7
The Spinners remained intact into the new millennium with minimal personnel
changes (Cameron returned in 2000 for a couple of years). Wynne suffered a
heart attack onstage at an Oakland nightspot, dying July 14, 1984 at age 43.
Diabetes killed Henderson on February 2, 2007, cancer felled Jackson on
August 18, 2008, and Smith passed away on March 16, 2013. Fambrough is
the only original Spinner in the current group.
Who needed a band? Timmy Thomas
scored a million-seller using only his
soulful voice, an organ, and a primitive
rhythm machine. The message of
brotherhood defining
Why Can’t We Live
Together
transcended its sparse
instrumentation. There’s a spot where
Thomas encourages a non-existent
bassist during his solo (Timmy’s left hand
was actually massaging the organ’s low
keys).
Though it was his first hit, issued during
the fall of 1972 and settling in at #1
R&B/#3 pop in early ‘73, it was by no
2. Timmy Thomas
Why Can’t We Live Together
(Timmy Thomas)
Glades 1703
