in 2009, offered and his wife valerie simpson joined us here on this -- ashford and his wife valerie simpson joined us here on the stage. he is known for his hit including "in snow mountain high enough here " we are glad you joined us for the conversation with nick ashford. >> every community has a martin luther king boulevard. it's the cornerstone we all know. it's not just a street or boulevard, but a place where wal-mart stands together with your community to make every day better. >> nationwide insurance supports tavis smiley. with every question and answer, help tavis improve financial literacy and remove obstacles to economic empowerment one conversation at a time. nationwide is on your side. >> and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. [captioning made possible by kcet public television] [captioning made possible by kcet public television] tavis: along with his wife valerie simpson, nick ashford and some of the biggest hits in motown history. -- wrote some of the biggest hits in motown history. he joined us for a terrific conversation about thei

nick ashford and his wife valerie simpson co-wrote some of the biggest songs in motown history. next tuesday night we'll bring you a memorable hour with ashford and simpson also recorded on this very same stage in 2009. remembering two songwriting giants coming up right now. >> every community has a martin luther king boulevard. it's the cornerstone we all know. it's not just a street or boulevard, but a place where wal-mart stands together with your community to make every day better. >> nationwide insurance supports tavis smiley. with every question and answer, help tavis improve financial literacy and remove obstacles to economic empowerment one conversation at a time. nationwide is on your side. >> at toyota, we celebrate dimpingses and the people who make them. -- differences and the people who make them. >> and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. kcet public television] tavis: the fall of muammar qaddafi represents great opportunities and challenges for libya and the middle east. pleased tonight to be joined by mansour kickia. -- el-kikhi

ash ford and his wife, valerie simpson, put many of his hits, including "ain't no mountain high enough" and they wrote songs for ray charles and many others. the duo were singers in their own right releasing 15 albums. ash ford died in a new york city hospital of throat cancer. he was 70. ash ford is survived by his wife and two daughters. >> ♪ you ain't nothing but a hownt dog ♪ hound dog ♪ >> and another death in the music world, jerry lieber who wrote "hound dog" who elvis turned into a hit and yakityy, yak. >> they worked together since they were 17. they also wrote stand by me and "love potion number 9". he died of heart failure at the age of 78. >> tonight hurricane irene is gaining strength and heading to the united states. nasa captured images of irene as it made landfall over puerto rico. they flooded streets and knocked out power to a million people. irene is now a category two hurricane with 100 mile per hour winds. they say it could increase as it passes over the bahamas and slams into the united states. >>> and of course meteorologist sandhya patel is tracking irene very c

is there any ashford and simpson songs that you said, "man, i wish i had recorded that one?" >> with nick and valerieost of their songs. >> reporter: smoky robinson was there with ashford and simpson. >> they came in guns blazing and they just, you know-- everybody was very excited about them. >> reporter: jerry lieber knew all about excitement. he and mike stoller penned some of the biggest hits of the 1950s, including one written for big mama thornton but made famous by a man from tennessee. >> ♪ you ain't nothing but a hound dog ♪ >> reporter: there was another tune that became most of the recorded popular songs ever. >> ♪ darling, darling stand by me ♪ >> jerry and mike were innovators because they were the first ones to ever put violins on an r&b song. there's a song called "there goes my baby." >> ♪ moving on down the line >> jerry lieber was one of my song writing idols as a kid growing up. >> reporter: over five decades, lieber and ashford wrote 20 number one hits. >> their songwriting was just phenomenal. songs are rerecorded and rerecorded and rerecorded. they live on and on and on. >> repo

. ♪ ashford performed with his wife valerie simpson.ogether they wrote some of the biggest motown hits like "ain't no mountain high enough." for diana ross they wrote "you're all i need to get by" and "reach out and touch somebody's hand." nick ashford died of throat cancer in a new york city hospital. he was 70 years old. ...some chocolates swiss! ah...the best in the world. oikos greek yogurt from dannon. really? wait until you try it. so creamy thick dannon oikos berry flavors beat chobani 2:1 in a national taste test. mmmm... this may be the best in the world. oikos greek yogurt possibly the best yogurt in the world. like us on facebook and get a free cup of dannon oikos. our fruit has to be perfectly ripe because it's delivered on the same day. for me? this is so beautiful! edible arrangements. enjoy the most delicious fruit ever. guaranteed. starting at $25. >>> here's a look at the weather in some cities around the country. 81 degrees and sunny in new york. thunderstorms and 90 in miami. 86 with thunderstorms in chicago. 106 and

