Renaldo Benson was best known as a founding member and the bass singer of Motown group the Four Tops, which he joined in 1953 and continued to perform with for over five decades, until April 8,2005.
14 Facts About Renaldo Benson
2.
Renaldo Benson co-wrote "What's Going On" which became a No 2 hit for Marvin Gaye in 1971, and which Rolling Stone rated as No 4 on their List of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time released in 2004.
3.
Renaldo Benson was responsible for the Tops' choreography in the early years of the group.
4.
Renaldo Benson was on tour with the Four Tops when he witnessed a scuffle between protesters and the police in Berkeley over a disused urban lot which the protesters called People's Park.
5.
Renaldo Benson started writing the first draft of "What's Going On".
6.
Renaldo Benson worked on the song with lyricist Al Cleveland, who was renting the upstairs section of Benson's duplex.
7.
Renaldo Benson wanted the Four Tops to record his song, but they refused on the grounds that it was a protest song.
8.
Renaldo Benson approached Joan Baez to record the song while appearing on a British television show, but she declined.
9.
Renaldo Benson eventually persuaded Gaye to record the song by offering him a cut of the royalties.
10.
Renaldo Benson appeared with the rest of the Four Tops on Aretha Franklin's 1989 album Through the Storm.
11.
Renaldo Benson was admitted as a member of the Four Tops to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.
12.
Renaldo Benson continued to tour extensively as part of the Four Tops, spending a third of the year on tour.
13.
Renaldo Benson died of lung cancer and other illnesses on July 1,2005.
14.
Renaldo Benson's leg had been amputated earlier in 2005 due to circulation problems.