James Brown the "Godfather of Soul" Dead at 73

James Brown, the "Godfather of Soul" whose singing style and bold rhythms brought funk into the mainstream and influenced a new generation of black music, has died at age 73.

Brown died on Christmas morning, local time, at Emory Crawford Long Hospital in Atlanta after being admitted on Saturday for severe pneumonia, his manager, Frank Copsidas, said.

The singer had been in good health but went to a dentist late last week who recommended he immediately see a doctor. The decision was then taken to cancel two shows, Mr Copsidas said.

"But he was all geared up to get back to work and play New Year's Eve in (New York's) Times Square," he said of the singer who styled himself "the hardest working man in show business". "He's been doing his best shows in the last 30 years."

One of America's great showmen and band leaders, Brown created a revolutionary sound that mixed funky rhythms and staccato horns behind his own often explosive vocals.

Hip hop and rap artists revered him and extensively used his beats as the backdrop to their own music.

"He's the godfather of hip hop and rap, the father of funk and he passed on the title of 'Godson of Soul' to (singer) Usher at the Grammys of two years ago," Mr Copsidas said, adding Brown would likely be buried in Augusta, Georgia.

Brown emerged from a boyhood of extreme poverty and petty crime in Augusta to become one of the biggest record-sellers in rhythm and blues and later achieved crossover success.

He began his music career in jail as a juvenile offender and went back behind bars in 1988 for drug, weapons and vehicular charges after a high-speed car chase through Georgia and South Carolina which ended with police shooting out the tires of his truck. He left prison in 1991.

In January 2004, Brown was arrested on a domestic violence charge after his 33-year-old wife, Tomi Rea Brown, called police to report that Brown pushed her onto the ground during an argument. She suffered scratches and bruises on her arm and hip. Brown ended up pleading no contest and paid $1,087 as punishment.

Brown had more than 119 charting singles and recorded over 50 albums, was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame and received a Grammys lifetime achievement award in 1992.

Big hits included "Please, Please, Please," "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag," "I Got You (I Feel Good)" "Get Up (I feel like being a Sex Machine)" and "It's a Man's World."

Brown, also known as "Mr. Dynamite," would dance himself into a controlled frenzy as part of his stage show and typically changed suits a dozen times.

Every record he made during 1960-77 reached the top 100.

His 1985 monster hit "Living in America," featured in the movie "Rocky IV," brought him a new generation of fans and his first Grammy.