British jazz legend George Melly dies aged 80 in London

London - British jazz legend George Melly has died at his London home, aged 80, after suffering from lung cancer, his wife said Thursday. The singer was known to have refused all treatment for his illness and carried on appearing on stage until recently. His wife, Diana, said he had also developed dementia. 'He was born in Liverpool in 1926 and for 60 years has been an acclaimed, popular and much-loved performer,' his wife said in a statement. He was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2005, and last performed on June 10 this year, at a charity function for dementia sufferers, she said. He is survived by his wife, his son Tom, his daughter Pandora, his step-daughter Candy and his four grandchildren. The flamboyant jazzman continued to perform even after collapsing on stage with his band Digby Fairweather's Half Dozen, in Hove, south-eastern England, in January. 'He was unique, an irreplaceable culture icon, a dedicated founder of the British Jazz Revival, who carried his conviction all the way through his life, becoming a master spokesman for both the jazz and the blues as well as being the most gifted polymath to work in the jazz scene,' Digby Fairweather said about Melly Thursday. Melly was recently quoted as saying: 'I don't fear death. I'm a fatalist, although I would rather death came as a shock to me.' © 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

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