R.I.P.: Motown Singer Jimmy Ruffin

Jimmy Ruffin

Jimmy Ruffin, whose poignant "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" is regarded by many as one of Motown's greatest works, died Monday afternoon in a Las Vegas hospital.

He was 78 years-of-age, according to The Detroit Free Press.

Ruffin had been hospitalized in September, where he developed pneumonia and further complications. An official cause of death has not been released.

A Mississippi native and the older brother of the late Temptations singer David Ruffin, Jimmy Ruffin did backup work with Motown in the early '60s before being drafted into the U.S. Army and stationed in Germany. Upon returning to Motown in 1964, he cut material with little success before striking it big in 1966 with "Brokenhearted," which took him to No. 7 on Billboard's pop chart.


The two brothers collaborated on the 1970 album "I Am My Brother's Keeper," and while Jimmy Ruffin ultimately notched eight solo songs on Billboard's R&B chart, his biggest success came in England, where he lived for a stretch and continued to perform frequently in later years.

While David Ruffin became an international success with the Temptations, Stevenson said he never witnessed the sort of jealousy or rivalry that often crops among artist siblings.

"(Jimmy Ruffin) was in the shadow of his brother and was OK with it, and that's kind of rare," said Stevenson. "I liked him because he was very calm. Which was good for me, because it was panic around that place all the time. So to run into him always made my day."

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