What You Won’t Do for Love frontman Bobby Caldwell dies

INDEPENDENCE TOWNSHIP, New Jersey – Bobby Caldwell, soulful R&B singer-songwriter who had a major hit with “What You Won’t Do for Love” in 1978, and whose voice and musical style have been adored by generations of his fellow performers, died,” his wife said on Wednesday.

Mary Caldwell told The Associated Press that he died in her arms at their Great Meadows, New Jersey home on Tuesday after a long illness. He was 71 years old.

The smooth soul jam “What You Won’t Do for Love” peaked at number 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 6 on the so-called Hot Selling Soul Singles chart. It became a long-term standard and career-defining hit for Caldwell, who also wrote the song.

The song has been covered by artists including Boyz II Men and Michael Bolton and was used by Tupac Shakur for his posthumously released song “Do For Love”.

Other Caldwell songs have been sampled by hip hop artists including The Notorious B.I.G., Common, Lil Nas X and Chance the Rapper.

There are many stories, many of which were posted on social media after his death, about listeners who were surprised to learn that Caldwell was white and not black.

Caldwell only appeared in silhouette on his self-titled debut solo album, on which “What You Won’t Do for Love” appears.

“Caldwell was the final chapter in a generation where record company executives wanted to hide their faces on album covers, so maybe their artists would have had a chance,” Questlove wrote on Instagram.

“Thank you for your vote and #BobbyCaldwell gift,” Questlove wrote.

Chance the Rapper shared a screenshot of a direct messaging with Caldwell on Instagram last year when he asked to use his music.

“I would be honored if you try my song,” Caldwell wrote.

“You are such an inspiration to me and so many others,” Chance told him. In the post, he said he had never been thanked for sampling a song before and “hadn’t felt overwhelmed for a long time when a stranger walks by.”

Born in New York and raised in Miami, Caldwell was the son of singers who hosted a musical variety TV show called “Suppertime”. A multi-instrumentalist, he began performing professionally at age 17 and took a break in the early 1970s playing guitar in Little Richard’s band. In the mid-70s, Caldwell played in various Los Angeles bar bands before landing a solo recording deal.

Caldwell would never have a hit that came close to “What You Won’t Do for Love” in fame, but he released several respected albums, including “Cat in the Hat” from the 1980s, on the cover of which he showed up with a hat. – and “Carry On” in 1982, in which he was his own producer and played all the instruments.

His song “Open Your Eyes” from “Cat in the Hat” was performed by John Legend and used by Common for his Grammy-nominated single “The Light” in 2000.

In the 1990s, Caldwell moved to recording and playing American standards, including songs made popular by Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole, whom he loved as a youngster.

In addition to Mary, his 19-year-old wife, Caldwell is survived by daughters Lauren and Tessa and stepdaughter Kathy.