Biography

Negron was born in Manhattan, New York to a Puerto Rican father and a British mother. He grew up in The Bronx, where he sang in local doo-wop groups and played basketball both in schoolyard pick-up games and at Taft High School; the latter talent led to his being recruited to play college basketball at Allan Hancock College, a small community college in Santa Maria, California; later he played at California State University, Los Angeles.

Career

Music

In 1967, Negron's pal, singer Danny Hutton, invited Negron to join him and Cory Wells; they founded the band Three Dog Night. The group became one of the most successful bands of the late 1960s and early 1970s, having sold approximately 60 million records and earned gold records for such songs as "One", "Easy to be Hard", and "Joy to the World".

The rock and roll lifestyle took its toll on Negron, and by the time Three Dog Night disbanded in 1976, Negron had a serious heroin addiction which began in the early 1970s. In July 1975, the British music magazine, NME, reported that Negron had been arrested for cocaine possession in Kentucky.

He overcame his addiction in September 1991 and embarked on a solo career, recording the albums:

• Am I Still In Your Heart? (1995)
• Joy to the World (1996), a Christmas CD
• Long Road Back (1999)
• Chuck Negron - Live In Concert (2001), a double CD set, recorded at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and released on Sindrome Records, with sidemen Richard Campbell on bass guitar, Danny Mishkit on guitar, keyboards and saxophone, Frank Reina on drums and Terence Elliott on lead guitar
• Live and In Concert (2005)
• The Chuck Negron Story (2005)

Book

He also wrote his autobiography, Three Dog Nightmare (1999). In the book, Negron attributes his recovery from heroin addiction to his turning to God in desperation, after dropping out from more than 30 drug treatment facilities.

Personal life

In 2006, Negron was featured in an episode of the A&E reality show, Intervention, about his son Chuckie and grandson Noah Bryan Negron. Chuckie was later arrested and sent to state prison after being thrown out of rehab.

Negron also has a stepson, Berry Oakley, Jr., and three daughters: Annabelle Negron, with actress Kate Vernon; and Shaunti Ann Negron and Charlotte Rose Negron,, who performed with him at the Key Club. and at the Hollywood Bowl.

Negron's cousin was the late actor, comedian, painter, and playwright Taylor Negron.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]