Charles Edward Bradley (November 5, 1948 – September 23, 2017) was an American funk and soul singer. After years of obscurity and a part-time music career, Bradley came to prominence in the early 2000s. His performances and recording style were consistent with the revivalist approach of his main label Daptone Records, celebrating the feel of funk and soul from the 1960s and 1970s. One review said he "echoes the evocative delivery of Otis Redding".
Called "The Screaming Eagle of Soul," Bradley was the subject of the documentary Soul of America which premiered at South by Southwest in 2012. He died of stomach cancer on September 23, 2017.
Early life
Zelt-Musik-Festival 2016 in Freiburg, Germany
Abandoned by his mother at eight months of age, Bradley was raised by his maternal grandmother in Gainesville, Florida. At age eight, his mother returned, and took him to live with her in Brooklyn, New York.
In 1962, his sister took him to the Apollo Theater to see James Brown perform. Bradley was so inspired by the performance that he began to practice mimicking Brown's style of singing and stage mannerisms at home.
When he was fourteen, Bradley ran away from home to escape poor living conditions—his bedroom was in a basement with a sand floor—and lived on the streets during the day and slept nights in subway cars for two years.
