Music Icon Leon Russell Dies at 74

Photo of Leon Russell, courtesy artist

Leon Russell died Saturday night in his sleep at his home in Nashville, according to a statement from his wife to the Associated Press. He was 74.

The rock icon had been recovering from a heart attack and bypass surgery back in July, but he had been planning to start touring again in January, his wife noted.

Russell was born April 2, 1942, in Lawton, Oklahoma, and he grew up across the state in Tulsa, where he began playing nightclubs at 14. 

The singer-songwriter eventually moved to Los Angeles and started writing for a number of other artists, including hit songs he wrote anonymously. He wrote Joe Cocker's "Delta Lady," played on The Beach Boys' "California Girls," and produced and performed for  the likes of Bob Dylan, Frank Sinatra, Ike and Tina Turner, the Rolling Stones and more.

His own discography included hits such as "Tight Rope" and "Lady Blue." In 2010, he and friend Elton John released a collaborative album The Union, which arrived a year before Russell was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

"He was my biggest influence as a piano player, a singer and a songwriter," John said of Russell in a 2010 with ABC News.