Wayne Osmond, singer with The Osmonds, dies at 73

Wayne Osmond, a founding member of the family group The Osmonds, who had several hits in the 1970s, has died aged 73.

Wayne was a singer and guitarist, and co-wrote some of their biggest hits, including Crazy Horses, Goin’ Home And Let Me In.

“Wayne brought light, laughter, and love to everyone who knew him, especially me,” wrote brother Donny. “He was very determined and loved by everyone.”

Merrill Osmond called his late brother “brilliant in his songwriting skills” who “captured the hearts of millions of people and brought them closer to God”.

He continued: “I have never known a person who was so humble.

Merrill and Donny said the cause of death was a stroke.

Wayne was born in August 1951, in Ogden, Utah, and was the fourth of nine children and grew up in a Mormon family.

As a child, he began playing in a barbershop quartet with his brothers Alan, Merrill and Jay.

By 1961, the brothers were regular performers at Disneyland in California. The following year, they made their TV debut on The Andy Williams Show.

They quickly became regulars on the show, nicknamed “one of the Osmonds” for their flawless, tirelessly repetitive performances.

His younger brother Donny joined the band in 1963, and began to expand their repertoire to include cutting edge pop music.

Their first album did well but, as the success of the Jackson 5 showed that pop could be a commercial success, MGM Records signed the group and sent them to work at the famous R&B studio Muscle Shoals.

There, he was given a song called One Bad Apple, which was originally written for Jackson but was rejected by their record label.

Perky, catchy and bright, the song topped the US singles chart for five weeks in 1971 and established the group as a chart topper, a decade after their professional debut.

For a while, the brothers produced a sound similar to that of The Beatles.

When the band flew into Heathrow Airport in 1973, 10,000 young fans packed the roof gardens of a nearby office to watch them arrive. Part of the balcony rail and wall fell into the crowd, and 18 women were slightly injured.

At departure, hundreds of fans chased their motorcade. A New York Times reporter said:they had a chance to escape alive“, when the Guardian reported the incident almost brought a ban for pop groups entering the UK via Heathrow.

But pop is a fickle business, and The Osmonds’ sales began to falter in the mid-1970s.

At the same time, Donny and Marie Osmond were given their own TV show, which became very popular in the US and was shown on BBC One in the UK.

As a result, the group went into hiatus and eventually disbanded in 1980, although it continued to host regional events and reunion tours over the next few decades.

Wayne Osmond had several illnesses throughout his life. He was diagnosed with a brain tumor as a child, which caused cognitive impairment.

In 1994, he saw that the problem was getting worse.

“I found that I could no longer play my saxophone because my head would start pounding,” then he remembered. “And my knees were falling off the floor when I was on stage. It all started happening in less than a week.”

Subsequent surgery and cancer-related chemotherapy resulted in hearing loss that lasted the rest of his life. He also suffered a previous stroke in 2012.

In 2019, the singer joined his brothers Alan, Merrill and Jay on their final TV show The Talk.

Performing in front of a screen that showed the highlights of their career, the original quartet sang a song called The Last Chapter, written as a thank you to their fans.

Sister Marie, who hosted the show, joined them later to pay tribute, saying: “I’m so honored to be your sister. I love you guys. You’ve worked hard. Enjoy your retirement.”

Wayne retired from work enjoying hobbies including fly fishing, and spending time with his family. He remained optimistic, telling Utah’s Desert News that the hearing didn’t bother him.

“My favorite thing now is taking care of my yard,” he said. “I turn off my hearing aids, as deaf as a doorknob, and let it all out, it’s fun.”

He is survived by his wife Kathlyn and five children, Amy, Steven, Gregory, Sarah and Michelle.

He is also survived by his eight siblings: Virl, Tom, Alan, Merrill, Jay, Donny, Marie and Jimmy.