Remembering the joyous sounds of Negron, Three Dog Night

Joyous. That's just about the only word that comes to mind when thinking about the music of Three Dog Night. By the time I heard their songs in the late 1980s, the band — which originally consisted of singers Chuck Negron, Danny Hutton and Cory Wells — was long past its peak. They hadn't had any hits in more than 15 years. And Negron — dismissed from the group in 1985 — was still dealing with a serious addiction to drugs and alcohol. But as a kid who was just beginning to be introduced to rock, the music was all that mattered. And when Three Dog Night's "Celebrate" came over the airwaves, it was such a good feeling. There were the harmonies of Negron, Wells and Hutton — a staple of most of the group's hits — and horns provided by another classic band, Chicago. Even now, it's still a song — and a feeling — that's difficult to put into words. The lyrics in the chorus are so simple: "Celebrate, celebrate, dance to the music." The melody is lovely. The song, written by Gary Bonner and Alan Gordon, should be able to conjure up paragraphs of description. Yet only one word keeps coming back. Joyous. For Three Dog Night, "Celebrate" was one of 21 consecutive top 40 hits from 1969-1975. The group — which was augmented by a full band — didn't write its own music. Rather, it had success with some of the best songwriters of the era, charting with Randy Newman's "Mama Told Me Not to Come," Hoyt Axton's "Joy to the World," Laura Nyro's "Eli's Coming" and Harry Nilson's "One" Their hits helped bring those songwriters to the forefront of pop and rock. Maybe, it was their greatest impact on music. Of course, the recordings and performances also made a big impact. Three Dog Night's recording of "One" has always been special to me. The song begins with a haunting piano — played by Jimmy Greenspoon — which Nilson wrote after listening to a dial tone on a telephone. Negron's vocal — strong and soulful — is just as haunting. He sounded like someone who — vocally — could do no wrong. But offstage, Negron wasn't doing much right. He was in the middle of a heroin addiction, which eventually got him fired from the band. He very easily — by his own admission — could have become another rock and roll tragedy. Instead, he became a success story. Negron overcame his issues, becoming sober in 1991. He frequently shared his story of addiction and redemption. Negron continued to perform well into his 70s and was giving concerts until just before the COVID=19 Pandemic in 2020. He died this week at the age of 83. Three Dog Night remains active and touring, albeit with a different lineup. Hutton still leads the group, and guitarist Michael Allsup -- who joined the group early on -- also still plays. But time has taken its toll on the group. Wells and Greenspoon died a decade ago. Other band members from the group's "classic" era, like drummer Floyd Sneed and bassist Joe Schermie, have also passed on. There is an argument that Three Dog Night is underappreciated. It isn't in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, after all, though the inclusions and exclusions there rarely make any sense. In an interview with journalist Bill DeYoung of The Catalyst — a St. Petersburg, Florida news source — Hutton said he recently asked AI why Three Dog Night wasn't in. The answer came back that they didn't write their own songs and were a "cover band." Hutton then wondered how Joe Cocker and Linda Ronstadt got in, since they didn't write their own songs, either. Have to agree with Hutton there. But regardless, the band created great music and will be remembered for that. It was a joyous sound. That's what matters. Zach Baker is the sports editor for The Courier.