ABOVE: Eric Carmen, here on stage in 1975. Photo: Tom Hill / WireImage
The man behind “All By Myself” and one of the big “Dirty Dancing” hits has passed away.
Tuesday 12 March at 12:39 p.m
Rock artist Eric Carmen from Ohio died this weekend, his wife Amy reports on the artist’s death website. He was 74.
– It is with enormous sadness that we share the crushing news of the passing of our dear Eric. Our kind, loving and talented Eric died in his sleep, she writes.
– It pleased him greatly to know that over the decades his music moved so many and will remain as his legacy.
MOURNER: Paul Stanley. Photo: Evan Agostini / AP / NTB
Carmen first became known as the frontman of the power pop band The Raspberries, who had a big hit with “Go All The Way”.
– Terrible news, writes Kiss vocalist Paul Stanley X/Twitter.
– Eric was a real rocker at heart. His voice had elements of McCartney and Steve Marriott. The Raspberries played concerts with us. A brilliant band live and I loved their records.
COURTESY: Steven Van Zandt. Photo: ANGELA WEISS / AFP / NTB
Bruce Springsteen’s right-hand man and Norwegian friend Steven Van Zandt also reports grief over a friend who is gone X/Twitter.
– The Raspberries set a production standard we still strive for, he writes.
SHELVES: Slash. Photo: CHRISTOPHER PIKE / Reuters / NTB
Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash announces “rest in peace”. X/Twitter.
SINGING CARMEN HIT: Celine Dion. Photo: GAEL CORNIER / AP / NTB
As a solo artist, Carmen had a big hit in 1976 with “All By Myself”.
The song would become an even bigger hit 20 years later, in the form of Celine Dion’s cover version.
BIG MOVIE: “Dirty Dancing”, here shown on the big screen outdoors in New York during the pandemic in 2020. Photo: Mark Lennihan / AP / NTB
In 1987, Carmen recorded a song he did not write himself, which became a new big hit: “Hungry Eyes”.
The song was central to the film success “Dirty Dancing”, whose soundtrack album is one of the best-selling of all time.
“Hungry Eyes” became the third major single hit from the film, following the Bill Medley/Jennifer Warnes duet “(I’ve Had) The Time Of My Life” and lead actor Patrick Swayze’s “She’s Like The Wind.”
In retrospect, “Hungry Eyes” seems to be the best remembered of these three.
On Spotify it has over 472 million plays, while the duet has 440 million and Swayze’s song has 205 million.
PLAYED WITH RINGO: Eric Carmen was for a time guitarist in Beatles drummer Ringo Starr’s band, here together in 2000. Photo: KATHY WILLENS / AP / NTB
No specific cause of death has been given for Carmen. He had two children from a previous marriage.
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