Funk legend Rick James, best known for the 1981 hit "Super Freak," died Friday, apparently of natural causes, police said. James died at 9:45 a.m. at a residence near Universal City, said Police Department spokeswoman Esther Reyes. "We learned of his death after responding to a radio call," Reyes said. After his big hit, James' fame began to fade as he became embroiled in drugs, legal problems and health issues.James was convicted in 1993 of assaulting two women. The first attack occurred in 1991 when he restrained and burned a young woman with a hot pipe during a cocaine binge at his house in West Hollywood. He was free on bail when ...more.
