Soul legend Isaac Hayes found dead near treadmill

Aug 10, 2008, 22:09 GMT

Isaac Hayes, at Stax Records, Memphis, Tennessee, USA. Soul legend Isaac Hayes, who laid the foundations for disco and rap, was found dead, 10 August 2008, near a treadmill at his home in Memphis, Tennessee, at the age of 65, police said. The cause of death was not immediately known but foul play was not suspected. Most famous for his 1971 track Theme From Shaft, Hayes was elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. EPA/CHARLES NICHOLAS

Los Angeles - Soul legend Isaac Hayes, who laid the foundations for disco and rap, was found dead Sunday near a treadmill at his home in Memphis, Tennessee, at the age of 65, police said.

The cause of death was not immediately known but foul play was not suspected.

Most famous for his 1971 track Theme From Shaft, Hayes was elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. Born in 1942 in a tin shack in Covington, Tennessee, he was raised by his grandparents after both his parents died and started singing in church at the age of five. He later taught himself to play the piano, organ, flute and saxophone.

His recording career began in the early 1960s as a session player at the pioneering studio Stax Record, where her quickly became an integral part of the company's hit production team.

His first solo album Presenting Isaac Hayes came in 1967 and was not a hit. But he had a smash with Hot Buttered Soul in 1968 with long funky tracks that were a radical break with the three-minute pop song.

His spoken word introductions to the songs are seen by many pop historians as a precursor to rap, while his rhythmic orchestrations paved the way for disco music. His image also set a new fashion - bald head, massive gold jewelry and sunglasses.

His career hit another high in 1997 when he became the voice of Chef, on the animated TV show South Park, but he quit the show in 2006 after an episode mocked his Scientology religion.

Hayes had been married four times and had 12 children.