Guitarist for R&B, Jazz Greats Dies in Fort Worth

Cornell Dupree Jr., a guitarist who played on R&B and jazz hits with artists including Aretha Franklin and Miles Davis, has died. He was 68.

Dupree died Sunday at home in Fort Worth. His funeral is set for Friday.

Just out of high school, he went to work in Manhattan with saxophonist King Curtis Ousley, another Fort Worth native.

Dupree, who went on to be a studio player, played guitar on "Respect" by Franklin, "Rainy Night in Georgia" by Brook Benton and "Memphis Soul Stew" by King Curtis.

He toured with Franklin's band from the late 1960s through the mid-1970s.

His son, Cornell Dupree III, tells the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says most people don't know his father, but "there's not too many musicians who don't know him."

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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