Apparently there is some special relationship between record producers and the artists. I guess his ‘leaving’ was going with Joni Mitchell as her producer, as someone else posted. And the ‘pretty pair’ was a good mix in the producer/artist relationship.
It could well have been a “romance” too. In the 70s gay men frequently had a girl. They preferred men but definitely had experiences with girls too, including marriage, fooling everyone but themselves.
When Joe Jackson’s anthem (”Stepping Out”) hit the airwaves, MANY marriages broke up when Daddy put on his pastel polo shirt, tied the matching sweater around his neck, and headed for Santa Monica Boulevard...