Jerry Jaye (born October 19, 1937 in

Manila, Arkansas Manila is a city in Mississippi County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 3,682 at the 2020 census, up from 3,342 in 2010. It was the hometown of World War I sniper Herman Davis. A park in the town honors his memory. History Manila h ...

) is an American

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whil ...

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

singer. Jaye grew up on a

sharecropper Sharecropping is a legal arrangement with regard to agricultural land in which a landowner allows a tenant to use the land in return for a share of the crops produced on that land. Sharecropping has a long history and there are a wide range ...

's farm and did a stint in the

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...

from 1954 to 1958. After his return he started a band with bassist Tommy Baker and drummer Carl Frye, who began playing the local

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the ...

circuits. In 1966, the group traveled to

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the County seat, seat of Shelby County, Tennessee, Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 Uni ...

, and recorded a single, " My Girl Josephine" (a hit for

Fats Domino Antoine Dominique Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017), known as Fats Domino, was an American pianist, singer and songwriter. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records. Born in New O ...

the previous decade). The single was initially released in a press run of 500; Jaye shopped the disc to local radio stations, and as the tune began getting airplay, Jaye signed a contract with

Hi Records Hi Records is an American soul music and rockabilly label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1957 by singer Ray Harris, record store owner Joe Cuoghi, Bill Cantrell and Quinton Claunch (formerly producers for Sun Records), and three silent p ...

for national distribution.Jerry Jaye
at the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. Accessed October 16, 2007 Re-released in 1967, "My Girl Josephine" became a

hit single A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single or simply a hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record' ...

in the US, peaking at No. 29 on the

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Pop Singles chart. Billboard Singles Allmusic.com A full-length LP, ''My Girl Josephine'', followed, which hit No. 195 in the US,

Allmusic.com but four further singles from the album failed to make an impact on the charts. During this time Jaye toured with

Booker T and the MGs Booker T. & the M.G.'s were an American instrumental R&B/ funk band that was influential in shaping the sound of Southern soul and Memphis soul. The original members of the group were Booker T. Jones (organ, piano), Steve Cropper (guitar), Le ...

and

Lou Rawls Louis Allen Rawls (December 1, 1933 – January 6, 2006) was an American record producer, singer, composer and actor. Rawls released more than 60 albums, sold more than 40 million records, and had numerous charting singles, most notably his s ...

among others. Jaye left Hi Records in 1970 and began recording new material for

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

's Mega/Raintree. Seven singles were released, some of which found regional success. Between 1974 and 1975 he sang lead with the

Bill Black Combo William Patton Black Jr. (September 17, 1926 – October 21, 1965) was an American musician and bandleader who is noted as one of the pioneers of rock and roll. He played in Elvis Presley's early trio. Black later formed Bill Black's Combo. Ear ...

after its founder's death. In 1975, Jaye signed with

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

, first releasing a cover of

Tommy Edwards Thomas Jefferson Edwards (October 15, 1922 – October 23, 1969) was an American singer and songwriter. His most successful record was the multi-million-selling song " It's All in the Game", becoming the first African-American to reach No. 1 on ...

's "It's All in the Game". This was followed by two further US Country hits (again with Hi Records) in 1976, "Honky Tonk Women Love Redneck Men" (US Country No. 32) and "Hot and Still Heatin' (US Country No. 78). In 1979 he left Hi again, and began touring the

American South The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

with his wife Darlene Battles. Together they released an album on Bejay Records

in 1984. Jaye toured Sweden and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

in the 1990s, and released another album, ''One More Time'', in 2005.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jaye, Jerry Singers from Arkansas American rockabilly musicians American country singers Living people 1937 births Columbia Records artists People from Manila, Arkansas Military personnel from Arkansas Songwriters from Arkansas 20th-century American singers Country musicians from Arkansas