Abdul Fakir of the Four Tops has died, aged 88.
The singer was the last surviving member of the Motown group, which was known for a range of R&B hits including Reach Out, I’ll Be There and I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch).
Known as “Duke”, Fakir died Monday, 22 July of heart failure at his home in Detroit, Michigan. A family spokesperson said he had his wife and other loved ones by his side.
A statement released by the family described their sadness: “our hearts are heavy as we mourn the loss of a trailblazer, icon and music legend who, through his 70-year music career, touched the lives of so many”.
Fakir was married twice, for the last 50 years to Piper Gibson, and had seven children of whom six survive him.
In 2021 he described his commitment to maintaining the legacy of the Four Tops.
“As each one of them (the original members) passed a little bit of me left with them,” Fakir told UK Music Reviews.
“I found myself in a quandary as to what I was going to do from that moment on, but after a while I realised that the name together with the legacy that they had left us simply had to carry on, and judging by the audience reaction it soon became pretty evident that I did the right thing and I really do feel good about that.”
