Al Jarreau, the only singer to win Grammys in the jazz, pop, and R&B categories, died Sunday at the age of 76, Variety reports. Jarreau hailed from Wisconsin but found success in Los Angeles, where he worked his way from the nightclub circuit to television appearances to the 1976 release of his first album, We Got By. His biggest hit was the 1981 album Breakin’ Away, featuring soft-rock staple “We’re in This Love Together,” which made the Billboard charts for pop, adult contemporary, and R&B:
Jarreau also sang the theme from Moonlighting, for which he wrote lyrics. The singer’s death was announced on his website, in a statement that focused on the empathy that motivated his career:
Whether it was emotional pain, or physical discomfort, or any other cause of suffering, he needed to put our minds at ease and our hearts at rest. He needed to see a warm, affirming smile where there had not been one before. Song was just his tool for making that happen.
Jarreau won his last Grammy in 2007, for his recording of “God Bless the Child” with singer Jill Scott and guitarist George Benson, on Benson and Jarreau’s collaborative album Givin’ It Up. He is survived by his wife and son.
