Pop singer Bobby Vee, whose string of hits included “Rubber Ball,” “Devil or Angel,” “Take Good Care of My Baby” and “Run to Him,” died Monday, the St. Cloud, Minnesota, Times reported. He was 73.
Vee, who had been in hospice care, died of complications from Alzheimer’s disease, which he was diagnosed with in 2011.
“It’s kind of a blessing,” Vee’s physician Dr. Rick Rysavy told the paper. “There was no reason for him to suffer any longer.”
Born Robert Velline in Fargo, North Dakota, Vee got his big break as a teenager, after a plane crash killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper, and Vee and his band were tapped to fill in at a concert tour stop.
Dozens of hits followed for Vee in the 1960s, including “Suzie Baby” and “The Night Has a Thousand Eyes.”
Vee last performed live on July 3, 2011, months after being diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s.
Funeral arrangements for Vee are pending.