Across the decades, a number of family bands have captivated music fans, from the Jackson Five to the Jonas Brothers. Among the successful siblings groups were The Sylvers.
The R&B group was originally formed as The Little Angels in the 50s and featured the four eldest Sylvers siblings: Olympia, Leon III, Charmaine, and James. By the 70s, they were going by The Sylvers with more of their siblings joining the group. A total of nine of the ten siblings were part of the band across their career.
The Sylvers went from child stars to topping the charts with their smash November 1975 single, Boogie Fever. But in 1985, their success came to halt when they disbanded.
50 years on from their hit number one track, see where the band are now, including a recent heartbreaking loss they suffered.
© Getty ImagesThey disbanded in the 80s
The 70s was a pivotal decade for the band. In 1972, they released the single Fool's Paradise which climbed to number 14 on the R&B charts. They followed that with hits like Boogie Fever, Hot Line and High School Dance. But by the mid-80s, the group had gone their separate ways following a run of several albums, including The Sylvers, The Sylvers 2 and The Sylvers 3.
The decade was also a time of personal tragedy for the family. In June 1985, the youngest Sylvers sibling, Christopher, tragically passed away from hepatitis. He was 18 years old. Christopher had remained out of the spotlight during his family's rise to fame as he was never part of the band.
The eldest male Sylvers sibling, Leon, opened up about the challenges the band faced in a rare 2022 interview.
"When I was out of the group it was this manager that, uh, he wasn't too good to me but I wanted to get into production and they wanted me to shave the beard and mustache. Well, I didn't have a beard. I had a mustache though. They wanted to take that off and I wouldn't have it," Leon recalled to Music and Medicine.
"When I started producing it was cool, you know. After that everybody still was together but I was the only one gone and I started producing at SOLAR records with Dick Griffey."
Post-band success
While many of the members have kept a low profile and transitioned away from music since going their separate ways creatively, Lyon Sylvers III, the eldest of the male siblings, went on to become a force behind-the-scenes as a renowned producer.
He left the group to join Dick Griffey's label, SOLAR Records, and worked alongside artists such as The Whispers and Shalamar, and co-created the group Dynasty. His younger brother Foster Sylvers also pursued music, going on to form the band Hy-Tech in 1989.
More than four decades after their hit single Boogie Fever, several members of the family group reunited for an ultra-rare performance together in September 2017 at Pasadena's The Rose Theater.
Another heartbreaking loss
© Getty ImagesEarlier this year, the family suffered a devastating loss when Foster Sylvers died aged 64 after a battle with stage four pancreatic cancer. Foster joined the family band in the 70s following the release of his 1973 self-titled debut album and solo track, Misdemeanor, when he was just 11 years old.
The former child star died in hospice care, according to his brother Leon. The family have also endured the loss of brothers Christopher and Edmund, who passed away in 2004.
