Taylor's impact went way beyond "Wild Thing": he also wrote "Angel of the Morning," famously recorded by Merrilee Rush; other Taylor songs were performed by artists including Willie Nelson and Janis Joplin.
Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2016, he released his own albums in the 1970s and started Train Wreck Records in 2007.
Friends remember him as "a master storyteller," whose music and legacy will live on through future generations.