Fontella Marie Bass (/bæs/; July 3, 1940 – December 26, 2012)[1] was an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter best known for her number-one R&B hit "Rescue Me" in 1965.

She began singing R&B songs at local contests and fairs while attending Soldan High School from which she graduated in 1958.

[5][2] Bass originally only played piano with the band, but one night Milton failed to arrive on time, so Sain asked her to sing and she was soon given her own featured vocal spot in the show.

Released early in 1965, their recording "Don't Mess Up a Good Thing" (credited to Oliver Sain) found immediate success, reaching No.

The culmination of one particular session was an original composition with an aggressive rhythm section; backing musicians on the track included drummer Maurice White (later the leader of Earth, Wind, & Fire), bassist Louis Satterfield (fellow future Earth, Wind, & Fire alumnus) and tenor saxophonist Gene Barge, with the young Minnie Riperton among the backing singers.

Things were riding high for them, but when it came time to collect my first royalty check, I looked at it, saw how little it was, tore it up and threw it back across the desk.

[5]Bass demanded a better royalty rate and artistic control; she approached her then manager Billy Davis about securing her writing credit on the song but was told not to worry about it.

She continued to agitate about the matter for a couple of years[2] but later recalled: "It actually side-stepped me in the business because I got a reputation of being a trouble maker.

Bass's vocals, backed by the powerful, pulsating push of the band, have allowed the "Theme De YoYo" to remain an underground cult classic ever since.

After her second album, Free, flopped in 1972, Bass retired from music and concentrated on raising a family; she had four children with avant-garde trumpeter Lester Bowie.

During the 1990s, she hosted a short-lived Chicago radio talk show, and released several gospel records on independent labels.

In 1992, through her old friend Hamiet Bluiett, she was invited to perform three tracks on the World Saxophone Quartet album Breath of Life.

Fontella Bass has stated that she was at a low point in her life when on New Year's Day 1990 she was astonished to hear her own voice singing "Rescue Me" on the American Express television ad.

[15] In the 2000s, she toured Europe with her younger brother David Peaston until she fell ill. For her last years, she had to struggle due to her deteriorating health.