Rest in Peace, Jim Seals of ’70s Soft-Rock Hitmakers Seals and Crofts: 1941-2022

Jim Seals, half of the soft rock/pop duo Seals and Crofts, has died at the age of 80, per reports.

A major source of the news of his passing came from friend and musical colleague, John Ford Coley, who posted a lengthy message on Facebook:

Wow. Don’t even know where to begin. Jimmy Seals passed away today. I spent a large portion of my musical life with this man. We toured together, he and Dash invited us to sing on Seals and Crofts records, and we played with him for years. He was Dan’s older brother, it was Jimmy that gave Dan and me our stage name, he taught me how to juggle, made me laugh, pissed me off, encouraged me, showed me amazing worlds and different understandings on life, especially on a philosophical level, showed me how expensive golf was and how to never hit a golf ball because next came the total annihilation of a perfectly good golf club and the list goes on and on. We didn’t always see eye to eye, especially as musicians, but we always got along and I thought he was a bona fide, dyed in the wool musical genius and a very deep and contemplative man. He was an enigma and I always had regard for his opinion. I listened to him and I learned from him. We didn’t always agree and it wasn’t always easy and it wasn’t always fun but it definitely was always entertaining for sure. Dan adored his older brother and it was because of Jimmy opening doors for us that we came to Los Angeles to record and meet the right people. This is a hard one on so many levels as this is a musical era passing for me. And it will never pass this way again as his song said. He belonged to a group that was one of a kind. I am very sad over this but I have some of the best memories of all of us together. Rest In Peace Jimmy. You and Dan finally get reunited again. Tell him and your sweet momma hi for me.

Variety notes that no cause of death has been made available.

Throughout the 1970s, Seals and Crofts (which featured Seals and band mate Dash Crofts) became an institution among the soft-rock scene, peaking at No. 6 with a trio of now-classic tracks like 1972’s “Summer Breeze”:

1973’s “Diamond Girl”:

And 1976’s “Get Closer”:

After initially disbanding in 1980, Seals & Crofts reunited a few times, and released its last album in 2004 (Traces).

May Jim Seals rest in peace.