Jerry 'Ice Man' Butler, soul singer whose hits included 'Only the Strong Survive,' dies at 85
Entertainment
He was a voice for two major soul music hubs: Chicago and Philadelphia
NEW YORK (AP) — Jerry Butler, a premier soul singer of the 1960s and after whose rich, intimate baritone graced such hits as “For Your Precious Love,” “Only the Strong Survive” and “Make It Easy On Yourself,” has died at age 85.
Butler’s niece, Yolanda Goff, told The Associated Press that Butler died Thursday of Parkinson’s disease at his home in Chicago. A longtime Chicago resident, Butler was a former Cook County board commissioner who would still perform on weekends and identify himself as Jerry “Ice Man” Butler, a show business nickname given for his understated style.
Butler, a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a three-time Grammy Award nominee, was a voice for two major soul music hubs: Chicago and Philadelphia. Along with childhood friend Curtis Mayfield, he helped found the Chicago-based Impressions and sang lead on the breakthrough hit “For Your Precious Love,” a deeply emotional, gospel-influenced ballad that made Butler a star before the age of 20.
A decade later, in the late ‘60s, he joined the Philadelphia-based production team of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, who worked with him on “Only the Strong Survive,” “Hey Western Union Man” and other hits. His albums “Ice on Ice” and “The Ice Man Cometh” are regarded as early models for the danceable, string-powered productions that became the classic “Sound of Philadelphia.”
