Maurice Williams, the doo-wop legend behind ‘Stay’, has died aged 86.
The news was confirmed by former Zodiacs member Ron Henderson Jr. on social media, who asked that people respect the privacy of his wife and said, “we’ve lost another icon.”
No cause of death has yet been reported.
Williams performed the hit track ‘Stay’ track with The Zodiacs in 1960. It went on to be the shortest Number One in Billboard Hot 100 history and was covered extensively by the likes of the Hollies, Jackson Browne, the Four Seasons and Cyndi Lauper.
Decades later, the song featured in Dirty Dancing, and became a hit with a different generation. Williams wrote the track when he was 15 years old, inspired by his high-school sweetheart.
He later told ClassicBands it only took him half an hour to write. “It took me about 30 minutes to write ‘Stay,’ then I threw it away,” he said. “We were looking for songs to record as Maurice Williams & The Zodiacs.
“I was over at my girlfriend’s house playing the tape of songs I had written when her little sister said: ‘Please do the song with the high voice in it.’ I knew she meant ‘Stay.’ She was about 12 years old and I said to myself, ‘She’s the age of record buying,’ and the rest is history. I thank God for her.”
The ‘College Girl’ singer grew up in Lancaster, South Carolina. He had a musical upbringing and would sing in church and take piano lessons from his sister. Influenced by groups like the Orioles, he formed a gospel group, named the Junior Harmonizers with Earl Gainey, a friend from Barr Street High School.
At 16, he and the additional members of the group – William Massey, Willie Jones and Norman Wade – went to Nashville for an audition, and secured a contract with Excello Records and were renamed the Gladiolas.
‘Little Darlin’ was their first hit and went on the feature in American Graffiti. In 1960, another name change came after the group saw a Ford Zodiac in a showroom. They signed with Herald Records, and Williams dug up the ‘Stay’ demo.
After record exec Al Silver suggested he change the line “another smoke” to “another dance”, they soon had a radio hit on their hands. To date, the song has sold 32million copies around the world.
Maurice was a long-standing member of New Emmanuel United Church of Christ, where he served on the Trustee Board and sang on choir. It was noted on his obituary that “Maurice loved his church and was a very active member until he became ill. He was always kind and loving to those who knew him.”
Williams is survived by wife of 63 years.
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