Jackie Wilson

"When Jackie Wilson died in 1984, he was buried in a pauper's grave, without even a simple marker. Yet, at his peak, he was one of the 20th century's finest singing talents who, between 1957 and 1968, achieved twenty-four Top 40 hits in the United States with tracks like "To be Loved," "Higher and Higher," and "I Get the Sweetest Feeling." In live performance, Wilson's amazing vocal range and gliding, rapturous style influenced Elvis Presley himself - and later Michael Jackson. Offstage, Wilson lived a life bent on self-destruction. Professionally controlled by the Mafia and hounded by the…