(CNN) -- "Who is the nicest person you've met in showbiz?" It's a question I'm often asked after nearly 20 years working at CNN. My encounter with Joe Cocker was relatively brief, but it left a lasting impression of a man who not only contributed a great deal to music, but also conducted himself with a rare professionalism and courtesy. The date was September 11, 1998, when Joe played Chastain Park Amphitheater in Atlanta -- an open-air venue which accommodates more than 5,000 people, but manages to maintain an intimate atmosphere, festooned with candlelit tables closer to the stage. It was a humid evening bedeviled by mosquitoes as I stood at the side of that stage with my cameraman awaiting the arrival of the rock legend -- a term with which Joe Cocker always felt uncomfortable.
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British-born singer Joe Cocker died aged 70 after a battle with lung cancer
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Cocker had hits with "You are So Beautiful" and "Up Where We Belong"
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Cocker conducted himself with rare professionalism and courtesy, Curry says
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"A man confident in his craft, unassuming in demeanor and impeccable in manners"
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