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Roger Whittaker: »An Iconic Artist« (here at a concert in Erfurt in 2013)
Photo: Karina Hessland / IMAGO
The singer Roger Whittaker is dead. He died on September 13 at the age of 87, as his record company Sony Music told the dpa news agency on Monday. He died peacefully and surrounded by his family. Previously, the »Bild« had reported on it.
His family published a statement on Facebook about the death of the pop singer. "Roger was an iconic artist, a wonderful husband and father," she wrote. »He touched so many hearts with his music in his life and will always live on in our memories.«
His biggest hits included »Albany«, »The Last Farewell« and »Indian Lady«. In Germany, the British pop singer was able to record great successes, and he was also a guest on the »ZDF Hit Parade« several times. Because of his loyal German fan base, he recorded many songs in German with the help of phonetic transcription. He released 26 albums in Germany alone.
»The Germans and I love Schlager«
"A Schlager is a specifically German way of making music," Whittaker said a few years ago in "Planet Interview." The Germans and I love Schlager.« Whittaker could only sing in German – he never really learned to speak.
On the Facebook page – a German fan page – a message had already been posted on September 8, according to which Whittaker had fallen ill and was in hospital. According to Bild, the 87-year-old died last Wednesday in a hospital in southern France, having previously suffered a stroke.
Born in Kenya in 1936 to English parents, Whittaker embarked on a career as a musician in the early sixties. However, the career of the zoologist, marine biologist and biochemist did not really take off until the end of the decade.
Whittaker had been out of the public eye for years and most recently lived with his wife Natalie in the south of France.
aeh/AFP/dpa