Legendary Songwriter Chip Taylor, Best Known for ‘Wild Thing,’ Dead at 86
Chip Taylor, the Songwriters Hall of Fame member who penned some of the most recognizable rock and pop songs of the 20th century — including “Wild Thing” and “Angel of the Morning” — died Monday, March 23, in hospice care. He was 86.
His daughters, Kelly and Kristian, confirmed the death.
“His last days were peaceful. Chip loved the amazing blessing it was to connect with people through music and truly appreciated this community. He considered you all friends. We will miss him greatly,” his daughters wrote on Facebook.
Taylor had been diagnosed with throat cancer in 2023, a battle he documented on his album Behind the Sky, released in February 2024.
A Famous Family, a Musical Calling
Born James Wesley Voight on March 21, 1940, in Yonkers, New York, Taylor was one of three brothers born to Elmer and Barbara Voight.
His brother Jon Voight became an Oscar-winning actor. His niece is Angelina Jolie, Jon Voight’s daughter and also an Oscar-winning actress. His other brother, Barry Voight, is a geologist who invented a formula to predict volcanic eruptions.
“The three of us were very close in age, and we did all this stuff growing up,” Taylor told NPR in 2010. “Our mom and dad were very supportive of us being crazy, so we have wonderful days together.”
Their father, Elmer Voight, was a golfer who played in the U.S. Open in 1928 and 1929 and later served as a country club pro.
Taylor became passionate about music as a child, writing songs at the Brill Building while still a high school student. In 1957, he and his band, Wes Voight & the Town and Country Brothers, were signed by King Records.
He moved to Warner Bros. Records in 1962 and charted on the Hot 100 with “Here I Am.”
He later became a staff writer at April Blackwood Music, the publishing arm of CBS, where he signed Billy Vera and James Taylor.
Chip Taylor’s Songs Defined Generations
Taylor’s compositions were recorded and performed by dozens of famous musicians, cementing his place in popular music history.
His most famous song, “Wild Thing,” was written in 1965 and taken to No. 1 by The Troggs in July 1966.
“Angel of the Morning” was first recorded by Evie Sands in 1967. A later version by Merrilee Rush reached No. 7 on the Hot 100 in 1968, and Juice Newton’s 1981 recording sold over a million copies, peaked at No. 4, and became the first country song played on MTV.
Taylor also co-wrote “Try (Just a Little Bit Harder)” with Jerry Ragavoy, which was recorded by Janis Joplin in 1969 as the opening track of her debut album.
He also wrote “He Sits at Your Table,” recorded by Willie Nelson, among many others.
“I was an organic kind of producer. I was always fighting for emotion. That’s what I was best at,” he said of his work as a producer in a 2006 interview.
“I wasn’t a technical producer. I knew what I wanted things to sound like, but I wasn’t an engineer, so I didn’t know how to get them. But I knew what I didn’t like and fought hard to get what I liked,” he added.
A Career That Spanned Six Decades
Taylor recorded approximately two dozen albums over his career, including seven solo albums in the 1970s. He stepped away from music in 1981, transitioning from part-time to full-time professional gambling between 1981 and 1995.
He returned to music in 1995 and launched his own independent label, Train Wreck Records, in 2007.
In 2011, he released a children’s album, Golden Kids Rules, featuring his granddaughters. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2016.
Taylor is survived by his wife Joan, whom he married, divorced, and remarried; his two daughters; two brothers; and five grandchildren.
This article was created by content specialists using various tools, including AI.
