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Soulful Northeast Ohio Jazz Singer Jimmy Scott Has Died

A rare genetic condition prevented Jimmy Scott from going through puberty, which left him small of stature, but inadvertently blessed with a distinctive voice --- a voice that often seemed to be a vessel for a sadness that enthralled audiences across the country.

MUSIC: Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child

He crooned with a distinctive, slow cadence that some called "singing behind the beat". Cleveland music promoter Jim Wadsworth doesn't see it that way.

JIM WADSWORTH: What may be perceived as being behind the beat was actually on the beat --- it was purposeful. And it did have just an incredible emotional impact.

Though Scott had a decent singing career in the 1950s, he eventually became disillusioned by the business and came back to Cleveland where he found other ways to make a living --- from being a shipping clerk to an elevator operator. But, the need to perform was still there. Reflecting on his life in a 2002 interview, he said he said there were two ways of looking at adversity.

JIMMY SCOTT: It can be a destructive thing. But, actually, it forces you to make up your mind to be who you are.

A break in 1991 at the age of 65 got Jimmy Scott back in the recording studio, which launched a new career for the soulful singer, who would go on to collaborate with a wide variety of artists, ranging from filmmaker David Lynch to singer Lou Reed. And he kept performing until shortly before his death, at the age of 88.

David C. Barnett was a senior arts & culture reporter for Ideastream Public Media. He retired in October 2022.