R.I.P. "Little" Jimmy Scott, legendary jazz and R&B singer

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      Veteran jazz vocalist "Little" Jimmy Scott has died at his home in Las Vegas. He was 88. The cause of his death has not been released.

      James Victor Scott was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1925. His small physical stature and unmistakable contralto voice were the result of his being born with Kallmann syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that prevented him from reaching puberty. 

      Scott enjoyed some success in the 1950s and '60s, which included singing "Everybody's Somebody's Fool", a Top 10 R&B hit for the Lionel Hampton Band in 1950. 

      The singer faded into obscurity for several decades, but enjoyed a career resurgence in the '90s, after he sang at the 1991 funeral of his friend, songwriter Doc Pomus. Record exec Seymour Stein, who had also attended Pomus's funeral, signed Scott to Sire Records, which released his Grammy-nominated 1992 comeback album, All the Way. Collaborations with Lou Reed and David Lynch also followed. Scott famously appeared on the final episode of Twin Peaks, performing "Sycamore Trees", a haunting song with lyrics by Lynch and music by Angelo Badalamenti.

      Last August, Scott was among the first group of inductees in the R&B Music Hall of Fame, alongside such legends as Sam Cooke, Jackie Wilson, the Temptations, and the Supremes.

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