Jerry wexler bio

Tina Turner. See more Latest Features. Song Facts. Rod Stewart. Who was Jerry Wexler? So, yeah, I ended up working for him again and I signed two great artists for him — that was [Joe] Stampley and John Fred. Stampley, who became one of the top-selling country artists of the s and early s, made his chart debut with a blue-eyed soul outfit called the Uniques.

Asked if he remembered recording Stampley's first hit, Hawkins laughs, "I guess so, I wrote a hot check to record him …. Stan Lewis wouldn't give me my money and I had to go hustle it up. I finally got that money back. I pressed up copies, for sale and for the deejays, then I sold the DJ copies out the back of the store. But all the disc jockeys and promotion people liked me a lot, man.

It was a song called 'Not Too Long Ago. Then, old Joe just took it on from there! By far, Hawkins's biggest success at Paula was his behind-the-scenes work on John Fred's "Judy in Disguise," which became a number one hit in This monster smash led to a much more lucrative position as an executive vice-president at Abnak Records, which housed the Amy, Mala, and Bell labels.

In addition to signing acts, he produced the Five Americans' "Western Union" and his own rock 'n' soul album, L. It would be his last album of original material for 30 years. Seemingly, Hawkins's career was in full swing, but his reliance on hard liquor and amphetamines was sabotaging his personal and professional career. Everything I got easy, I had never done street drugs in my life.

All of a sudden it got to where I could hardly function without them, and so I left the [West Coast] and came back to Louisiana. Even though I left the good money as a producer, I left to save myself. After completing an extremely difficult year-long rehab program, Hawkins started his own crisis intervention program for teens in Louisiana, a program he kept going for five years.

Having balanced some of his ethical books, the reformed singer-songwriter got the itch to make music again, and the post-Elvis rockabilly revival welcomed him with open arms. Since then, he has eased back into the limelight, playing to appreciative rockabilly revival crowds and, in , recording a well-regarded comeback album for the now defunct Mystic label.

Asked what advice he had for young musicians aspiring to do his type of music, Hawkins is adamant. Don't listen to the historians. Grab the roots and see how it evolved and know what's real …. I don't really see where you could replace spirit with a piece of equipment. Additional information was obtained from the author's interviews with Dale Hawkins on May 2, , and August 16, , from which quotations used in this entry were drawn.

Burke, Ken " Hawkins, Dale. Burke, Ken "Hawkins, Dale. Wexler, Jerry gale. Learn more about citation styles Citation styles Encyclopedia. Hawkins, Dale gale. Dale Hawkins Singer, songwriter, producer Although often overlooked, Dale Hawkins's contributions are as valid as any of rock 'n' roll's founding fathers. For the Record. My Babe, Checker, ; reissued, Argo, With others L.

Dale Hawkins, Chess, Daredevil, Norton, Rock 'n' Roll Tornado, Ace, Born in Louisiana, Goofin', Wildcat Tamer, Mystic, Fool's Paradise, Beveric, More From encyclopedia. Unsuccessful in his search, he found work at the newly formed Broadcast Music, Inc. A bout with pneumonia forced Wexler to give up that position, but Billboard magazine soon hired him.

Now 30, he was able to move with his wife into his first apartment. Two lifelong preoccupations surfaced in Wexler at this time: bebop--the music of Charlie Parker, Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie--and the food of the great Broadway delis like Lindy's on 51st Street. The song peddlers who frequented the restaurants, especially a man named Juggy Gayles, introduced Wexler to the world of record production.

In his position of reporter for Billboard, Wexler chose from the thousand of demos that crossed his desk, the "Tennessee Waltz," and gave it to singer Patti Page's agent, Jack Ruel. Eventually, a rift developed between Wexler and Billboard's editors. According to Wexler, during the McCarthy era--when many Americans entertainers were being blacklisted for their alleged communist leanings--he had refused to work up a blacklist dossier on the folk group the Weavers.

His reputation earned him a job offer from Atlantic Records, but he turned it down; he had insisted upon being made a partner. A year later, the owner of Atlantic, Ahmet Ertegun, acquiesced to Wexler's demand when Ertegun's partner, Herb Abrahamson, left to join the army. Ertegun in turn used the money to buy Wexler a green Cadillac with fins. Ertegun and Wexler were well matched: Ertegun was cool while Wexler was frenetic.

Both men had an extensive knowledge of literature and art, as well as of rhythm and blues. Their office over Patsy's Restaurant at West 57th Street became a beehive of sessions that put Atlantic Records on the map. The Atlantic Records business was run like a mom-and-pop grocery. Wexler worked intimately with the performers, helping Clyde McPhatter of the Drifters, for example, write "Honey Love" and playing tambourine for Ray Charles.

Atlantic succeeded in changing the negligent attitude that record labels traditionally had taken toward black music.

Jerry wexler bio

Wexler treated the performers with respect, rehearsing and developing clear, precise harmonies. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikidata item. For the film producer, see Jerrold Wexler. American music producer, journalist — The Bronx , New York, U. Sarasota, Florida , U. Music producer music journalist. Early life [ edit ].

Career [ edit ]. This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Portrayals [ edit ]. Personal life [ edit ]. Death [ edit ]. See also [ edit ]. References [ edit ]. Retrieved August 17, Journal of Jazz Studies.