Bobby Caldwell, the R&B singer best known for the enduring “What You Won’t Do For Love,” has died at 71 after a prolonged illness. “Bobby passed away here at home,” his wife Mary announced on social media Wednesday morning. “I held him tight in my arms as he left us. I am forever heartbroken. Thanks to all of you for your many prayers over the years.”

Caldwell was born in New York City in 1951, though he grew up in Miami. His parents worked in show business, as hosts of a variety TV show, and he started playing music at an early age. He was a guitarist in Little Richard’s band in the 1970s, and he signed with TK Records in 1978 after playing in Las Vegas and Los Angeles for a few years. His eponymous debut album came out in 1978 and contained “What You Won’t Do For Love,” which would become his signature song and had a long life in the popular consciousness, spinning off covers from the likes of Michael Bolton, Boyz II Men, Jessie Ware, and Snoh Aalegra. Tupac also sampled it on his 1998 track “Do For Love.”

Caldwell continued releasing albums of his own and he also wrote hits for other musicians, including Neil Diamond, Roberta Flack, Al Jarreau, and Boz Scaggs. He co-wrote the chart-topping “The Next Time I Fall,” which reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1986 as a duet between Peter Cetera and Amy Grant.

Caldwell continued recording music into the 2000s, releasing albums of jazz standards called Perfect Island Nights and The Consummate Caldwell, and in 2015 he teamed up with the producer Jack Splash to put out an album as Cool Uncle.