William “Poogie” Hart Dies: Lead Singer Of Hit-Making ’70s Group The Delfonics Was 77

deadline.com:

William Hart, the lead singer of the hit-making Philly Soul group the Delfonics, died Thursday at a Philadelphia hospital following complications from surgery.

He was 77.Hart, known to friends and fans as Poogie, was a founding member and chief songwriter of the group, and had one of the purest falsettos in the Philadelphia-based soul music of the late 1960s and ’70s.

His aching, heartfelt tones were demonstrated on the group’s classic hits “La-La Means I Love You” (1968) and, perhaps most enduringly, the Grammy-winning “Didn’t I Blow Your Mind This Time” (released in 1969, a hit in 1970).Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo GalleryHart’s death was confirmed by his brother and co-founding bandmate Wilbert Hart, who wrote on Facebook, “R I P.

My. Brother. William. Poogie. Delfonic. Hart”See the group perform the “Didn’t I Blow Your Mind This Time” below.The Hart brothers co-founded the group (originally called The Orphonics) in Philadelphia in the mid-1960s, and were later joined by singers Major Harris and Randy Cain.