Nick Ashford (May 4, 1942 – August 22, 2011) of the husband and wife songwriting duo Ashford & Simpson, along with his wife Valerie Simpson, was known for hits such as "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "I'm Every Woman" and "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing."
Nickolas Ashford was born in Fairfield, S.C., and raised in Willow Run, Mich., where his father, Calvin, was a construction worker. He got his musical start at Willow Run Baptist Church, singing and writing songs for the gospel choir. He briefly attended Eastern Michigan University, in Ypsilanti, before heading to New York, where he tried but failed to find success as a dancer.
In 1964, while homeless, Mr. Ashford went to White Rock Baptist Church in Harlem, where he met Valerie Simpson, a 17-year-old recent high school graduate who was studying music. They began writing songs together, selling the first bunch for $64. In 1966, after Ray Charles sang “Let’s Go Get Stoned,” a song Ashford & Simpson wrote with Joey Armstead, the duo signed on with Motown as staff writers and producers.
They wrote for virtually every major act on the Motown label, including Gladys Knight and the Pips (“Didn’t You Know You’d Have to Cry Sometime”) and Smokey Robinson and the Miracles (“Who’s Gonna Take the Blame”).
Ashford is survived by Simpson, 64, their daughters Nicole and Asia, his brothers Paul, Albert and Frank; and his mother, Alice Ashford.
(Sources: Wiki, NY Times, Rolling Stone)
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