. Great photo tribute.

[soulwally]

Here's my favourite Spinners clip, delivered live and raw, with Bobby out front...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dln3ifkCfXs

[johnbell]

The Spinners were the opening act for The Supremes at The Expo Theatre, in August 1967 [[Montreal' s World Fair), saw the show 3 nights in a row, and bought their 1st album from Motown the nest week I saw their perfomances. Truly Yours and especially I'll Always Love You, remains some of my favorites Motown Songs. They had bigger hit at Atlantic Records, but unfortunately, don't remember them coming back to Montreal.

R.I.P Bobby

Thanks a for a great voice and lots of memories

[hwume]

He is missed. The NY Times did a nice job on his obit:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/21/arts/music/bobbie-smith-voice-of-the-spinners-dies-at-76.html?ref=obituaries&_r=0

[Ryon6]

RIP Bobbie Smith.

[R. Mark Desjardins]

In respect to the comment about the lack of media attention to the passing of Bobbie Smith, one can only wonder how mainstream press gets alerted to deaths. I note that in the Friday March 22, 2013 edition of The Vancouver Sun [[Vancouver, Canada) that there is a photo of The Spinners and an Associated Press four paragraph cut on the cause of his death and the legacy of The Spinners. Sometimes The National Post [[a Canada wide paper) reports the passing of pop, R&B, and jazz performers deaths, but not always. Frankly I was happily surprised that the Sun acknowledged Bobbie Smith. Maybe it all boils down to available space.

[stingbeelee]

A report and pictorial of Bobbie Smith's funeral in the Detroit News:

http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20130326/ENT04/303260307/Tears-laughter-mark-funeral-Spinners-Bobbie-Steel-Smith?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|FRONTPAGE|s