The Heartbreaking Death Of Jay And The Americans Frontman Jay Black

Everyone knows the song "This Magic Moment." The man behind the beloved tune, Jay Black, has died, as confirmed by the New York Post. He was 82. The iconic frontman suffered from complications of pneumonia, according to his son, Jason Blatt, who also told The New York Times his father went into cardiac arrest, and had dementia. The outlet notes Black, whose real name was David Blatt, was behind other well-known hits like "Come a Little Bit Closer," "Some Enchanted Evening," and "Cara Mia."

As for why he changed his first name, well, it was to align with the band's name, because interestingly, Black was not the original Jay associated with the band — Jay Traynor was the original frontman, per NPR. As for his last name, as the singer explained in 2014, "I was on the Mike Douglas show. One day, Mike asked me what my last name was and I mumbled Blatt, but he heard Black. He said, 'Black?' I said yes, a little lie. But everyone loved the name. Mike Douglas died without knowing he named me."

Jay and the Americans shared the news of Black's death on Facebook, writing, "Today, we mourn the passing of David Blatt a/k/a Jay Black and we acknowledge the great successes we had with him both as a partner and as a lead singer. We shared both wonderful and very contentious times, and much like an ex-wife, we are so proud of the beautiful children we created. We'll always remember The Voice."