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But chances are some kids you know have jammed out to the Columbia County singer, songwriter, and cartoonist’s work while watching his award-winning Gustafer Yellowgold video series, or at one of his many live performances around the country.
The two-time Grammy nominee, who lived in Chatham with his wife and two sons, died Thursday, Aug. 11, at the age of 52 following a brief illness, according to his obituary.
Born in Kettering, Ohio on Sept. 5, 1969, Taylor was a self-taught multi-instrumentalist who made a name for himself in the Dayton music scene in the 1990s, his memorial said.
His star grew even brighter after he moved to New York City and began performing at The Living Room, a venue in the Lower East Side where he eventually met his wife, fellow musician and teacher Rachel Loshak.
The couple married in 2004. Sons Harvey and Ridley came on the scene in 2008 and 2010, respectively.
Taylor toured with indie rock band The Autumn Defense on their 2004 Circles tour and co-wrote music for Lisa Loeb’s 2012 album, No Fairy Tales.
He also had a successful career as a sound and recording engineer in Brooklyn, where he worked alongside well-known artists like Norah Jones and Regina Spektor.
It was a colored pencil-drawn alien named Gustafer Yellowgold, though, that really slingshotted Taylor onto the radar of kids around the world.
Described by the New York Times as a cross between The Beatles’ Yellow Submarine album and Dr. Seuss, his multimedia series follows Gustafer, a friendly yellow alien from the sun who comes to Earth to live out an explorer’s life in a psychedelic version of the Minnesota woods.
Taylor wrote and sang dozens of songs based on the character, and illustrated several music videos for the series. Multiple audiobooks, CDs, DVDs, and live concerts followed.
Tours for the Gustafer Yellowgold Show took Taylor and his family across the United States, England, and South Korea, and earned him two Grammy nominations, including one for Best Children's Album in 2018.
Taylor also made regular appearances on RadioCake, a weekly show on Radio Kingston WKNY.
In early July 2022, Taylor and his wife tested positive for COVID-19 while visiting family in England, Loshak revealed on Facebook.
Less than two weeks after returning to the US, Loshak said Taylor was hospitalized with full toxic septic shock from a Strep A bacteria that had gotten into his blood.
“They don’t know how, but they strongly suspect that it was related to his reduced immunity after having COVID,” Loshak said.
After 11 "terrible days and nights” in the intensive care unit, Taylor died.
Word of his death garnered numerous tributes on social media, including from Norah Jones, who said, "He sent a smile and a ray of light through everything he did."
Lisa Loeb posted a photo of her and Taylor with the band Nine Stories and wrote that Taylor was one of her influences when she started creating family-friendly music.
A memorial service for Taylor was held Thursday, Aug. 18, at Southminster Presbyterian Church in Dayton, Ohio.
Relatives said in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Taylor’s name can be made to Taffy Presents or the Hungry for Music Foundation.
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