
Bobby Womack
Robert Dwayne Womack (born in Cleveland, Ohio, USA on March 4, 1944, died June 27, 2014), was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. Working in the soul and R&B genres, he achieved his greatest success in the 1970s and 1980s. Womack wrote and originally recorded The Rolling Stones' first UK No. 1 hit, "It's All Over Now" and New Birth's "I Can Understand It" among other songs. As a singer he is most notable for the hits "Lookin' For a Love", "That's The Way I Feel About Cha", "Woman's Gotta Have It", "Harry Hippie", "Across 110th Street" and his 1980s hit "If You Think You're Lonely Now". In 2009, Womack was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. After moving to the United Artists label in the early '70s, he released the album Communication, and on an album with guitarist Gabor Szabo introduced his song "Breezin'," which later became a hit for George Benson. He also became known for his interesting taste in cover versions, essaying Fred Neil's "Everybody's Talkin' " as well as "Fly Me to the Moon (In Other Words)" and James Taylor's "Fire and Rain'" and "California Dreamin'." Perhaps his most well-known work from this period is as guitarist on Sly & the Family Stone's 1971 There's a Riot Goin' On. He continued to have hits into the '70s; these include "Lookin' for a Love" (a remake of his 1962 Valentinos single), "Across 110th Street," "Woman's Gotta Have It" (covered by James Taylor in 1976), "You're Welcome, Stop on By," and the masterful "Daylight." All are excellent examples of burnished yet gritty 1970s soul music, and reveal a pop-music sensibility akin to that of Marvin Gaye or Curtis Mayfield. Womack died on June 27, 2014 at age 70. He was cremated, and his ashes were inurned at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California, in The Great Mausoleum, Memorial Terrace, Memorial Terrace Columbarium.
12
Films
5
TV Shows
Known For
17 Credits
The Mike Douglas Show
as Self
1961

Sacrée Soirée
as Self
1987

New York Undercover
as Self
1994

The Midnight Special
as Self
1972

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
as Our Guests at Heartland
1978

Soul Deep: The Story of Black Popular Music
as Self
2005

SLY LIVES! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)
2025

Sam Cooke: Legend
as Self
2003

The Making of Sun City
1985

Classic Soul at the BBC
as Self (archive footage)
2007

Gorillaz: Live at Roundhouse in London
2010

Gorillaz: House of Kong
as Self (archive footage)
2025