Three Dog Night is bidding a bittersweet farewell to its co-founder Chuck Negron after the rocker’s death at age 83.
News broke on February 2 that Negron passed away after battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and heart failure. He is survived by his wife, Ami Albea Negron, and their five children.
Born Charles Negron II, he joined Danny Hutton and Cory Wells to form Three Dog Night in 1967, which quickly went on to become one of the most dominant acts of the late 1960s and early 1970s, scoring nearly two dozen Top 40 hits. Negron’s powerhouse vocals anchored classics like Joy To The World (Jeremiah Was A Bullfrog), One (Is The Loneliest Number), Easy To Be Hard, and Old Fashioned Love Song.
But behind the scenes, the success came at a cost. Internal tensions and Negron’s struggles with addiction eventually derailed his time with the group, at one point leaving him homeless. After years of recovery efforts, he rebuilt his life, launching a solo career in the 1990s and becoming a vocal advocate for addiction recovery.
Upon hearing the news of Negron’s death, founding member Danny Hutton — who is currently touring as Three Dog Night — took to social media to pay his respects.
“I received the news today that my former bandmate from Three Dog Night, Chuck Negron, passed away peacefully at his home,” Hutton began, before revealing that the pair had reconciled months before Negron’s death.
“When Chuck left the band 40 years ago, we rarely spoke and lost touch for much of that time. Five months ago his wife Ami called to tell me he was very sick, and I decided I should go see him,” Hutton shared. “When I arrived at his house, we hugged, cried, reminisced, and shared many stories. In that moment, we realized how much time had been lost by not being in each other’s lives. It was a beautiful and deeply meaningful reunion.”
Hutton went on to call Negron a “phenomenal singer” as well as a “good college basketball player.”
“I will always be grateful for the music we made together,” he concluded.
