Joe Hinton was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 soul

Soul music

Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...

 singer.

Hinton, who was born in Evansville, Indiana

Evansville, Indiana

Evansville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Indiana and the largest city in Southern Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 117,429. It is the county seat of Vanderburgh County and the regional hub for both Southwestern Indiana and the...

, began as a gospel

Gospel music

Gospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....

 singer with the Chosen Gospel Quartet and the Spirit of Memphis Quartet. Producer Don Robey

Don Robey

Don Robey was an American record label executive, songwriter and record producer, who used criminal means as part of his business model...

 asked the singer to try doing secular tunes, and Hinton began recording for Robey's record label

Record label

In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...

, Peacock Records

Peacock Records

Peacock Records was a record label started in 1949 by Don D. Robey in Houston, Texas."Hound Dog" by Big Mama Thornton was a bit hit for Peacock in 1953. Other significant rhythm & blues artists on Peacock were Marie Adams, James Booker, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Little Richard, Memphis Slim, and...

, in 1958. It was not until 1963, with his fifth single on the label, that he managed to chart with "You Know It Ain't Right"; the next single, "Better to Give Than to Receive", also hit the lower regions of the charts. His biggest hit was 1964's "Funny How Time Slips Away", written by Willie Nelson

Willie Nelson

Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...

; the tune peaked at #13 on the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 that year. Cash Box magazine listed "Funny How Time Slips Away" as #1 for four weeks on their R&B chart. The track sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc

Music recording sales certification

Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...

. "I Want a Little Girl", the next single, also charted, but it was his last hit.

Hinton died of skin cancer

Skin cancer

Skin neoplasms are skin growths with differing causes and varying degrees of malignancy. The three most common malignant skin cancers are basal cell cancer, squamous cell cancer, and melanoma, each of which is named after the type of skin cell from which it arises...

 in 1968 in Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

, Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

, at the age of 38, while still in the prime of his recording career.