Founding Member of the Whispers Has Died

Gordy Harmon from The Whispers has died at age 79...

From ABC 7

Jazz and soul musician Gordy Harmon, a founding member of the R&B group The Whispers, died Thursday in his sleep at his Los Angeles home, his family tells Eyewitness News.

Harmon was 79.

The Whispers were formed in the Los Angeles area in the early 1960s, but hit the peak of their fame in the 1980s with hits "And the Beat Goes On" and "Rock Steady," both hitting No. 1 on the R&B charts.

Harmon left the group after an injury to his larynx in 1973, group members recalled in a 2017 interview with the Los Angeles Sentinel about the founding of the band.