Artist:Jerry Butler f/Brenda Lee Eager
Song:Ain't Understanding Mellow
Album:The Very Best of Jerry Butler
Of course Jerry Butler is one of the all time great soul singers known as The Iceman. He started out with The Impressions and had solo success in the 60s including recording hit duets with Betty Everett. Butler signed with Mercury Records in 1967. He had great success working with the songwriting and production team of Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff before they started Philadelphia International. In 1971 Butler started a creative workshop in Chicago to mentor young singers and songwriters. His 1971 album The Sagittarius Movement came from those workshops. The 1971 single Ain't Understanding Mellow reached #3 on the R&B Singles chart and #21 on the Billboard Hot 100. At the time Brenda Lee Eager was one of Butler's backup singers. She grew up singing in church in Mobile, AL. She moved to Chicago in 1971 and for the most part she is known for this one record. Ain't Understanding Mellow was written by Herscholt Polk and Homer Talbert. They were in Butler's workshop. The song was arranged by veteran orchestra leader James Mack. Most of the album was produced and arranged by veteran session guitarist Gerald Sims. Donny Hathaway appeared on one song. The Sagittarius Movement has not been released on CD. But you can get Ain't Understanding Mellow on this budget comp. With the single's success, Butler recorded the 1973 album The Love We Have, The Love We Had with Brenda Lee Eager. When there were no hits from the album, Brenda released the 1975 single Good Old Fashioned Lovin' on Playboy Records. It was produced by Bob Bowles who produced her duet album with Butler. Then she returned to backup singing for most of her career. Here's Jerry Butler featuring Brenda Lee Eager performing Ain't Understanding Mellow on the series Soul! 1971. Butler was frequently a host of that show. Episodes can be streamed on Amazon Prime. This video is not on YouTube.
No comments:
Post a Comment