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'Gatemouth' Brown, legendary singer and guitarist, dies Musician fled to Orange before Hurricane Katrina wiped out his Slidell, La., home BATON ROUGE, LA. - Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown , the singer and guitarist who built a 50-year career playing blues, country, jazz and Cajun music, died Saturday in his hometown of Orange, where he had gone to escape Hurricane Katrina. He was 81. Brown had been battling lung cancer and heart disease, said Rick Cady , his booking agent. Cady said the musician was with his family at his brother's house when he died. Brown's home in Slidell, La., a bedroom...

US Secretary of State Colin Powell has named James Brown, the so-called "Godfather of Soul," to a new and unusual, but apparently fictitious, senior diplomatic position, the State Department said. Spokesman Richard Boucher confirmed Monday that Powell had indeed appointed Brown to be the first US "secretary of soul and foreign minister of funk" but said the job description for the post had not yet been drawn up. In addition, he told reporters that it was uncertain whether the new title carried with it any salary or if Brown would be entitled to an office at the State Department. "I...

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) Sam Phillips, who discovered Elvis Presley and helped usher in the rock 'n' roll revolution, died Wednesday. He was 80. Phillips died at St. Francis Hospital, spokeswoman Gwendolyn McClain said. No details were immediately available about the cause of death or how long he had been hospitalized. Phillips founded Sun Records in Memphis in 1952 and helped launch the career of Presley, then a young singer who had moved from Tupelo, Miss. He produced Presley's first record, the 1954 single that featured ``That's All Right, Mama'' and ``Blue Moon of Kentucky.'' ``God only knows that we didn't...

COLUMBIA - Singer James Brown was granted a pardon Tuesday for his past crimes in South Carolina. The Godfather of Soul appeared before the state Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services on Tuesday. Agency spokesman Pete O'Boyle said Mr. Brown had friends, family and state lawmakers speak on his behalf. The seven-member board granted Mr. Brown a pardon for his crimes in 1988 and 1998. After the board made its decision, Mr. Brown sang God Bless America to the crowd, said his publicist Dan Forman. "God bless America on this beautiful day. I hope my pardon shows the youth...

HOUSTON (AP) - Soul superstar James Brown donated 400 tickets to military personnel for his concert in Houston. Brown, 69, said the free tickets for Saturday night's concert were intended to give a boost to military workers as the U.S.-led war with Iraq continues. "I grew up as a poor boy and was able to rise up and be an entertainer and help others," Brown said through a spokeswoman Friday. "I wanted to do what I could do to help our nation in this time of need." Backed by the Soul Generals, Brown launched his current tour Dec. 27, marking...

Hank Ballard, the R&B star who wrote and recorded "The Twist" with little success and watched a year later as Chubby Checker used the song to teach the world a new dance, died Sunday at his home in Los Angeles. Ballard, who had been suffering from throat cancer, was 66.