1. Jimmy Lee Ruffin was an American soul singer, and the older brother of David Ruffin, the lead singer of the Temptations.
16 Facts About Jimmy Ruffin
1. 2.
Jimmy Ruffin had several hit records between the 1960s and 1980s, the most successful being the Top 10 hits "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" and "Hold On ".
3.
Jimmy Ruffin was born in 1936 in Collinsville, Mississippi, to Eli, a sharecropper, and Ophelia Ruffin.
4.
Jimmy Ruffin was approaching his fifth birthday when his younger brother David was born.
5.
In 1961, Jimmy became a singer as part of the Motown stable, mostly on sessions but recording singles for its subsidiary Miracle label, but was then drafted for national service.
6.
However, after hearing his brother David, they hired him for the job instead so Jimmy Ruffin decided to resume his solo career.
7.
Jimmy Ruffin recorded for Motown's subsidiary Soul label, but with little success.
8.
Jimmy Ruffin's recording of "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" became a major success.
9.
In 1987, Jimmy Ruffin recorded "Easy Just To Say I Love You", which was written by Peter Marsh, Mae McKenna and Julian Marshall.
10.
Jimmy Ruffin took part in recording for Ian Levine's Motown revival label, Motorcity Records, in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
11.
Jimmy Ruffin recorded duets with both Maxine Nightingale and Brenda Holloway.
12.
Later, Jimmy Ruffin hosted a radio show in the UK for a time, and became an anti-drug advocate following the 1991 drug overdose death of his brother David.
13.
Jimmy Ruffin was portrayed by Lamman Rucker in the 1998 mini-series The Temptations.
14.
Jimmy Ruffin died on November 17,2014, in Las Vegas, aged 78.
15.
Jimmy Ruffin is buried at Palm Memorial Park Northwest Cemetery, Las Vegas, Clark County, Nevada in the Garden of Eternal Life Section.
16.
Jimmy Ruffin's children are Arlet, Philicia, Jimmie Ray, Jimmy Jr.