Phoebe Snow 'Poetry Man' singer has died

The American songwriter - whose soulful hit earned her a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist in 1975 - passed away in New York today (26.04.11) aged 60.

She had been ill with complications resulting from a brain hemorrhage she suffered in January last year.
Her manager Sue Cameron told CNN: "[Phoebe Snow] fought for almost a year-and-a-half to come back, enduring bouts of blood clots, pneumonia, and congestive heart failure, each time coming out of it, until her body finally could take it no more."

Known for her distinct bluesy voice with a multi-octave range, some of her other songs included 'Gone at Last, 'Every Night', 'Games' and 'Mercy, Mercy, Mercy' and she leant her vocal skills to many television commercials.

Her debut album 'Phoebe Snow' turned her into a star and she enjoyed appearances on 'Saturday Night Live' and the cover of Rolling Stone magazine.

However, her career didn't remain as successful throughout her life as her daughter Valerie Rose Lamb, who was born in 1975 with severe brain damage, was her main priority.

In 2008 she said: "It was very, very tight. Occasionally I put an album out, but I didn't like to tour and they didn't get a lot of label support. But you know what? It didn't really matter because I got to stay home more with Valerie and that time was precious."

Sadly, Valerie died in 2007, and Phoebe started performing again shortly after to help cope with the loss.
Before she died she was planning to release a another record to reignite her career.