Motown singer and songwriter Barrett Strong has died.
The Motown Museum confirmed Strong's death on Twitter.
As a singer, Strong was the first artist to record a hit song for Motown. He released the single "Money (That's What I Want)" in 1959.
As a songwriter, Strong wrote or co-wrote hits for the Temptations, Marvin Gaye, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Edwin Starr and other artists.
His credits include "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," "War," "I Can't Get Next to You" and "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone.""I am saddened to hear of the passing of Barrett Strong, one of my earliest artists, and the man who sang my first big hit ... Barrett was not only a a great singer and piano player, but he, along with his writing partner Norman Whitfield, created an incredible body of work, primarily with the Temptations. Their hit songs were revolutionary in sound and captured the spirit of the times ... Barrett is an original member of the Motown Family and will be missed by all of us," Motown founder Berry Gordy Jr. said in a statement.
Strong received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Association of Songwriters in 1990 and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2004.
