On This Day in 2023, One of the Greatest Soul Stars of the 20th Century Died at 81, Following a Rich Career With Three No. 1 Hits

Barrett Strong is one of the most recognizable names in soul and R&B, with quite a few No. 1 hits under his name as a singer, songwriter, or both. Strong ultimately passed away on this very day, January 28, in 2023 at the age of 81. And he left behind a legacy that won’t soon be forgotten by music history. Let’s honor one of the greats of the soul era by diving into the career and life of Barrett Strong.

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The Legacy of Barrett Strong

Barrett Strong was born Barrett Strong Jr. on February 5, 1941, in West Point, Mississippi. His father, a minister, purchased a piano for Strong when he was a young child, recognizing his love for and gift of music from a young age. While attending Hutchins Intermediate School in Detroit, Strong began to nurture his singing talents. (Fun fact: He was classmates with both Aretha Franklin and Lamont Dozier!)

Strong’s career began with Tamla Records, a then-young label created by Berry Gordy. There, he recorded the label’s first hit song, “Money (That’s What I Want)”, in 1959. That song would be a fast No. 2 hit for Strong on the R&B charts. After pushing the song to Gordy’s new Anna label, “Money” sold over a million copies, and became Certified Gold. The song would later be covered by everyone from The Beatles to The Rolling Stones to Buddy Guy.

In the mid-1960s, Strong would focus his talents on lyricism and songwriter. With producer Norman Whitfield, he would write some of the most commercially successful soul tracks to ever be released by Motown. Just a few include “I Heart It Through The Grapevine”, “Smiling Faces Sometimes”, “Cloud Nine”, “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone”, and many others. “I Heard It Through The Grapevine”, “Just My Imagination”, and “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone” would become massive No. 1 hits for Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, and The Undisputed Truth, respectfully. Strong would later earn a Grammy for “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone”. 

After Motown moved shop to Los Angeles, Strong opted to leave the label and return to his singing career. He signed with Epic Records, then Capitol Records in the 1970s. He continued to chart through the 1970s. In the 1980s, Strong’s music career winded down, and he launched Blarritt Records in 1995 to help aspiring musicians in Detroit. In 2004, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Strong passed away on January 28, 2023, at the age of 81 in his home in the La Jolla district of San Diego, California. He left behind seven children and 10 grandchildren. He followed his wife of 35 years, Sandy White, who previously passed away in 2002.

Photo by Gilles Petard/Redferns