’70s Soft Rock Pioneer Dies: Dash Crofts Was 85

Musician Dash Crofts has died.

The ‘70s soft rock pioneer, who was part of the duo Seals & Crofts, passed away on Wednesday. He was 85.

Louie Shelton, who frequently produced for the pair, confirmed the news on social media. “Sad to hear our dear brother and partner in music has passed away today,” Shelton wrote. “Sending love and prayers to all his family and many fans. R.I.P. my brother.”

A family member told TMZ that Crofts died from complications of heart surgery. Born Darrell Crofts on Aug. 4, 1940, in Cisco, Texas, Crofts met future off-and-on bandmate Jim Seals during the ‘50s in local bands, according to Deadline. They moved from Texas to Los Angeles to join The Champs in 1959, who were coming off their hit No. 1 instrumental song “Tequila.” Seals, Crofts, guitarist Glen Campbell, and another bandmate left The Champs in the mid-‘60s to form the short-lived Glen Campbell and the GCs.

After the group broke up, both Seals and Crofts returned to Texas to launch a new band, but by 1969, they returned to LA and signed a deal with Warner Bros. Records as Seals & Crofts. That same year, they released their self-titled debut album. The duo really took off with their fourth album, Summer Breeze, in 1972, peaking at No. 7 on the U.S. Top LPs & Tape Billboard chart. The titular lead single reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, while the follow-up single, “Hummingbird,” cracked the Top 20. By Christmas, the LP went Gold and has since been certified double Platinum.

Follow-up album Diamond Girl in 1973 peaked at No. 4, partly thanks to the title track, which reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100. Throughout the ‘70s, they continued to release numerous albums and tour, but by 1975, their hot streak came to an end. Their Greatest Hits LP, released that Christmas season, reached No. 11 and was certified platinum a decade later. After releasing three more albums that only decently charted, they were dropped by Warner Bros. when their 1980 album The Longest Road failed to chart. Seals and Crofts took a hiatus, but reunited briefly in the early ‘90s.

The duo reunited again in 2004 for one last album, Traces, but that was the last public reunion they had. However, Seals and Crofts’ daughters, Juliet Crossley and Amelia Daily, respectively, formed a group called the Humming Birds, per Variety. Seals’ cousin, Brady Seals, and Crofts’ daughter, Lua Crofts, formed the duo Seals & Crofts 2 in 2018. Seals, meanwhile, died in 2022.