Harry Chapin ( December 7, 1942 – July 16, 1981) was an American singer and songwriter. He originally intended to be a documentary film-maker, and directed Legendary Champions in 1968, which was nominated for a documentary Academy Award. In 1971, he decided to focus on music. With John Wallace, Tim Scott and Ron Palmer, Chapin started playing in various local nightclubs in New York City.
Chapin's debut album was Heads and Tales ( 1972), which was a success thanks to the single "Taxi." His follow-up album, Sniper and Other Love Songs, was less successful, but his third, Short Stories, was a major success. Verities & Balderdash, released soon after, was even more successful, bolstered by the chart-topping hit single " Cat's in the Cradle." He also wrote and performed a Broadway musical, The Night That Made America Famous.
In the mid 1970s, Chapin focused on his social activism, including raising money to combat hunger in the United States and co-founding the organization World Hunger Year, before returning to music with On the Road to Kingdom Come. He also released a book of poetry, Looking...Seeing, in 1977.
Chapin died on July 16, 1981 in an automobile accident on the Long Island Expressway at the age of 38. He was headed to perform a concert in Eisenhower Park in Nassau County when his car was struck by a truck. An autopsy showed that he had suffered a heart attack, but it could not be determined whether that occurred before or after the collision. Supermarkets General, the owner of the truck, paid $12 million in the ensuing litigation.
Chapin was interred in the Huntington Rural Cemetery, Huntington, New York. His epitaph is taken from his song "I Wonder What Would Happen to this World." It is: Oh if a man tried To take his time on Earth And prove before he died What one man's life could be worth I wonder what would happen to this world