Angelina Jolie\u2019s legendary songwriter uncle has taken his final bow.<\/p>\n
Chip Taylor \u2014 the hitmaker behind the 1966 rock classic \u201cWild Thing\u201d \u2014 died in hospice care at 86 years old on Monday, according to Taylor\u2019s pal and Grammy-winning producer Billy Vera.<\/p>\n
He died just days after celebrating his birthday.<\/p>\n
Chip Taylor performs at the Songwriters Hall of Fame 47th Annual Induction on June 9, 2016 in New York City. Larry Busacca<\/p>\n
Taylor and his brother Jon Voight at the Songwriters Hall of Fame event. Gary Gershoff<\/p>\n
\u201cRIP: Chip Taylor, my friend and songwriting mentor,\u201d Vera wrote on Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n The music icon, born James Wesley Voight in Yonkers, New York, in 1940, was the brother of actor Jon Voight<\/a> and uncle to Hollywood superstar Jolie<\/a> and her brother James Haven, but he carved out a towering legacy on his own.<\/p>\n Taylor\u2019s first big break came with \u201cWild Thing\u201d \u2014 a raw, raunchy anthem that shot to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for The Troggs in 1966 and helped ignite the garage-rock explosion.<\/p>\n Taylor smoking a cigarette, circa 1970. Michael Ochs Archives<\/p>\n Taylor\u2019s niece Angelina Jolie at the 20th Rome Film Festival, October 18, 2025. Getty Images<\/p>\n In 2023, Taylor revealed the hit came together in a flash. After getting a call from The Troggs\u2019 producer asking for new material, he hung up, grabbed his guitar \u2014 and struck gold almost instantly.<\/p>\n \u201cI hung up and started banging on the guitar and \u2018Wild Thing\u2019 just flew out of me,\u201d he told The Independent<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWell, ahhh, my window opened on to the broadway with all those pretty girls walking by. So, I was looking at them and writing in that spirit. It was a real New York moment\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n Carrie Rodriguez and Taylor in Chicago, November 27, 2003. Getty Images<\/p>\n Beyond \u201cWild Thing,\u201d Taylor penned a string of unforgettable hits, including \u201cAngel of the Morning,\u201d famously recorded by Merrilee Rush, and songs performed by legends like Willie Nelson<\/a>, Janis Joplin, Cliff Richard and The Hollies.<\/p>\n Tributes have poured in for the prolific songwriter, with musician Allan Jones remembering Taylor as both a master storyteller and a hit-making machine.<\/p>\n \u201cHe played Twickenham Exchange a few years ago, accompanied by John Platiana, for many years Van Morrison\u2019s guitarist,\u201d Jones recalled.<\/p>\n Taylor visits the SiriusXM Studios on March 13, 2018 in New York City. Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cIt was memorable not only for a lot of great songs, but Taylor\u2019s vast repertoire of extraordinary and hilarious anecdotes, which took up a generous portion of an unforgettable set.<\/p>\n \u201cThe man could certainly tell a story as well as he could write a song.\u201d<\/p>\n Taylor\u2019s catalog stretched across decades, with standout tracks like \u201cI Can\u2019t Let Go,\u201d recorded by artists including Evie Sands and Linda Ronstadt, and collaborations such as \u201cHe Sits at Your Table\u201d with Nelson.<\/p>\n Taylor speaks onstage at the Songwriters Hall of Fame event in 2016. Larry Busacca<\/p>\n He wasn\u2019t just a behind-the-scenes genius either. Taylor released his own albums in the 1970s and later founded his independent label, Train Wreck Records, in 2007.<\/p>\n His 2009 album \u201cYonkers NY\u201d, released through Train Wreck, was an acclaimed Americana-country record that doubled as a deeply personal look back at his boyhood growing up in Yonkers.<\/p>\n