Toy Caldwell

Birth Name:

Toy Talmadge Caldwell Jr.

Birth Date:

November 13, 1947

Birth Place:

Spartanburg, South Carolina

Death Date:

February 25, 1993

Place of Death:

Moore, South Carolina

Age:

Cause of Death:

Cardiac arrest brought on by cocaine use

Cemetery Name:

Greenlawn Cemetery

Claim to Fame:

Music

Toy Caldwell was a musician, songwriter and occasional vocalist of the 1970s Southern Rock group The Marshall Tucker Band. A founding member of the band, Caldwell remained with the group until 1983. During their glory years, The Marshall Tucker Band had seven gold and two platinum albums, peaking in the mid-1970s with songs such as "Heard It in a Love Song," "Can't You See" and "This Ol' Cowboy." After 15 years with the band, he left in 1985 to begin a solo career and released his debut album, "Toy Caldwell," a mix of rock 'n' roll, country, blues and pop with a lyrical thread of romantic entanglements.

Not-So-Fun Fact

Toy lost both his brothers, Tim and Tommy in separate car accidents a month apart. Tim collided with a garbage truck and Tommy Caldwell’s Land Cruiser, despite wearing a seatbelt and equipped with a roll bar, clipped a parked 1965 Ford Galaxy on South Church Street in Spartenburg and flipped over. Tommy, another founding member of the MTB, died six days later of massive head injuries. Tommy is buried at the same cemetery in Section D-4.

The Marshall Tucker Band got its start in Spartanburg, S.C. when Gray teamed up with Tommy Caldwell and Toy Caldwell, Paul T. Riddle, George McCorkle and Jerry Eubanks, borrowing the name “Marshall Tucker” from a piano tuner whose name was found on a key ring in their old rehearsal space.

Cemetery Information:

Final Resting Place:

Greenlawn Cemetery

1300 Fernwood Glendale Road

Spartanburg, South Carolina, 29307

USA

North America

Grave Location:

Section M-3, Plot 239-B, Grave 1

Grave Location Description

As you enter the cemetery, turn right and park behind the large statue and lawn section at the entryway. Walk along the broken concrete walkway and towards the middle of the Section M-3 you will see Toy’s flat monument along the walkway.