Isaac Hayes with his wife during happier times
Soul crooner Isaac Hayes was found dead in his home in Memphis, Tennessee over the weekend. According to he AP, a family member found him unresponsive near a treadmill. The cause of death is likely a heart attack.
Hayes was one of the greatest who ever did it. When Hayes released his signature hit “Shaft”, he gave all us kids an excuse to cuss in the 70s — “they say this Shaft is a bad muthaf… (shut yo’ mouth!) But I’m talkin’ ’bout Shaft!” (Please click here to watch a young exuberant Jesse Jackson introducing Hayes at an Operation PUSH concert).
From EURweb.com:
The Associated Press is reporting that Isaac Hayes, best known for his Oscar-winning 70s track “Theme From Shaft,” was found dead at his home in Tennessee. He was 65.
The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office says a family member found Hayes unresponsive near a treadmill.
He was pronounced dead about an hour later at Baptist East Hospital in Memphis. The cause of death was not known as of press time.
Hayes, whose music ushered in the disco era in the 70s, was also the voice of school cook Chef from the Comedy Central series “South Park.”
Hayes is survived by 11 children from 7 different women – including his son Isaac “Ike Dirty” Hayes III, a producer who makes his home in Atlanta.
Photo: Wireimage/Getty
