Bill Withers dies at 81; sang ‘Lean on Me’ and ‘Lovely Day’
The three-time Grammy Award winner, who withdrew from making music in the mid-1980s, died Monday in Los Angeles.
Bill Withers, 81, who wrote and sang a string of soulful songs in the 1970s that have stood the test of time, including “Lean on Me, ” “Lovely Day,” and “Ain’t No Sunshine,” has died from heart complications, his family said in a statement to the Associated Press.
The three-time Grammy Award winner, who withdrew from making music in the mid-1980s, died on Monday in Los Angeles, the statement said. His death comes as the public has drawn inspiration from his music during the coronavirus pandemic, with health-care workers, choirs, artists, and more posting their own renditions on “Lean on Me” to help get through the difficult times.
“We are devastated by the loss of our beloved, devoted husband and father. A solitary man with a heart driven to connect to the world at large, with his poetry and music, he spoke honestly to people and connected them to each other,” the family statement read. “As private a life as he lived close to intimate family and friends, his music forever belongs to the world. In this difficult time, we pray his music offers comfort and entertainment as fans hold tight to loved ones.”
Mr. Withers’ songs during his brief career have become the soundtracks of countless engagements, weddings, and backyard parties. They have powerful melodies and perfect grooves melded with a smooth voice that conveys honesty and complex emotions without vocal acrobatics.
“Lean on Me,” a paean to friendship, was performed at the inaugurations of both Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. “Ain’t No Sunshine” and “Lean on Me” are among Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
“He’s the last African American Everyman,” the Roots’ Questlove told Rolling Stone in 2015. “Bill Withers is the closest thing black people have to a Bruce Springsteen.”
His death caused a torrent of appreciation on social media, including from former Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett, who said Mr. Withers’ music has been a cherished part of her life. “It added to my joy in the good times, and also gave me comfort and inspiration when I needed it most,” she tweeted. Singer José James said, “We need his message of unity now more than ever.” Susanna Hoffs, a co-founder of the Bangles, sent “peace and love,” and the actor Billy Dee Williams tweeted, “Your music cheered my heart and soothed my soul.”
On Twitter on Friday, musician John Legend talked about Mr. Withers’ Vietnam War protest song “I Can’t Write Left Handed,” which Legend recorded with the Roots on their collaborative 2010 album, Wake Up!
“This song will always mean so much to me,” he said. “Our performances of it were always epic and emotional. Some of my favorites of my entire musical life.”
Legend became friends became with Mr. Withers after he saw a video clip of the performance with the Roots. “I always looked forward to hearing from him. He always had a great story for me, told with charm and wit and humor. What a special human being.”
Mr. Withers, who overcame a childhood stutter, was born the last of six children in the coal mining town of Slab Fork, W.Va. After his parents divorced when he was 3, Mr. Withers was raised by his mother’s family in nearby Beckley.
He joined the Navy at 17 and spent nine years in the service as an aircraft mechanic installing toilets. After his discharge, he moved to Los Angeles, worked at an aircraft parts factory, bought a guitar at a pawn shop and recorded demos of his tunes in hope of landing a recording contract.
In 1971, signed to Sussex Records, he put out his first album, Just as I Am, with the legendary Booker T. Jones at the helm. It had the hits “Grandma’s Hands” and “Ain’t No Sunshine,” which was inspired by the Jack Lemmon film Days of Wine and Roses. He was photographed for the cover smiling and holding his lunch pail.
“Ain’t No Sunshine” was originally released as the B-side of his debut single, “Harlem.” But radio DJs flipped the disc and the song climbed to No. 3 on the Billboard charts. It spent a total of 16 weeks in the top 40.
Mr. Withers went on to generate more hits a year later with the inspirational “Lean on Me,” the menacing “Who Is He (and What Is He to You),” and the slinky “Use Me” on his second album, Still Bill.
Later would come the striking “ Lovely Day,” co-written with Skip Scarborough and featuring Mr. Withers holding the word day for almost 19 seconds, and “Just the Two of Us,” co-written with Ralph MacDonald and William Salter. His Live at Carnegie Hall in 1973 made Rolling Stone’s 50 Greatest Live Albums of All Time.
“The hardest thing in songwriting is to be simple and yet profound. And Bill seemed to understand, intrinsically and instinctively, how to do that,” Sting said in Still Bill, a 2010 documentary on Mr. Withers.
But Mr. Withers’ career stalled when Sussex went bankrupt and he was scooped up by Columbia Records. He no longer had complete control over his music, and chafed when it was suggested he do an Elvis cover. His new executives found Mr. Withers difficult.
None of his Columbia albums reached the Top 40 except for 1977’s Menagerie, which produced “Lovely Day.” (His hit duet with Grover Washington Jr., “Just the Two of Us,” was on Washington’s label.) Mr. Withers’ last album was 1985′s Watching You Watching Me.
Though his songs often dealt with relationships, Mr. Withers also wrote ones with social commentary, including “Better Off Dead” about an alcoholic’s suicide and “I Can’t Write Left-Handed,” about an injured Vietnam War veteran.
He was awarded Grammys as a songwriter for “Ain’t No Sunshine” in 1971 and for “Just the Two of Us” in 1981. In 1987, he received his ninth Grammy nomination and third Grammy as a songwriter for the re-recording of the 1972 hit “Lean on Me” by Club Nouveau.
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015 by Stevie Wonder. Mr. Withers thanked his wife as well as the R&B pioneers who helped his career like Ray Jackson, Al Bell, and Jones. He also got in a few jabs at the record industry, saying A&R stood for “antagonistic and redundant,” not artists and repertoire. Mr. Withers also was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005.
His music has been covered by such artists as Barbra Streisand, Michael Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Tom Jones, Linda Ronstadt, Paul McCartney, Sting, Johnny Mathis, Aaron Neville, Al Jarreau, Mick Jagger, Nancy Wilson, and Diana Ross. His music has been sampled for BlackStreet’s “No Diggity,” Will Smith’s version of “Just the Two of Us,” the Black Eyed Peas’ “Bridging the Gap,” and Twista’s “Sunshine.” The song “Lean on Me” was the title theme of a 1989 movie starring Morgan Freeman.
His songs are often used on the big screen, including The Hangover, 28 Days, American Beauty, Jerry Maguire, Crooklyn, Beauty Shop, The Secret Life of Pets, and Flight.
“I’m not a virtuoso, but I was able to write songs that people could identify with. I don’t think I’ve done bad for a guy from Slab Fork, W.Va.,” Mr. Withers told Rolling Stone in 2015.
He is survived by his wife, Marcia, and children Todd and Kori.