Singer. Born Gerd Höllerich in Bobingen, Germany, he was a popular German romantic ballad singer who also appeared in several musical films. He started in the pop music business at age 20 forming the group Roy Black & His Cannons in 1963. The group was signed a contract with Polydor Records, but the label wanted Black as a solo artist and by the late 1960s, he was as a singer of orchestrated romantic pop ballads. By the 1970s, he was one of Germany’s most successful recording artists, appearing in German musical movies and television shows. Through the 1980s, his career as a pop singer faded and he making a comeback when he died at age 48 of heart failure in Heldenstien, Germany. (bio by: John “J-Cat” Griffith) Cause of death: Heart failure