Top 10 Seals & Crofts Songs

Photo: Warner Brothers Records [Public domain]

Our Top 10 Seals & Crofts songs list looks at a much-loved musical duo from the 1970s who had some of the decade’s biggest hits. Jim Seals and Dash Crofts met as teenagers in Texas and later became members of a local band called Dean Beard and the Crew Cats. Eventually, Jim Seals and Dash Crofts left the group to join the well-known band The Champs, who had the big hit “Tequila.” Soon afterward, the two signed a record deal with Talent Associates and released a pair of albums that did not do well commercially. Nonetheless, the talent behind Jim Seals and Dash Crofts’ teaming was immeasurable, leading to a major label contract with Warner Brothers Records.

The group’s second release with Warner Brothers Records was the album that placed them on the charts and made them a household name. Released in 1972, the Seals & Crofts album Summer Breeze contained the Top 10 hit “Summer Breeze.” The album also includes the minor hit “Hummingbird.” Seals & Crofts released a prolific run of albums throughout the 1970s, making them one of the top musical acts of the decade. The duo released The Longest Road in 1980 and a reunion album in 2004 entitled Traces. Jim Seals died in 2022, and Dash Crofts died on March 25, 2026.

Our Top 10 Seals & Crofts songs list looks at some of the duo’s biggest hits and hidden album gems. We hope you enjoy this list. Let us know your favorite Seals & Crofts songs.

# 10 – Gabriel Go on Home

We open up our top 10 Seals & Crofts songs list with a little-known Seals & Crofts song entitled “Gabriel Go On Home.” The song was released on the Seals & Crofts album Down Home. The album was released in 1970. The song “Gabriel Go On Home” was Side Two’s opening track. This is a marvelous song with a beautiful piano intro. The duo sounds like Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young on this one. It’s very reflective of the period it was released in.

# 9 – Baby I’ll Give It to You

Continuing with our list of top 10 Seals & Crofts songs, we turn to the great song, “Baby I’ll Give It to You.” The song “Baby I’ll Give It to You” was released on the live album Sudan Village. The album was released in 1976. It was a time just before slick jazz-pop albums like Steely Dan’s Aja were being released. Musicians like jazz guitarist Lee Ritenour, who would also perform on the Steely Dan record, appear on this great Seals & Crofts song. Other well-known jazz musicians such as the Crusaders’ Joe Sample and Wilton Felder also appear on the record. Carolyn Willis shares the lead vocals on this one with Jim Seals.

# 8 – Stars

By 1980, Seals & Crofts’ sound had tilted more towards the jazz world than their original folk music pop sound. It’s very interesting to hear how their sound changed over the years. The Seals & Crofts song “Stars” was a great representation of that change. Not many people are aware of this late Seals & Crofts sound.

The song “Stars” was released on their 1980 album The Longest Road, which was the last Seals & Crofts studio album before the 2004 reunion release Traces. The song featured the legendary jazz piano talents of pianist Chick Corea. The record also featured an all-star legion of bass players, including Stanley Clarke, Abraham Laboriel, and Nathan Watts, who had recorded frequently with Stevie Wonder.

# 7 – Takin’ It Easy

This great Seals and Crofts rocking song, “Takin’ It Easy,” was the title track to their Takin’ It Easy album released in 1978. This is the song that Seals and Crofts fans loved. Nonetheless, the song didn’t do that well commercially. The song from the album that did do well sounded nothing like the title track. It’s what made this album so interesting. The record’s single “You’re the Love” was as close to disco as Seals & Crofts ever got. It was a Top 20 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. Nonetheless, the song that all Seals & Crofts fans preferred was the title track, “Takin’ It Easy.”

# 6 – I’ll Play For You

As we continue through our list of top 10 Seals & Crofts songs, the remaining selections will be the ones that most fans will remember. The Seals & Crofts song “I’ll Play For You” was released on the album of the same name. The I’ll Play For You album was released in 1975. The album’s title track, “I’ll Play For You,” was a Top 20 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 18. Do you hear the theme from the cat food commercial “meow meow meow meow” at the beginning of the song?

# 5 – Hummingbird

The Seals and Crofts song “Hummingbird” was the follow-up single to their smash hit “Summer Breeze” in 1972. It was the opening track on the Summer Breeze album, but it was not released as a single until 1973. The song did well commercially, following in the footsteps of “Summer Breeze,” reaching the number 20 position on the Billboard Hot 100.

# 4 – Get Closer

Once you hear that piano and string opening introduction on the track “Get Closer,” you’ll instantly be brought right back into the mid-70s. The song also featured Carolyn Willis on lead vocals. Willis had been one of the lead vocalists in the all-female band Honey Cone, who had the massive hit “Want Ads” in 1971. The Seals & Crofts single “Get Closer” would become one of the duo’s biggest hits. The song reached the Billboard Top 10 in 1976, peaking at number six.

# 3 – We May Never Pass This Way Again

The Seals & Crofts song “We May Never Pass This Way Again” was probably the most popular high school graduation song of the 1970s. It was released on the band’s Diamond Girl album and was the album’s second single. It just missed reaching the Billboard Top 20, stalling at number twenty-one on the charts.

# 2 – Diamond Girl

“Diamond Girl” was just one of those songs that hit you smack in the face from the song’s opening notes. The song was the title track to their 1973 album Diamond Girl. Standing as one of the most legendary Seals & Crofts songs, “Diamond Girl” was a huge commercial success for the duo, reaching the Billboard Top 10 and peaking at the number six position.

# 1 – Summer Breeze

The classic legendary song “Summer Breeze” not only easily comes in at the number one position on our top 10 Seals & Crofts songs list but also stands as one of the greatest songs of the 1970s. The song’s melody, chord changes, riffs, lyrics, and arrangement all defined what we loved about early 1970s folk rock. The song has that magical quality to it. It’s one of those melodies you never forget. It brings you right back. The song was released in 1972.