Kirkland was flown to Tampa General Hospital, where he later died. The Highway Patrol says no one on the bus was injured.
According to his website, Kirkland, who lived in Macon, Ga., performed Saturday night at the Dunedin Brewery in Dunedin, the final stop in a four-city swing through Florida in February.
Born in Jamaica, and raised in Alabama, Kirkland was a bandleader for Otis Redding. He also worked with John Lee Hooker and Little Richard.
