Bobby Hatfield

Bobby Hatfield
Birth name	Robert Lee Hatfield
Born	August 10, 1940(1940-08-10) Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, U.S.
Died	November 5, 2003(2003-11-05) (aged 63) Kalamazoo, Michigan, U.S.
Genres	Blue-eyed soul
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1962–2003
Associated acts	The Righteous Brothers, Bill Medley

Robert Lee "Bobby" Hatfield (August 10, 1940 – November 5, 2003) was an American singer, best known as one half of the Righteous Brothers.

Early life

Hatfield was born in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, and moved with his family to Anaheim, California when he was four. A 1958 graduate of Anaheim High School, he sang in the school choir and played baseball. He briefly considered signing as a professional ballplayer, but his passion for music led him to pursue a singing career while still attending high school. He would eventually encounter his singing partner Bill Medley while attending California State University Long Beach. Hatfield is an alumnus of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.

Hatfield had a short marriage with Joy Ciro, who appeared as a dancer on the T.A.M.I. Show and Where the Action Is. They had two children together, Bobby, Jr. and Kalin. In 1979, Hatfield married his second wife Linda, and they were happily married for 24 years until he died. They had two children together, Vallyn and Dustin.

Career

Hatfield and Medley began singing as a duo in 1962 in the Los Angeles area as part of a five-member group called the Paramours. They were often told they sounded like African-American gospel singers and named their singing act "The Righteous Brothers" after a fan remarked of their singing, "that's righteous, brothers."

Their first charted single as the Righteous Brothers was "Little Latin Lupe Lu" and their first #1 was "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'," produced by Phil Spector in 1964. Follow-up hits included the #1 "(You're My) Soul and Inspiration" and "Unchained Melody", the latter of which was actually a Hatfield solo performance that he recorded again after the success of the film Ghost, remarking to friends that he had not lost any of the high notes in his tenor/falsetto range since the original recording, but had actually gained one note. The duo broke up in 1968, but returned with another hit in 1974, the #3 "Rock and Roll Heaven." The duo were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March 2003 by Billy Joel.

Death

On November 5, 2003, Hatfield died at the Radisson Hotel in downtown Kalamazoo, Michigan, apparently in his sleep. In January 2004, a toxicology report concluded that an overdose of cocaine had precipitated a fatal heart attack. The initial autopsy found that Hatfield had advanced coronary disease. The medical examiner stated "In this case, there was already a significant amount of blockage in the coronary arteries."

External links

• Bobby Hatfield's Gravesite