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Performer Kenny Rankin dies at age 69

LOS ANGELES — Kenny Rankin, a pop vocalist and highly regarded musician-songwriter whose stylings ranged from jazz to pop has died of complications related to lung cancer, his record company announced Monday. He was 69.

The musician first gained acclaim as one of the guitarists on Bob Dylan's landmark 1965 album, "Bringing it all Back Home."

Rankin wrote and recorded the pop standard "Peaceful" and also wrote "In The Name of Love," which was recorded by Peggy Lee, and "Haven't We Met," performed by Carmen McRae and Mel Torme.

His own "The Kenny Rankin Album" was recorded live in 1976 with a 60-piece orchestra.

Rankin spent much of the past 20 years touring, although he returned to the studio in the mid-1990s to release a pair of albums, "Professional Dreamer" and "Here In My Heart." He also released a Christmas album in 1999.

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