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Jerry Butler’s baritone combined the soaring ecstasy of church, the rumbling rhythms of Chicago and the soul of his native Sunflower, Mississippi. Warm and plush but also cool, it won him the nickname “Iceman.”
The songs of the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer became a soundtrack for the 1950s and 1960s. He achieved fame as a member of the Impressions and later as a solo soul artist. His songs have been sampled by others, including Missy Elliott, Snoop Dogg, Method Man and the Game.
The Bronzeville resident went on to a 32-year political career as a member of the Cook County Board, helped by backing from Mayor Harold Washington.
Mr. Butler, whose voice was stilled by Parkinson’s disease, died Thursday night at home, according to a family friend. He was 85.
“He’s one of the great voices of our time,” said Motown legend Smokey Robinson, who said he’d admired Mr. Butler since Robinson was a young singer and heard the Impressions’ “For Your Precious Love” for the first time. “It sweeped through ‘the hood.’ I have known Jerry Butler way back, since the Miracles and I first got started, around 1958. He’s a great person, and I love him.”
“He was very important to both music and to the community, and he will be missed,” his niece Yolanda Goff said Friday……..
chicago.suntimes.com
The songs of the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer became a soundtrack for the 1950s and 1960s. He achieved fame as a member of the Impressions and later as a solo soul artist. His songs have been sampled by others, including Missy Elliott, Snoop Dogg, Method Man and the Game.
The Bronzeville resident went on to a 32-year political career as a member of the Cook County Board, helped by backing from Mayor Harold Washington.
Mr. Butler, whose voice was stilled by Parkinson’s disease, died Thursday night at home, according to a family friend. He was 85.
“He’s one of the great voices of our time,” said Motown legend Smokey Robinson, who said he’d admired Mr. Butler since Robinson was a young singer and heard the Impressions’ “For Your Precious Love” for the first time. “It sweeped through ‘the hood.’ I have known Jerry Butler way back, since the Miracles and I first got started, around 1958. He’s a great person, and I love him.”
“He was very important to both music and to the community, and he will be missed,” his niece Yolanda Goff said Friday……..
Jerry Butler dead at 85; singer known as 'Iceman' also had a long career in Cook County politics
The future politician who later served on the County Board became famous performing with the Impressions, which also included Curtis Mayfield. “Their music was the sound of the Civil Rights Movement,” according to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
chicago.suntimes.com