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Nick Ashford: A Musical Legend - The music community lost a legend when Nick Ashford died in a New York City hospital, Monday, Aug. 22, 2011, after suffering from throat cancer. In his honor, let's take a look at some of his contributions to music, career milestones and the journey he took with his wife, Valerie Simpson, which blessed all of us listeners with the real thing.(Photo: Shawn Ehlers/WireImage)

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Ashford & Simpson - Nick and Valerie met in 1963 at Harlem's White Rock Baptist Church. They later married and became one of R&B music's most successful husband and wife singing-songwriting tandems.

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Diana Ross - In 1970, Motown looked no further than the songwriting talent of Ashford & Simpson when it was time to release Diana Ross's first solo single. "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" is one of Ross's most popular songs. They continued to work together, writing most of the songs on three of Ross's albums (Diana Ross, Surrender and The Boss).(Photo: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Photo By Chris Jackson/Getty Images

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Stevie Wonder - In 1986, Ashford & Simpson teamed up with Stevie Wonder for "Nobody Walks in L.A."(Photo: Richard E. Aaron/Redferns)

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Guiding Light - In 1982, Ashford & Simpson appeared on television soap opera Guiding Light.(Photo: CBS/Landov)

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Solid (As a Rock) - The biggest hit of the duo's career happened in 1984 with "Solid (As a Rock)." It topped the U.S. R&B charts and peaked at No. 12 on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles. It was also an international hit and became the U.K.'s 16th best single of 1985.(Photo: Capitol Records)

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Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell - "Like sweet morning dew..." Ashford & Simpson were also responsible for Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell's rhythmic ballad "You're All I Need to Get By." The song was later sampled for Method Man's version featuring Mary J. Blige.

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Ray Charles - Ashford & Simpson gave Ray Charles a hit in 1966 when they penned the song "Let's Go Get Stoned." It was a big hit for the songwriting duo, who later that year officially joined the Motown family.(Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

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Chaka Khan - With an array of hits under their belt, Ashford & Simpson also worked with Chaka Khan in the late '70s. They are responsible for the classic song "I'm Every Woman," also famously performed by Whitney Houston for her The Bodyguard soundtrack.(Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Photo By Ethan Miller/Getty Images

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Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Ashford & Simpson performed their classic "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" at the 22nd Annual ASCAP Pop Music Awards at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills on May 16, 2005. The song is a timeless hit that has been performed by many. Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell first performed it back in 1967 and later, Diana Ross covered it in 1970. A cover of the song by Michael McDonald earned Ashford & Simpson's work a place among the most performed ASCAP pop songs of 2004.   (Photo: Chris Pizzello/Landov/Reuters)

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Hall of Famers - In 2002, Ashford & Simpson were inducted into the Songwriter's Hall of Fame.(Photo: Chris Pizzello/Landov/Reuters)

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Lifetime of Love - Most notable, however, is that Ashford & Simpson spent their personal and professional lives as a happy couple. In addition to theses hits and career milestones, they toured together, and in 1996, they opened a restaurant called The Sugar Bar. They were also a featured disc-jockey team on New York's KISS-FM radio station. At the 2012 BET Awards, Valerie made a moving tribute to her late husband, may he R.I.P.(Photo: Michael A. Mariant/AP)