Foster Sylvers, a former child star and key member of the 1970s family music group The Sylvers, has passed away at the age of 64.
According to his brother Leon Sylvers III, Foster succumbed to stage four pancreatic cancer while in hospice care, as reported by TMZ.
Foster played bass for The Sylvers, a band renowned for hit tracks like “Boogie Fever,” “Fool’s Paradise,” and “Hot Line,” which captivated audiences during their heyday.
The Sylvers family has unfortunately faced tragedy before, with Edmund Sylvers passing away from lung cancer in 2004.
In another heartbreaking loss, their youngest sibling, Christopher Sylvers, died in 1985 at the young age of 18.
In the wake of his death, Foster’s daughter Erin Sylvers shared a photo of her dad on Facebook and captioned, ‘Rest well, Daddy. I love you so much.’
Former child star Foster Sylvers, who rose to fame in the 70s alongside family group The Sylvers, has died at age 64; pictured in 1975
In the wake of his death, Foster’s daughter Erin Sylvers shared a photo of her dad on Facebook and captioned, ‘Rest well, Daddy. I love you so much’
Foster made his musical debut with a self-titled album in 1973, impressively released when he was just 11 years old.
Enlisting help from his older brother, music producer Leon Sylvers, the lead single Misdemeanor peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard R&B Singles chart.
In addition to singing, he played multiple instruments, and after his first album joined his siblings as The Sylvers.
The family band originally consisted of Olympia, Leon, Charmaine, and James, who performed as The Little Angels, per Soul Tracks.
He also performed as a bassist in support of acts including Evelyn ‘Champaign’ King and Dynasty.
The Sylvers disbanded in 1985 after releasing three albums under MGM/Pride – The Sylvers, The Sylvers 2, and The Sylvers 3.
Foster went on to created the band Hy-Tech in 1989.
L-R Pat, James, Foster, Edmund, Ricky and Angie Sylvers in 1978
Foster’s self-titled debut album came out when he was just 11 years old in 1973; pictured in 1974
Foster pictured with record store owner Kevin H. Donan in a 2017 Facebook post
Kevin H. Donan, who owns a record store in Hollywood, used Facebook to share his thoughts on Foster in the wake of his death.
He shared old photos with the musician and wrote, ‘Foster Sylvers and I met at the Sylvers family home in Bel-Air home when I first arrived in 1978 from Flint, Michigan.
‘I started producing 4 track demos with the family brothers Edmund, Ricky, and sister Pat in Hollywood. Working with the Sylvers and hearing your work from demo tape to finally vinyl on Casablanca Records put a smile my your [sic] face.
‘My heart goes out to the entire Sylvers’ family in prayer. Rest in music Heaven my friend.’
And musician Lawrence “L*A*W” Worrell used Instagram to reflect, ‘I watched you fight this thing in the last 2 times I saw you, but I’d rather remember the time I ran the sound for the rehearsal for the official Sylvers music reunion.’
He wrote elsewhere in the post, ‘Already missing our talks on everything and the way you beamed with pride when I came to town to work with you.’
