Soul singer Wilson Pickett dies

The veteran US soul singer Wilson Pickett has died, aged 64, after suffering a heart attack in Virginia.

Pickett was in Ghana on the 60s for the Soul to Soul concert

His management company said that he had been in poor health for the past year, and last performed in 2004.

Born in Alabama, Pickett shot to fame in the 1960s, with hits including In The Midnight Hour and Mustang Sally.

Pickett had continued performing on a regular basis until he became ill, and had been inducted into the US Rock And Roll Hall of Fame.

Pickett moved to Detroit as a teenager, after early beginnings as a gospel singer in Alabama.

He joined a group called The Falcons before embarking on a solo career in 1963, securing a deal with Atlantic Records by 1965.

Jerry Wexler, the co-founder of Atlantic Records, called him "Wicked" Pickett.

Fans and critics admired Pickett for his sensuous, energetic performances. He moved south, and his hard Memphis sound was in contrast to the smoother soul hits produced by the Motown label in Detroit.

He often recorded with Booker T and the MGs, the band closely linked to Stax Records.

He co-wrote In The Midnight Hour with the MGs guitarist, Steve Cropper, and recorded it at the Stax studios in Memphis - it brought him overnight success in 1965.

After a string of hits, his career went into something of a decline in the 1970s.

Nevertheless, Pickett remained a popular performer until ill health kept him off the stage.

"He was always in demand," his manager Margo Lewis said. "He last performed at the end of 2004."

"He did his part. It was a great ride, a great trip," his son Michael Wilson Pickett told a TV station in Washington.

"I loved him and I'm sure he was well-loved, and I just hope that he's given his props."