Isaac Hayes Dies at Age 65

Grammy- and Oscar-winning soul star Isaac Hayes has died after being found unconscious in his Tennessee home. Relatives reportedly found the singer next to a running treadmill, and paramedics brought him to a hospital, where he was declared dead. While the cause of death hasn't been released at this time, a police spokesman said the family believes "a medical condition" was to blame.

Hayes, who was born in Covington, Tennessee on August 20, 1942, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002 by Alicia Keys. His 1971 score for Shaft earned him an Academy Award and two Grammys, and he picked up another Grammy the following year for his 1971 double album Black Moses.

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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