LaMonte McLemore has died aged 90.
The singer – who was a founding member of the vocal group The 5th Dimension, who enjoyed chart success in the 60s and 70s – passed away on Tuesday (03.02.26) at his home in Las Vegas.
McLemore died of natural causes after having a stroke, his representative, Jeremy Westby, has confirmed.
The singer was born in St. Louis, and served in the US Navy – where he worked as an aerial photographer – before finding success in the music business.
McLemore first ventured into the music world with the Hi-Fi’s, a jazz ensemble that also featured his future 5th Dimension bandmate Marilyn McCoo.
The group actually opened for Ray Charles in 1963, before going their separate ways in the following year.
McLemore and McCoo subsequently joined forces with two of their childhood friends, Billy Davis Jr. and Ronald Towson, to form a group known as the Versatiles. The group were later joined by Florence LaRue, whom McLemore met through his photography work.
The group signed to Soul City Records in 1965 and changed their name to The 5th Dimension. They enjoyed their breakthrough hit in 1967, when they released their own version of the Mamas and the Papas’ song Go Where You Wanna Go.
Later that year, The 5th Dimension released Up, Up and Away, which reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned them four Grammy Awards, including record of the year, best contemporary single, best performance by a vocal group and best contemporary group performance.
The 5th Dimension’s commercial success peaked in 1969, when they released Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In. The single symbolised the ideals of love and peace, and spent six weeks at the top of the US charts.
What’s more, the chart-topping song also won the Grammy for record of the year and best contemporary vocal performance by a group.
McLemore is survived by his wife of 30 years, Mieko McLemore, as well as their daughter Ciara and their son Darin.
