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Norman Whitfield Dies After Diabetes Struggle

Norman Whitfield, one of Motown's most widely-recognized songwriters and producers (see "I Heard It Through the Grapevine," "Ain't Too Proud to Beg," "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone"), died of diabetes complications in Los Angeles on Tuesday. He was 65.

"Norman Whitfield was one of the most prolific songwriters and record producers of our time," Smokey Robinson said in a statement. "He will live forever through his great music."

During his time at Motown between the early '60s and 1973, Whitfield worked with such key artists as the Temptations, Marvin Gaye and Gladys Knight & the Pips. He focused on his own label, Whitfield Records, for most of the '70s, resulting in the Rose Royce hit "Car Wash." The Temptations and Whitfield teamed back up in the early '80s when the latter returned to Motown.

—The ARTISTdirect Staff
09.18.08