The Association - Cherish (1966)(Stereo)

Terry Kirkman, a singer-songwriter whose tender vocals, intricate wordplay and expansive musicianship helped make his band the Association one of the biggest, most eclectic folk rock groups of the late 1960s, with hits that ranged from the chart-topping ballad “Cherish” to the antiwar song “Requiem for the Masses,” died Sept. 23 at his home in Montclair, Calif. He was 83.

The cause was congestive heart failure, said his wife, Heidi Berinstein Kirkman.

A versatile musician who played more than two-dozen instruments (tuba, sousaphone, recorder, sax), Mr. Kirkman was a founding member of the Association, a sunny Southern California band that got together in 1965, at the height of the folk music revival, and won over millions of listeners with their dreamy arrangements and sensuous, Beach Boys-esque harmonies.

Mr. Kirkman wrote and sang lead on the group’s first No. 1, “Cherish” (1966), which became a staple of wedding-reception slow dances. He had another Top 10 hit with his love song “Everything That Touches You” (1968), and shared lead vocals with guitarist Larry Ramos on “Never My Love” (1967), a laid-back pop tune by songwriters Don and Dick Addrisi, which went to No. 2 and was covered by the 5th Dimension.