The pain and melancholy in his voice gave vent to the feelings of many a lonely heart.
Conjuring up hits like `yeh zindagi kisi aur ki, mere naam ka koi aur hai,` `Patta-patta boota-boota haal hamaara jaane hai,` `Hontho se chhoo lo tum, `Tum ko dekha`, `Hazaar baar ruke ham and hazaar baar chale`, Singh made a mark during the `70s when the ghazal scene was dominated by well-established names like Noor Jehan, Malika Pukhraj, Begum Akhtar, Talat Mahmood and Mehdi Hassan.
The voice behind the timeless ghazals was inspired by singers like K L Sehgal, Talat Mahmood, Abdul Karim Khan, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and Amir Khan.
One of the most successful and loved artistes of his time, he has left behind a huge body of work in a career spanning five decades, including 80 albums.
Often called the `Ghazal King` by his fans and peers, Jagjit was born on February 8, 1941 in Sriganganagar, Rajasthan, to Amar Singh Dhiman, a government employee, and Bachan Kaur. He had four sisters and two brothers and was called Jeet by his family.
He was raised as a Sikh by religion. His birth name was Jagmohan but his Sikh father rechristened him as Jagjit following the advice of his guru.
It was his father, who first recognised his son`s talent.
He sent young Jagjit to learn the nuances of music under a blind teacher, Pandit Chhaganlal Sharma. He later trained under Ustad Jamal Khan of Sainia gharana for six-years and gained knowledge in Khayal, Thumri and Dhrupad forms.