Recording Artists with Disabilities - Specialist Music
Blues / Jazz
Ray Charles
Disability: Blind since very young
Had several hits in 1950s & 1960s, including "Hit The Road Jack"
Website: Ray Charles Online!
Peggy Lee
Disability: Diabetes (source: Guardian obituary)
Had several hits, from the 1940's into the 1970's; "Fever" probably being the most famous.
Visit the Peggy Lee website
George Shearing
Disability: blind from birth
Country & Western
Mark Herndon
Disability: Partially deaf (source: Famous People with Hearing Loss)
Drummer for the group Alabama, popular from the early 1980's
onwards,
whose most recent US hit was "How Do You Fall In Love"
Folk music
Judy Collins
Disability: asthma (source: Get Asthma Help - famous people with asthma)
Folk singer, hits include "Send In The Clowns" and "Turn, Turn, Turn" during the 1970's
Websites:
Square, MOR and Easy Listening
Harry Secombe
Disability:; diabetes
Started on radio comedy series "The Goons"
Recorded several MOR LP's, appeared on several TV programmes.
Had hit in 1960's with "If I Ruled The World"
Websites:
Classical
Beethoven
Disabilities: deaf, asthma
Was deaf when he composed his 9th Symphony.
Website: Beethoven Depot
Glenn Gould
Disability: autism (source: Wikipedia article on Glenn Gould)
Famous concert pianist
Tchaikovsky
Disabilities: epilepsy , clinical depression
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