The Tragic Death Of Jay And The Americans Frontman Jay Black
Jay And The Americans singer Jay Black, aka David Blatt, has died. The singer passed away in Queens, New York, aged 82 on October 22, with the band confirming the sad news via a Facebook post the following morning.
The group shared a black and white shot of Black singing with his bandmates alongside the caption, "Today, we mourn the passing of David Blatt a/k/a Jay Black and we acknowledge the great successes we had with him both as a partner and as a lead singer." They added, "We shared both wonderful and very contentious times, and much like an ex-wife, we are so proud of the beautiful children we created. We'll always remember The Voice."
The band had a slew of hits in their heyday in the 1960s, including tracks such as "This Magic Moment," "Only in America," "Come a Little Bit Closer," and "Cara Mia."
Black joined the band 1962 after the original lead singer, Jay Traynor, left. The group then went their separate ways just over a decade later in 1973, though Black didn't give up on his musical dreams and went on to carve out a solo career for himself (via ABC News).
How did Jay Black die?
The family of Jay Black, aka David Blatt, confirmed that he sadly died due to complications related to pneumonia (via Rolling Stone). It was also reported that Black had been diagnosed with dementia a few years before his passing, with the star telling Forward during an interview in 2014 that he believed he was "getting a little bit of Alzheimer's."
Black was dad to four children as well as being a grandfather to five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Black performed his final gig in 2017, with his family saying in a statement that his concerts — which mostly took place around the Florida and New York areas — "were heavily attended and mostly sold out." They added that the late performer "had a special bond with his fans who flocked to his annual sold-out shows at The Westbury Music Fair. He thought of them as family, knew many of their names, and would dedicate songs to them from the stage and meet with them after the show."
As well as his gigging career, fans may also recognize Black from the small screen. He popped up in the 1977 Frank Sinatra movie "Contract on Cherry Street" as Sindardos. He was also a regular on "The Mike Douglas Show" from the mid 1960s to the mid 1970s (via IMDb).
We're sending out our thoughts to Black's family at such a sad time.