William Hart, the main vocalist of the Delfonics, died at the age of 77. According to his son, he was sent to a hospital in Philadelphia with respiratory problems and died from complications following surgery on Thursday.
Hart, who was raised in Philadelphia, was a prolific singer with local organizations such as the Four Gents, Four Guys, Veltones, Everglows, and Little Hart.
Influenced by Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers, Dionne Warwick, and Burt Bacharach, he established the Orphonics with his brother Wilbert, Randy Cain, and Richie Daniels in 1964.'I figured it could be a good idea if I started singing since I had a fantastic voice when I was younger and everyone started reminding me that I should be on the tv and radio,' Hart told Exclaim in 2013. 'So I made the decision to start writing and establish this group.'
Hart was put in contact with composer and arranger Thom Bell, famed for his efforts with Chubby Checker, after he was observed singing and playing the guitar during his day job at a local barbershop. Their debut collaboration was on an original piece titled He Don't Love You.
In 1966, the Orphonics were changed to the Delfonics, and they produced a version of that song. Cameo-Parkway Records folded after a few singles, and they signed with Stan Watson's Philly Groove Records.
La-La (Means I Love You), their debut song for that label, was published in 1968 and became their first hit tune, peaking at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles list. Booker T and the MG's, the Jackson 5, Todd Rundgren, Swing Out Sister, and Prince also recorded it.
Continuing to collaborate with Bell, the cute group issued a total of albums and hit singles, including Didn't I, which was later replaced by Aretha Franklin and New Kids on the Block, among others, and won the Grammy award for best R&B performance; I Gave to You, and Ready or Not Here I Come, which was notably analyzed by The Fugees on their 1996 hit Ready
According to Hart, the begging and weeping in the symphonic soul form is a result of masculine inadequacy. The band's lineup evolved in the early 1970s, and Bell left to work with the Stylistics and the Spinners, causing the Delfonics' economic fortunes to plummet. The group separated in 1975, with both bands touring - and frequently swapping members - throughout the 1990s.
In the 1990s and early 2000s, the trio was sampled by hip-hop musicians such as Ghostface Killah, Missy Elliott, Notorious BIG, and Three 6 Mafia, which Hart appreciated.
Adrian Younge, a Los Angeles producer, partnered with Hart on the album Adrian Younge Presents the Delfonics in 2013, urging the singer to create a 'modern-day' Delfonics record that mixed an 'old-school spirit' with hip-hop production. 'It came out as a pretty excellent mix, I thought it placed the Delfonics back in the spotlight,' Hart remarked of the release.
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