Award-Winning R&B Singer Arthur ‘Pooch’ Tavares Dies At 81

Arthur “Pooch” Tavares, a lead singer for the Grammy award-winning American group Tavares, has reportedly died at the age of 81. The group famously recorded several tracks on the ‘Saturday Night Fever’ soundtrack, which is among the best-selling soundtracks ever produced.

He was known for voicing such hits as “Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel” and “More Than a Woman.”

There were over 40 million copies of the soundtrack to Saturday Night Fever sold. The biggest hit on the album was ‘Stayin Alive,’ the thumping Bee Gees hit that soared to number one on the Billboard top 100 shortly after its release in 1977.

Born in New England to a family of five brothers, Arthur Tavares’ band was made up of his brothers. They started performing together back in 1959. Joey Kramer, who would later become a drummer for Aerosmith, and Bernie Worrell were also brief members of the group during the 1960s.

In 1974, Tavares and his brothers hit No. 1 on the R&B music charts with a cover of the Hall and Oates song ‘She’s Gone.’ The group also had hits with “Remember What I Told You to Forget” and “It Only Takes a Minute,” as well as “Whodunit,” in 1977.

Their first hit was “Check it Out.”

“More Than a Woman,” was a song that Tavares recorded for that record-breaking soundtrack of Saturday Night Fever, and was written for the late singer by the Bee Gees. Tavares’ last release as a group would be “Words and Music,” released in 1983.

Tavares and his brothers are in the Cape Verdean Museum Hall of Fame and the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame and were additionally given a lifetime achievement award at the The National R&B Music Society Black Tie Gala.

Tavares was a legendary singer, iconic, decorated, and accomplished. His work wil lfar outlive his body. May he rest in peace!