R.I.P. Jimi Jamison

Jimi Jamison

R.I.P. Jimi Jamison

Jimi Jamison

TMZ reports that Jimi Jamison, frontman of the ’80s rock band Survivor, died of a heart attack at home in Memphis last night. He was 63. A Memphis native, Jamison joined Survivor after singing for the local metal band Cobra. Survivor were already big names thanks to their iconically cheesed-out anthem “Eye Of The Tiger,” but original vocalist Dave Bickler had to leave the band because of vocal problems, and Jamison stepped in. With Jamison leading, the band scored a number of other hits, including “Is This Love?,” “The Search Is Over,” “High On You,” and the Rocky IV training-montage song “Burning Heart.” Jamison also sang and co-wrote the theme to the TV show Baywatch. All told, his career encompasses a sort of shameless, synthed-up, often genuinely exciting synth-rock that nobody makes anymore, a style that works as an instant nostalgia-trigger to anyone who was a kid in the ’80s. Jamison released a few solo albums in the years after and also intermittently toured and recorded with Survivor. He’d just performed with the band in California on Saturday night. Below, watch Survivor’s video for “Burning Heart.”

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