Etta James dies at 73

The legendary Etta James has died at 73 after a battle with leukaemia.

James, who also suffered from dementia and hepatitis C, died at a hospital in Riverside, California, according to her longtime friend and manager, Lupe De Leon.

Her husband, Artis Mills, and her sons Donto and Sametto were by her side.

'This is a tremendous loss for the family, her friends and fans around the world,' De Leon told CNN. 

'She was a true original who could sing it all - her music defied category. 

'I worked with Etta for over 30 years. She was my friend and I will miss her always.'

The iconic entertainer's had been battling poor heath in recent months and died just shy of her 74th birthday.

James' doctor recently announced that she has been diagnosed with terminal leukaemia. 

The Grammy-winner and Rock-and-Roll Hall of Fame member was also suffering from dementia. She has been receiving mostly at-home care.

Elaine James, who isn't a relation, has cared for at her Riverside, California home since March 2010.

Last month Elaine asked for fans to pray for the star.

She has many fans, given that she's such an iconic musical figure, with six Grammy Awards to her credit. 

Her hits include The Wallflower, Something's Got a Hold on me and the iconic 1961 number At Last, which has become a favourite at weddings.

Perhaps most famously, President Obama and the first lady danced to a version at his inauguration ball.

She has influenced American musicians like Diana Ross, Janis Joplin and Christina Aguilera. 

She has also made her mark on British artists like The Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart, Amy Winehouse, Joss Stone and Adele.

Away from the music, the platinum blonde was known as a hell-raiser who had tempestuous relationships with her family, her men and the music industry. Then she spent years battling a drug addiction that she admitted sapped away at her great talents.

In other words, she was one of music's original bad girls.

'The bad girls had the look that I liked,' she wrote in her 1995 autobiography, Rage to Survive. 'I wanted to be rare, I wanted to be noticed, I wanted to be exotic as a Cotton Club chorus girl, and I wanted to be obvious as the most flamboyant hooker on the street. I just wanted to be.'

James' spirit could not be contained - perhaps that's what made her so magnetic in music; it is surely what made her so dynamic as one of R&B, blues and rock `n' roll's underrated legends.

Despite the reputation she cultivated, she would always be remembered best for At Last.

The jazz-inflected rendition wasn't the original, but it would become the most famous and the song that would define her as a legendary singer. 

The tender, sweet song belied the turmoil in her personal life. 

James was born Jamesette Hawkins in Los Angeles on January 25 1938 to a mother whom she described as a scam artist, a substance abuser and a fleeting presence during her youth. 

She never knew her father, although she was told and had believed, that he was the famous billiards player Minnesota Fats. 

He neither confirmed nor denied it: when they met, he simply told her: 'I don't remember everything. I wish I did, but I don't.'

She was brought up by Lula and Jesse Rogers, who owned the rooming house where her mother once lived in. The pair brought up James in the Christian faith, and as a young girl, her voice stood out in the church choir. James landed the solos in the choir and became so well known, she said that Hollywood stars would come to see her perform.