The American singer-songwriter Gene Pitney, whose biggest hit was Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa, has been found dead in a hotel room in Cardiff, it was announced today.
He was found dead early this morning while midway through a 23-date UK tour, his agent, Jene Levy, said.
The 65-year-old musician - nicknamed the Rockville Rocket after the town in which he spent his teenage years - was a key bridge between 50s rock'n'roll and 60s pop.
His other hits included Something's Gotten Hold Of My Heart, which reached number one in the UK when he re-released it as a duet with Marc Almond in 1989, and he worked with pop luminaries including the songwriters Burt Bacharach and Hal David and the producer Phil Spector.
Although moved to the pop sidelines by the so-called "British invasion" of the mid-60s and considered by some to be a lightweight figure, his influence and reputation grew considerably in recent decades.
Pitney's song Mecca, with its eastern-inspired melodies, is considered to have been a key influence on psychedelic pop, while (The Man Who Shot) Liberty Valance went a long way towards bringing country music into the pop mainstream.
If anything, his popularity was greater in the UK and Europe than it was in his native US. He had 11 top 10 hits in Britain, including his first number one with the Almond duet.
"I am deeply saddened and shocked by the death of Gene Pitney," Almond said today. "It was an honour to have worked with him. He was a great, unique singer of great, unique songs."
Pitney played at St David's Hall in Cardiff last night, a performance one spectator described as one of his best.
"Last night at Cardiff, he was so alive," Wendy Horton, who had seen the singer perform six times, said. "He had a standing ovation. He took the time to go across the front and shake everybody's hand. He signed autographs. He did not leave anybody out.
"Last night was one of the best performances, not vocally, but from the enthusiasm. He just wanted to please, and he did."
Pitney's tour manager, James Kelly, said his friend Geoff Clennell had found Pitney fully-clothed in bed this morning.
"It looks like it was a very peaceful passing," he said. "He was found fully-clothed, on his back, as if he had gone for a lie down. It looks as if there was no pain whatsoever.
"Last night was generally one of the happiest and most exuberant performances we've seen out of him. He was absolutely on top of his game and was really happy with the show. I got the news a couple of hours ago and I'm flabbergasted."
The singer had been due to perform in Bristol tonight and had a total of nine tour dates ahead of him in Wales, Scotland and northern England.
South Wales police were called to the hotel room shortly before 9am, but are not treating the death as suspicious.