Abdul ‘Duke’ Fakir death: Last surviving founder of Four Tops, dies aged 88

Singer founded beloved Motown group with Lawrence Payton, Renaldo ‘Obie’ Benson and Levi Stubbs in 1953

Abdul ‘Duke’ Fakir visits ‘Motown The Musical’ at Shaftesbury Theatre in London on 19 October 2016 (Getty)

Abdul “Duke” Fakir, the last surviving original member of the beloved Motown group Four Tops, died on Monday aged 88.

He died at his home in Detroit from heart failure, his family said.

“We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our loving husband of 50 years, beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather, friend and forever Four Tops, Abdul Kareem Fakir, better known as Duke,” the family said in a statement.

“Our hearts are heavy as we mourn the loss of a trailblazer, icon and music legend who, through his 70-year music career, touched the lives of so many as he continued to tour until the end of 2023, and officially retired this year. As the last living founding member of the iconic the Four Tops music group, we find solace in Duke’s legacy living on through his music for generations to come.”

Fakir had bladder cancer and retired from touring late last year.

His family told Billboard he was “surrounded by his loved ones” and was  “happy, talking and interacting, and when they turned to do something and turned back around, he had slipped away”.

Fakir co-founded the Four Tops in 1953. The group not only defined the Motown Sound in the 1960s but influenced the era’s pop sound as well.

Besides Fakir, the group consisted of Lawrence Payton, Renaldo “Obie” Benson and Levi Stubbs. Payton died in 1997, Benson in 2005, and Stubbs in 2008.

The Four Tops in 1966 (Getty Images)

After the deaths of the other founding members, Fakir toured as the Four Tops with lead vocalist Alexander Morris, Ronnie McNeir and Lawrence ‘Roquel’ Payton Jr, the son of Lawrence Payton.

Originally called the Four Aims, the group changed their name to the Four Tops to avoid being confused with the Ames Brothers quartet.

They signed with Motown in 1963 and worked with the songwriting production team of Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier, and Brian Holland, giving them their first top singles.

“Baby I Need Your Loving” hit No 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was followed by a pair of No 1s, “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)” and “Reach Out I’ll Be There”.

“Standing in the Shadows of Love”, “It’s the Same Old Song”, “Bernadette”, and “Ask the Lonely” came soon after.

Abdul ‘Duke’ Fakir of the Four Tops in the UK on 9 September 1976 (Getty)

Fakir, born to immigrant parents of Ethiopian and Bangladeshi descent, grew up in Detroit, in a particularly rough neighbourhood.

He wanted to become an athlete but his tenor voice brought him attention when he performed in his church choir.

He became friends with band member Stubbs during a neighbourhood football game, and sang with Benson and Payton at a birthday party for a local girl group.

“We told Levi to just pick a song and sing the lead. We’d just back him up. Well, when he started, we all fell in like we’d been rehearsing the song for months! Our blend was incredible. We were just looking at each other as we were singing, and right after we said, ‘Man, this is a group! This is a group!’” Fakir told Malcolm Wyatt in a 2016 interview.

“Once we started singing, our whole perspective of life changed,” he told The Detroit News in 2022.

“We just started looking at the beauty of life and travelling and being able to sing to the world and making people happy.”

The Four Tops were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1990, after which Stevie Wonder hailed them.

“The things I love about them the most – they are very professional, they have fun with what they do, they are very loving, they have always been gentlemen,” he said.

Princess Margaret meets members of the Four Tops and The Supremes backstage at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 30 November 1971. (Getty)

They were also inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999. The group won the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009, which Fakir accepted on behalf of the band.

Motown founder Berry Gordy Jr said he was “deeply saddened” to hear of Fakir’s death.

“Duke was the first tenor — smooth, suave and always sharp. For 70 years he kept the Four Tops’ remarkable legacy intact, and in all those years he never missed a performance, until just recently. I so appreciate all he did for the Four Tops, for Motown and for me…Duke will be greatly missed and will always be a significant part of the Motown legacy.”

Fakir published a memoir, I’ll Be There: My Life With the Four Tops, in 2022.

Fakir is survived by his wife Piper, daughter Farrah Fakir Cook, sons Nazim Bashir Fakir, Abdul Kareem Fakir Jr, Myke Fakir, Anthony Fakir and Malik Robinson, in addition to 13 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.