Abdul “Duke” Fakir, the Last Surviving Member of Motown Legends the Four Tops, Dies at 88 in Detroit
The last surviving original member of the Four Tops, Abdul “Duke” Fakir, passed away at 88 years old from heart failure. His family confirmed that he died at his home in Detroit. The Four Tops were one of the most legendary groups of 1960s Motown music. Some of their hit songs include “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch),” “Reach Out, I’ll Be There” and “Baby I Need Your Loving.”
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Original members Fakir, Levi Stubbs, Obie Benson and Lawrence Payton were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. While the other three members died of cancer between 1997 and 2005, Fakir kept the group going with new members until he retired earlier this year.
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Before becoming the Four Tops, Fakir and Stubbs met at a neighborhood football game. They soon met Benson and Payton and started out as the Four Aims. They signed with Chess Records in 1956 and changed their name to the Four Tops. However, they didn’t find true success until they signed with Motown in 1962. Their first hit song was “Baby I Need Your Loving,” the group and saw continued success in the ’70s and ’80s.
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In 2022, Fakir wrote about his experiences with the Four Tops in a memoir called I’ll Be There — My Life With the Four Tops.
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