The great Hank Ballard is dead:

AP: Hank Ballard, the singer and songwriter whose hit "The Twist" ushered a nationwide dance craze in the 1960s, has died.

Ballard, who was suffering from throat cancer, died Sunday at his home, friends said. Friend and caretaker Anna Ayala said Ballard's birth records indicate he was born in 1927, but biographical information lists his birthdate as 1936.

"He was just a very good man and loved by so many people," Ayala said.

Ballard might have been known mostly for "The Twist," but there was certainly a lot more to him than just that. "Work With Me Annie" and all the sequels to it, "Let's Go Let's Go Let's Go," "Finger-Poppin' Time," among a ton of others. My own Ballard favorite is probably "Little Sister," which was covered by Stevie Ray Vaughan years later. And of course I can't leave out "Sexy Ways" either. Etta James did "Work With Me Henry" with Ballard and the Midnighters and got herself in a peck of trouble over it too. The bluenoses couldn't ban it fast enough - way too racy for the airwaves back in '55.

Go easy, Hank. I'll let him have the last word:

"If you're looking for youth, you're looking for longevity, just take a dose of rock 'n' roll. It keeps you going. Just like the caffeine in your coffee. Rock 'n' roll is good for the soul, for the well being, for the psyche, for your everything. I love it. I can't even picture being without rock 'n' roll."

Amen, Hank. Works for me.