Fats Domino, Rock 'n' Roll Pioneer Has Died At Age 89

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NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Fats Domino, the amiable rock `n' roll pioneer whose steady, pounding piano and easy baritone helped change popular music even as it honored the grand, good-humored tradition of the Crescent City, has died. He was 89.

Mark Bone, chief investigator with the Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, coroner's office, said Domino died Tuesday.

New Orleans resident and legendary piano player Fats Domino pauses a moment for a photo after meeting with reporters 19 August 2007 to talk about his new 2- disk album "Goin' Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino" to be released 25 September 2007. The album is full of music's superstars with the expected large royalties going to to his Tipitiana's Foundation, with the mission of preserving the musical culture of New Orleans and the building of a lower 9th ward cultural center. AFP photo/Paul J.Richards (Photo credit should read PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images)

At least in appearance, Domino was no Elvis Presley. He stood 5-feet-5 and weighed more than 200 pounds, with a wide, boyish smile and a haircut as flat as an album cover. But Domino sold more than 110 million records, and his 22 million-selling singles included "Blueberry Hill," "Ain't That a Shame" and other rock `n' roll standards.