The death of 'Hungry Eyes' singer Eric Carmen

Eric Carmen was a musical legend of the 70s who left us a collection of memorable hits. He passed away in March 2024 but his musical legacy will live on forever.

His wife, Amy Carmen, confirmed the sad news on the musician's website. However, the causes of death of the artist, who was 74 years old, are not specified.

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"It is with tremendous sadness that we share the heartbreaking news of the passing of Eric Carmen. Our sweet, loving and talented Eric passed away in his sleep over the weekend," the statement said.

Photo: ericcarmen .com

"It brought him great joy to know, that for decades, his music touched so many and will be his lasting legacy. Please respect the family’s privacy as we mourn our enormous loss," she concludes.

As a final farewell, Amy Carmen shared a recognisable phrase: "Love is all that matters.... Faithful and forever", a fragment of one of his most recognisable songs, 'Love Is All That Matters', included in the album 'Boats Against The Current' (1977).

Over a career spanning more than 40 years, Eric Carmen left a trail of marvellous songs. At the start, as the leader and vocalist of the Raspberries (1972-1975).

With the Power Pop group they had hits such as 'Let's Pretend', 'Overnight Sensation' and 'I Wanna Be With You'; although their biggest hit was 'Go All The Way', which was even banned on some radio stations because of the insinuations in its lyrics.

But, it was as a soloist that Eric Carmen reached the Olympus of romantic songwriters par excellence. His high-pitched songs have continued to be heard for decades and have been used in films such as 'Bridget Jones'.

'All By Myself' and 'Never Gonna Fall In Love Again', both based on Rachmaninoff symphonies, brought him international glory in 1975 and 1976, as did his first two solo singles.

After a quiet decade, never achieving the success of these two ballads, Eric Carmen returned to the top thanks to Hollywood and two cult films of the 80s: 'Footloose' (1984) and 'Dirty Dancing' (1987).

For 'Footloose', he co-created 'Almost Paradise', while for the most popular love story of the decade, 'Dirty Dancing', he released 'Hungry Eyes', becoming a benchmark for love in two consecutive decades.

After a quieter 1990s, Eric Carmen returned to the stage in 2000, joining Ringo Starr and the All-Starr Band on tour with them.

Four years later, in 2004, Eric Carmen rejoined the Raspberries for several special concerts that delighted their die-hard fans.

The artist released his last single in 2013: 'Brand New Year'.

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