Jerry Butler
b. 8 December 1939, Sunflower, Mississippi, USA. Jerry, older brother of Billy Butler, moved to Chicago as a child and was later a part of the city's burgeoning gospel circuit. He subsequently joined several secular groups, including the Roosters, an aspiring trio of Sam Gooden and Richard and Arthur Brooks. Butler then suggested they add his friend, Curtis Mayfield, on guitar. Now called the Impressions, the quintet secured a Top 3 US R&B hit with the haunting For Your Precious Love (1958). However the label credit, Jerry Butler And The Impressions, caused friction within the group. A second single, Come Back My Love, was less successful and Butler left for a solo career. His early releases were minor hits until He Will Break Your Heart reached number 1 in the US R&B and number 7 in the pop charts in 1960. The song was written by Mayfield who added guitar and sang backing vocals. Their differences clearly resolved, two subsequent hits, Find Another Girl and I'm A Telling You (both 1961), featured the same partnership. Mayfield's involvement lessened as the Impressions’ own career developed, but Jerry's chart run continued. Make It Easy On Yourself (1962) and I Stand Accused (1964) were among his finest singles. Butler switched to Mercury in 1966 where he honed the style which won him his Ice Man epithet. Hey Western Union Man and Only The Strong Survive topped the soul chart in 1968 and 1969, while duets with Gene Chandler and Brenda Lee Eager punctuated his early '70s’ recordings. With his brother, Billy Butler, he formed the Jerry Butler Writers Workshop, which encouraged aspiring songwriters and musicians, amongst whom were, Martin Yancey and Chuck Jackson of the Independents and Natalie Cole. Jerry's releases on Motown preceded a more successful spell with Philadelphia International, while the '80s saw his work appear on Fountain and CTI. UP ON LOVE (1980) mixes the best of Jerry's VeeJay singles with that first Impressions’ hit. Butler is now an elected official in Chicago.