Chuck Negron has died at age 83.
Negron’s unique voice carried pop group Three Dog Night through a stunning list of hits including “Joy to the World,” “One,” “Easy to Be Hard, “Mama Told Me (Not to Come),” “Black and White,” “The Show Must Go On,” “Never Been to Spain,” and more.
From 1969 through the mid 70s, Three Dog Night was the Maroon 5 of its day, a smart rock and roll band that could churn out radio friendly material.
They never got respect from the rock world, though. They should have, considering that they introduced a slew of writers to the radio including Laura Nyro, Harry Nilsson, Hoyt Axton, Paul Williams, Randy Newman, and so on. They should be in the Rock Hall and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Williams, in particular, had a lot of success with the group with two of their best hits, “An Old Fashioned Love Song” and “Out in the Country.” But it was Hoyt Axton’s “Joy to the World,” that made them household names.
Three Dog Night had an uncanny ear for picking material. Their voices brought out an R&B sound on vocals that merged perfectly with a rock and roll sound that was edgy enough for mass consumption.
Negron founded the group in 1967 with Danny Hutton, who still tours a Three Dog Night band, and Cory Wells.
But he fell into the trap of drugs, and battled for years for his sobriety. His obituary says he had been battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, and heart failure in the months leading up to his death. He had a famous cousin, actor and comedian Taylor Negron, who died in 2015.
The music lives on, a staple of oldies radio.
