Dash Crofts, the Seals & Crofts member behind hits such as “Summer Breeze” and “Diamond Girl,” has died at 87.
The duo’s producer, Louie Shelton, first announced his death on Facebook, writing, “Sad to hear our dear brother and partner in music has passed away today. Sending love and prayers to all his family and many fans. R.I.P. my brother… Dash Crofts.”
Per the Associated Press, Crofts’ daughter, Lua Crofts Faragher, said he passed away on Wednesday from heart failure at the Heart Hospital of Austin in Austin, Texas. She added that he had been hospitalized for a month after suffering heart issues for years.
Born Darrell George Crofts on August 14th, 1938, in Cisco, Texas, Crofts was nicknamed Dash after his mother entered him and his twin sister, Dorothy, into a baby contest as “Dot” and “Dash.”
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After taking up the piano when he was five years old, Crofts switched to drums at age 10. In high school, he sat behind the kit for Dean Beard & The Crew Cats, meeting saxophonist Jim Seals for the first time.
The duo moved to Southern California together after graduation, joining “Tequila” hitmakers The Champs after the band had already found success with their signature hit. Seals and Crofts’ tenure in the group spanned 1958 to 1965, though Crofts served in the Army for two years in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, beginning in 1962 during that timespan.
Following a stint in the group The Dawnbreakers, where they discovered the Baha’i faith, Seals and Crofts formed their eponymous soft rock duo in Los Angeles in 1969, with Seals playing guitar, saxophone, and violin and Crofts on guitar and mandolin. They found modest success with their second and third albums (Down Home and Year of Sunday), with both landing on the lower half of the Billboard 200.
1972’s Summer Breeze was their commercial breakthrough, reaching No. 7 on the albums chart thanks to its title track, which itself peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100. The follow-up single, “Hummingbird,” was also a hit, rising to No. 20.
“Summer Breeze” was covered byThe Isley Brothers in 1974, landing at No. 60 on the singles chart.
Seals & Crofts struck while the iron was hot the following year withDiamond Girl, which peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 on the back of itstitle track, which also reached No. 6. The album also produced another Top 40 hit, “We May Never Pass This Way (Again).”
In the following years, Seals & Crofts notably stirred controversy with their 1974 anti-abortion song “Unborn Child” following the landmarkRoe v. Wade decision, which reflected shared beliefs from their Baha’i faith.
Besides Unborn Child, Seals & Crofts released 10 more albums before breaking up in 1980, including a reissue of their first two LPs, a greatest hits collection, and the soundtrack to the 1977 Robby Benson film One on One. Their 1976 single, “Get Closer,” featuring Carolyn Willis, propelled them to No. 6 on the Hot 100 once again.
The duo reunited in 1989 and 2004, releasing their final album,Traces, in 2004.Crofts released one solo album: 1998’s Today.
Seals passed away in Nashville in June 2022 following a long illness.
Crofts is survived by his second wife, Louise Crofts, children Lua, Faizi, and Amelia, and eight grandchildren.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated with Crofts’ correct age. He was 87 years old, not 85.