Dave Logginsa singer-songwriter whose song “Please Come to Boston” was a memorable hit in 1974, died Wednesday at Alive Hospice in Nashville. He was 76; no cause of death was given.
With “Please Come to Boston” as his only solo hit, Loggins, a first cousin of pop star Kenny Loggins, was sometimes called a one-hit wonder. But he also had a very successful career as a songwriter, primarily for country artists.
And in an unquantifiable sense, his greatest “hit” may well be the theme song he wrote for the Augusta Masters golf tournament, which has been in use since 1982. An obituary placed in the Tennessean claims that the golf theme is “the oldest sports theme in history.”
He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1995.
The plaintive song “Please Come to Boston,” about lovers who can’t or won’t overcome the obstacles that would force them to live in the same city, has long been an anthem for music fans who couldn’t make a long-distance relationship happen. In 1974, it reached number one on the then-easy listening chart (since renamed adult contemporary) and number five on the Billboard Hot 100. It earned him a Grammy nomination for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, the first of his four Grammy nominations.
In total, Loggins released five albums and 13 songs in the 1970s, mostly on Epic Records, but “Boston” remained his only solo recording to achieve widespread public success.
He found success again in the ’80s, however, with a duet with Anne Murray on the song “Nobody Loves Me Like You Do,” a song that originated on the CBS soap opera “As the World Turns.” Murray and Loggins performed the song on the show. (It was also recorded separately by Jermaine Jackson and a young Whitney Houston.) The collaborative recording reached No. 1 on Billboard’s country chart and No. 10 on the Hot AC chart.
In 1985, Murray and Loggins shared the CMA Award for Vocal Duo of the Year for the success of “Nobody Loves Me Like You Do.” According to his obituary in the Tennessean, Loggins became the only unsigned artist to win a CMA Award. The duo was also nominated for a Grammy for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group.
Artists who have recorded his songs include Willie Nelson, Joan Baez, Ray Charles, Tanya Tucker, Toby Keith, Reba McEntire, Alabama, Wynonna Judd, Johnny Cash, Three Dog Night, Don Williams, Lee Greenwood, Smokey Robinson, Crystal Gayle, John Conlee and Restless Heart. Two of his compositions, Kenny Rogers’ “Morning Desire” and Juice Newton’s “You Make Me Want to Make You Mine,” reached number one on the country charts.
His Masters theme had a name, “Augusta,” and mostly unpublished lyrics. He wrote it after playing golf at the venue in 1981, and it was picked up for use on the network — sans lyrics — the following year.
In 2019, Loggins told the Associated Press: “I stopped for a minute, looked at the pine trees, and the wind out there was different in some ways. Spiritually, it was different. That course was just a work of art. I looked at some dogwood trees and, boy, I started writing the song in my head, which is what I do when I’m inspired. I had the first verse before I even left the course.”
In 2021, he discussed his career in a podcast “All Things Vocal” interview He met Judy Rodman, who called him a “lone genius.” He told Rodman that he was influenced by the finger-picking style of artists like Donovan. “One day I walked into Capitol Records (on Music Row in Nashville) and asked, ‘Is anybody here listening to songs?'” He found a willing listener, and Jerry Crutchfield signed him to a publishing deal when he was 22. The folk label Vanguard released his first album before he moved to Epic.
Loggins is survived by three sons, Quinn Loggins, Kyle Loggins and Dylan Loggins, as well as his grandson, Braxton Loggins.
At Loggins’ request, there will be no funeral. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Alive Hospice of Nashville.