he along with his wife valerie simpson was half of the r&b duo ash fford and simpson.and performed ain't for mountain high enough, i'm every woman. they worked with ray charles, diana ross and were unducted in the songwriters hall of fame in 2002. nick ashford died of throat cancer monday. he was 70 years old. and he was good. >> he was. >> the guy who wrote stand by me, that song, also died. 78. >> yes, he did. nick valerie simpson married 38 years. >>> eli manning and the giants taking on the chicago bears. second quarter, brandon jacobs will slice through the defense for an 18 yard touchdown. giants crushed the bears, unfortunately, that was considered a loss because of this. starting cornerback terrell thomas likely out for the season after suffering a torn ach on that play. it happened in the final seconds of the first half when he collided with a teammate. a crushing loss for thomas. he's in the final year of his contract. had a huge year last year leading the team in interceptions and tackles. a lot of people had him pegged to be a pro bowler. >>> tigers and ray

. ♪ ain't no mountain high > he and valerie simpson had a love affair.sic and then with each other. it would be hard to imagine the '70s and '80s without their hits. and their outfits. ashford came to new york as a starving artist with no place to stay. he told sunday morning's randall pinkston about the day he met simpson at a church in harlem. >> white rock baptist church. they didn't know i was homeless when i walked in the church. then i saw valerie. >> reporter: what did you think when you saw him walk in the door? >> cute. very cute. but mysterious. >> reporter: over the years, the pair penned hits for diana ross. ray charles. and marvin gaye. and, of course, for themselves. pinkston asked about the secret to their chemistry. >> so how does it happen? do you come here with the lyrics? do you come to him with the music? how does it work. >> it happens a lot of ways. most of the time it's just spontaneous. >> reporter: but the music is timeless. nick ashford was 70. ♪ when the night has come and the land is dark ♪ ♪ and the moon is the only... ♪ >> m

he and his wife, valerie simpson, they've been married for years.rote that famous song and a lot of famous hits. in another '80s -- in the '80s they had another hit, "solid as a rock." nick ashford died in a hospital while being treated for throw cancer. he was 77 years old. >>> they rallied at the state capitol yesterday that would make it harder to privatize libraries. the bill supported by the librarians requires cities to hold public hearings and conduct studies to ensure privatization save money. >> this is the building that says -- bill that shows it will make life better in the community. >>> 7:54. dramatic video from monterey county where, for the second day in a row, helicopter rescued stranded hikers. this happened yesterday afternoon near bixy bridge north of big sur. police say two men and a woman climbed down a steep cliff and they couldn't get back up. now there was a woman with them but she refused help. she climbed up. on monday crews were called to help three brothers who became stuck trying to do that same climb. >>> we want to che

reporter: that's just one of the many motown classics nick ashford penned along with his wife valerie simpsonter meeting in 1964 they cranked out unforgettable lyrics to "ain't nothing like the real thing" and many other megahits in the '80s they took to the stage themselves. ♪ now we're solid solid as a rock ♪ >> reporter: ashford dreamed of becoming a dancer but together their work was magic. chaka khan and whitney houston would agree. ♪ i'm every woman it's all in me ♪ ♪ anything you want done >> reporter: the man who will forever be etched in rock 'n' roll history also passed away. leiber hated elvis presley's interpretation of their song but they still teamed up for more elvis hits, including "jailhouse rock." jerry leiber was 78 and died of heart failure. nick ashford was 70 and died of throat cancer. both of their legacies will live on through their music. >>> and there's some welcome news for air travelers. robin and george, new federal rules aimed at reducing flight delays go into effect today. carriers could be fined up to $27,000 per passenger when international flights sit on the

ashford and his wife valerie simpson wrote some of motown's biggest hits including "ain't no mountainston. their best-known hit, though, as you just heard, was "solid as a rock" back in the 1980s. ashford was 70 years old. a real legend. he actually met his wife, valerie, here in new york in harlem at a church in 1964. he was homeless at the time before they paired up and became one of the best songwriting duos out there. >> isn't that amazing? and their marriage was solid as a rock. she was an aspiring dancer. he was an aspiring musician. what a romantic story. >> it was a great love story. >> i sense the hollywood movie coming, don't you think? >> it's coming. our thoughts and prayers to that family. two daughters. survived by his mother, too, and his wife as well. but music legend. motown's best. >> certainly will be missed. >>> all right. well, forget about a traditional menu at a rochester, minnesota restaurant. >> the restaurant uses ipads and ipods to tell you what's on the menu, and the servers don't bother with a pad and pen, they just carry around their ipads. >> a few diner