Legendary blues singer Etta James dies

Pioneering US blues singer Etta James, who flitted effortlessly from jazz, pop and love ballads to feisty R&B and who plunged into drug addiction before resurrecting her career to win six Grammys, died today from leukemia. She was 73.

Pioneering US blues singer Etta James, who flitted effortlessly from jazz, pop and love ballads to feisty R&B and who plunged into drug addiction before resurrecting her career to win six Grammys, died on Friday from leukemia, her manager said. She was 73.

File-photo-of-jazz-singer-and-songwriter-Etta-James-in-Hollywood-Reuters-Fred-Prouser

"Her music defied category. I worked with Etta for over 30 years. She was my friend and I will miss her always," Lupe De Leon said in a statement, adding that the soulful singer, best known for her 1960 hit At Last, died at a hospital in Riverside, California.