Obituary: Al Jarreau, versatile singer who never made the big time

Al Jarreau, the American singer who died last Sunday at the age of 76, was perhaps best known abroad for his rendition in 1985 of the theme tune to Moonlighting, the offbeat TV detective series; among his peers and by critics, however, he was regarded as having the best jazz voice of his generation, leading him to be known as 'the Acrobat of Scat'.

Moonlighting starred Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis, the latter cast against type in a star-making turn as a cocky private eye, but while the theme (to which Jarreau also wrote the lyrics) was appropriately smooth, it gave little idea of his vocal potential. Indeed, his very versatility probably hindered him from having wider commercial success.

Although well viewed within the industry - despite his low profile in pop, he featured on the charity record We Are the World - Jarreau had few real hits. Instead, he was arguably best appreciated in concert, where he was able to showcase his remarkable range, technical ability and improvisational verve. "He doesn't so much sing as play his voice," observed one journalist.

Some critics felt that Jarreau lacked emotion, but in a career that began comparatively late he nevertheless won seven Grammys and was nominated for a dozen more. He remains the only singer to have won in all three categories of jazz, pop and R&B.

Alwin Lopez Jarreau was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on March 12 1940. The fifth of six children, he was the son of a Seventh Day Adventist minister.

Both his parents were musical, his father singing and his mother playing the piano in church, where he too gave his earliest performances.

At school, he was a talented basketball player. He then studied psychology at the University of Iowa and, after taking a master's degree, trained in vocational rehabilitation, helping those with mental difficulties and disabilities to find work.

During the 1960s, he was a counsellor in San Francisco. Yet he began to find his caseload overwhelming and eventually committed himself to music.

For some years he appeared with a jazz trio led by George Duke and, after moving to Los Angeles, started to gain attention as a vocalist in his own right.

He appeared on TV shows hosted by Johnny Carson and David Frost and, on Valentine's Day 1976, on one of the first episodes of the satirical programme Saturday Night Live.

That same year, already aged 36, he released his first LP, We Got By. It received good reviews and he steadily consolidated his appeal, culminating in the album Breakin' Away (1981).

As well as revealing his stylistic reach, it yielded his only major pop hit, We're in This Love Together. It made the top 15 on the US Billboard chart and won a Grammy for best pop vocal.

Jarreau went on to record another 20 LPs, experimenting with genres from rock to reggae. L is for Lover (1986), for instance, was produced by the pharaoh of disco-funk, Nile Rodgers.

Jarreau himself cited his many influences as including not only jazz singers but also R&B performers such as James Brown and Sly Stone, as well as Jimi Hendrix.

During the '90s, Jarreau took an extended break from the studio, appearing on Broadway in a production of Grease. He also maintained a heavy touring schedule into old age, and in recent years had twice been hospitalised while on the road. Having been diagnosed as suffering from exhaustion, he announced his retirement just two days before his death.

He was married, from 1964 to 1968, to Phyllis Hall. After their divorce, he married, in 1977, Susan Player. She survives him with their son Ryan.

1940-2017