Bob Babbitt, Funk Brothers bassist, has died

Wed, 07/18/2012 - 11:43am by sernabad

Bob Babbitt rockin' bass player for the Funk Brothers, THE studio band for Motown's heaviest hitters, died Monday In Nashville, TN.

Babbitt moved to Detroit in the 1950s while still in his teens. Then from 1959 until Motown relocated to Los Angeles in 1972, the Funk Brothers backed up every megawatt performer from Stevie Wonder to the Temptations to Marvin Gaye to Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, to name just a few.

A 2002 documentary, Standing in the Shadows of Motown brought the Funk Brothers out of obscurity, especially after the group received a Lifetime Achievement award at the 2004 Grammys.

In 2008, the Funk Brothers packed the house at a concert which was part of the Ann Arbor Summer Festival.

Mr. Babbitt, who was 74, died of an inoperable brain tumor.