Jay Black

American singer (1938–2021)
the singer

Jay Black (born David Blatt; November 2, 1938

Black was born in Astoria, Queens and grew up in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Borough Park. In his later career, he was known for touring New York State and Florida, singing, mainly solo, and preceding his singing with a comedy routine. Jay and his brother spoke Yiddish fluently. In 1966, he recorded a Yiddish song "Where Is My Village" about the Holocaust. He had four children, one of whom is American musician and singer songwriter Beau Black.

Jay Black was the second, and more widely known, Jay to lead the band Jay and the Americans, the first being Jay Traynor. Black had previously come from the doo wop group The Empires, where he had sung lead on their 1962 lone Epic Records single "Time and a Place" b/w "Punch Your Nose" (Epic 5 9527). He had previously used David Black as his professional name, but changed his first name to suit the band's existing name. He would later bill himself as "Jay Black and the Americans" after the original band had broken up. The band had numerous hits, including "Come a Little Bit Closer", "Cara Mia", and "This Magic Moment". In 2006, Black completed bankruptcy proceedings in Manhattan, after he accrued a $500,000 debt in back taxes to the IRS as a result of his gambling addiction.

In a 2014 interview, Black suggested that he might have been suffering from the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, but that was not officially diagnosed. Black died from pneumonia in Queens on October 22, 2021.

YearAlbum1962She Cried1962At the Cafe Wha? (Live Album)1964Come a Little Bit Closer1965Blockbusters1966Sunday and MeLivin' Above Your Head1967Try Some of This!1969Sands of Time1970Wax MuseumWax Museum, Vol. 2Capture the Moment