(March 4, 2026) He was a powerful singer, whose legend grew, decade after decade. Today, we say a sad goodbye to Chicago soul and blues man, Cicero Blake. His passing was announced on social media by his son, Darrell Blake.
Born in Jackson, Mississippi, Blake moved with his family to Chicago’s West Side during the early 1950s. As a teenager he joined the doo-wop group the Golden Tones, which later evolved into the Kool Gents—an influential Chicago group that would eventually launch the career of Dee Clark. After military service in the Air Force, Blake continued refining his craft on the road as part of the Sonny Thompson Revue from 1959 to 1962.
Blake began recording as a solo artist in the early 1960s, releasing singles for a number of small Chicago labels. Among these were local hits favorites like “Sad Feeling” (backed by The Dells), “If I Had My Way,” and “Don’t Do This to Me.” While none of his early records broke nationally, they developed a strong following among soul collectors and later among Northern Soul enthusiasts in the U.K., who embraced the emotional urgency of Blake’s performances.
A brief opportunity with Brunswick Records around 1970 produced the songs “You Got Me Walking” and “A Woman Needs To Be Loved,” but the recordings were shelved for nearly two decades before finally surfacing on soul compilations. By the late 1970s Blake had shifted toward the growing Southern soul-blues scene, scoring a hit with “Dip My Dipper” in 1978. The record helped introduce him to a new audience.
Blake continued recording steadily through the following decades, releasing albums such as Too Hip To Be Happy, Just One Of Those Things, Stand By Me, and I’m Satisfied.
One of the great, sometimes unheralded singers from the Golden Age of Soul Music, Cicero Blake was an artist who, fortunately, was discovered over the years by multiple generations of soul music fans, providing sometimes belated recognition of his vocal genius.
