Chuck Negron: Founding member of rock band Three Dog Night and voice behind 'Joy to the World' dies aged 83 after long illness
Chuck Negron, founding member of Three Dog Night, has died aged 83.
The singer-songwriter's lead vocals powered a string of hits, including Joy to the World, One and An Old Fashioned Love Song. Three Dog Night was one of the US' top rock acts of the late 1960s and early '70s. Negron passed away on Monday at his home in the Studio City neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, of complications from heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
His publicist Zach Farnum praised the star's long career, which began as a solo artist in 1960 and accelerated swiftly when he, Cory Wells, and Danny Hutton formed Three Dog Night in 1967 in Los Angeles. The vocal trio found success with their first million-selling single One, written by Harry Nilsson, and several other tunes, such as a cover of Mama Told Me Not to Come.
This came third in the UK charts in 1970, and topped the US charts. The Show Must Go On was among later successes the band enjoyed but, in 1985, Negron was dismissed from the group because of recurring drug issues.
After numerous stints in rehab, he became sober in 1991 and went on to have a successful solo career, releasing seven albums between 1995 and 2017. His 1999 book, Three Dog Nightmare, detailed his ups and downs.
Following decades of estrangement between him and Hutton, the two men reconciled last year. Hutton and Michael Allsup are the lone surviving members of Three Dog Night.
Negron is survived by wife Ami Albea Negron and five children, including Berry Oakley Jr, the son of Allman Brothers Band bassist Berry Oakley, who was killed in a 1972 motorcycle accident. Negron was for a time married to Julia Negron, the younger Oakley's mother, and helped raise infant Berry Jr