(March 4, 2025) In the obituary I wrote when the great Jerry Lawson died, I began with: Forget Pentatonix and Straight No Chaser. Forget The Nylons. And as special as they are, walk right by Take Six. When examining the explosion of popular a cappella acts, all roads lead back to The Persuasions, a true anachronism of a group that stood tall for a half century and more than two dozen albums, paving the way for all that would come later. And when talking about The Persuasions it all begins with Jerry Lawson, a singular voice and, for my money, one of the five greatest soul singers ever.
That is as true now as it was six years ago when Jerry Lawson died. And his fans may be hearing some musical treats this year, as Jerry’s wife, Julie, has some long vaulted performances that she is working on possibly releasing. And they all begin now with a newly issued cover of the great Jerry Butler’s “He Don’t Love You.” Jerry Lawson was a huge fan of Butler, and he does the soul classic proud in this song, which is now available on the Jerry Lawson website.
Julie tells us: An avid fan of Jerry’s who went by the name of Muddy Rivers, lived in Sonoma County, CA and he had his own band. He was very excited to learn that Jerry had moved up that way. Muddy finally found Jerry and then lovingly hounded him for months to sing with his guys. Jerry decided to meet the band. He really liked what he heard and he thought it was a great opportunity to record one of his favorite Jerry Butler tunes. He had fun recording with an R&B band after 40 years and 23 albums without instruments. He was especially tickled by the original opening arrangement that he created. For those familiar with Jerry Butler’s version, I think they’ll appreciate Jerry Lawson’s touch.
Check out a clip of the Jerry Lawson version of “He Don’t Love You” below and then visit his website to purchase the mp3.
By Chris Rizik
