Morris “B.B.” Dickerson, co-founding member and bassist of the legendary American Funk/Rock/Soul band War, has passed away at the age of 71.
Listen to your favorite music now on Audacy
Dickerson died at a hospital in Long Beach, California on Friday, April 2 after a long, undisclosed illness, Billboard reports.
As one of the founding members, Dickerson was responsible for writing and playing on some of War’s best known songs like “Why Can’t We Be Friends,” “Low Rider,” “The Cisco Kid,” “Spill the Wine,” and more.
Dickerson’s vocals can be heard on the band’s single “The World Is a Ghetto,” the title track to War’s most successful album. The album was named Billboard’s number one album of 1973 and also served as the year’s best-selling record.
“The World Is a Ghetto” peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 chart while “The Cisco Kid” peaked at the number two position.
Dickerson left War in 1979, which marked the end of a tremendously successful run for the group with twelve studio albums including seven gold-certified albums. In the 1990’s, Dickerson reunited with several of his former War bandmates to form a group called the Lowrider Band.
He is survived by his mother, his uncle and his children.
Watch More: Stars we've lost in 2021
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram