Pat Upton (singer)

Pat Upton (August 5, 1940 – July 27, 2016) was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist with the band Spiral Starecase. He was the songwriter of, and lead vocalist on, their 1969 gold-selling single "More Today Than Yesterday", which peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song has been covered by Sonny & Cher, Diana Ross, Andy Williams, Lena Horne, Patti Austin, and Goldfinger.

After Spiral Starecase disbanded in 1971, Upton relocated to Los Angeles, where he worked as a session musician and then a band member for Ricky Nelson. Upton was noted as having an exceptionally high voice for a man. On December 30, 1985, after a performance at Upton's Guntersville, Alabama club PJ's Alley, Nelson asked Upton to accompany him on a flight to Dallas, Texas, but Upton declined due to business obligations. The flight crashed, killing Nelson, Nelson's fiancée Helen, and five members of Nelson's band.