Jerry Butler

Jerry "Iceman" Butler, Jr. (December 8, 1939 – February 20, 2025) was an American Hall of Fame singer-songwriter, musician, television presenter and politician. He was born in Sunflower, Mississippi. He is a guitarist, pianist, drummer and saxophonist. His genres include funk, soul and R&B. He was raised in Cabrini–Green, Chicago.

He was known as being the original lead singer of the R&B vocal group The Impressions. He served as a Commissioner for Cook County, Illinois, having first been elected in 1985 as a Democrat. He chaired the Health and Hospitals Committee, and served as Vice Chair of the Construction Committee.^[1]

In 1991, Butler was added to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame along with other The Impressions' members.^[2][3]

In his last election, Butler won reelection in March 2014 with over 80 percent of the vote.^[4] Butler retired from the board in 2018.

In recent years, he was host of PBS TV music specials such as Doo Wop 50 and 51, Rock Rhythm and Doo Wop, and Soul Spectacular: 40 years of R&B, among others. He has was chairman of the board of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation.

Butler died from problems caused by Parkinson's disease at his home in Chicago, on February 20, 2025, at the age of 85.^[5]

• Mississippi musicians: Jerry Butler. Archived 2015-02-19 at the Wayback Machine Erica Covin
• Jerry Butler Biography on VH1.com Archived 2010-04-23 at the Wayback Machine
• Jerry Butler on Philly Soul Classics

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