Singer-songwriter Terry Kirkman, founding member of the Association, dies at 83
Terry Kirkman, singer, songwriter and founding member of the 1960s folk-rock band the Association, has died. He was 83.
The musician died Saturday at his home in Montclair, his wife, Heidi Berinstein Kirkman, confirmed to the Los Angeles Times. He died of congestive heart failure following a long illness.
“On a personal level, Terry was a beloved member of the Los Angeles recovery community for 38 years,” Berinstein Kirkman said in an email to The Times.
“Everything else is a blur, I’m afraid. He was an extraordinary man and the love of my life for 35 years.”
Kirkman formed the Association alongside guitarist Jules Gary Alexander and others in Los Angeles in 1965. The group comprised a large ensemble of vocalists and instrumentalists who blended a variety of sounds — from pop and rock to folk and psychedelic — in perfect harmony.
Larry Ramos, 72, a singer and guitarist who harmonized on the hit songs “Windy” and “Never My Love” for the Association in the 1960s, died Wednesday in Clarkston, Wash., his family announced.
In addition to lending his vocals, Kirkman penned a number of songs for the Association, including the popular tracks “Everything That Touches You” and “Cherish.”
Before Kirkman departed the Association in 1972, the band was nominated for six Grammy Awards, including three — contemporary rock ’n’ roll group performance, performance by a vocal group and contemporary rock ’n’ roll recording — for “Cherish.” Kirkman returned when the band reunited in 1979, before leaving again in 1984.
In 2003, Kirkman and other members of the Association were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.
Outside of his work for the Association, Kirkman was proud to serve as clinical director of the Musicians Assistance Program — now known as MusiCares — where he helped artists experiencing addiction.
Kirkman is survived by his wife, his daughter Sasha, his son-in-law and two grandchildren.
As the Band’s chief songwriter, Robertson turned American folklore into modern myths, a knack that gave a timeless quality to songs such as “The Weight.”
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