James Dexter Weatherly (March 17, 1943 – February 3, 2021) was an American singer-songwriter who wrote mostly pop and
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...
. He played
quarterback
The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
at the
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi (Epithet, byname Ole Miss) is a Public university, public research university in University, near Oxford, Mississippi, United States, with a University of Mississippi Medical Center, medical center in Jackson, Miss ...
while also writing music with his own bands. He subsequently chose songwriting over a football career. His notable songs include "
The Need to Be
"The Need to Be" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Jim Weatherly. First recorded for Weatherly's 1974 album ''The Songs of Jim Weatherly'', the single release peaked at No. 6 on the ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary chart, No. 11 on ...
" and "
Midnight Train to Georgia
"Midnight Train to Georgia" is a song most famously performed by Gladys Knight & the Pips, their second release after departing Motown Records for Buddah Records. Written by Jim Weatherly and included on the Pips' 1973 LP ''Imagination'', "Midni ...
".
Early life
Weatherly was born in
Pontotoc, Mississippi
Pontotoc is a city in and the county seat of Pontotoc County, Mississippi, located to the west of the larger city of Tupelo. The population was 5,640 at the 2020 census. Pontotoc is a Chickasaw word that means, “Land of the Hanging Grapes. ...
quarterback
The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
for the school's football team. He also started writing songs and formed his own bands during this time.
He went on to study at the
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi (Epithet, byname Ole Miss) is a Public university, public research university in University, near Oxford, Mississippi, United States, with a University of Mississippi Medical Center, medical center in Jackson, Miss ...
. He was a backup quarterback on the
Ole Miss Rebels football
The Ole Miss Rebels football program represents the University of Mississippi, also known as "Ole Miss". The Ole Miss Rebels, Rebels compete in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Colleg ...
team that was undefeated in 1962. The team successfully defended their
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...
championship the following season with Weatherly as their starting quarterback. He subsequently received honorable mention All-American honors in 1964. Upon graduating, he chose to pursue music over a career in football.
Career
Songwriting
Weatherly wrote songs for almost 50 years. His best-known song is "
Midnight Train to Georgia
"Midnight Train to Georgia" is a song most famously performed by Gladys Knight & the Pips, their second release after departing Motown Records for Buddah Records. Written by Jim Weatherly and included on the Pips' 1973 LP ''Imagination'', "Midni ...
", recorded by
Gladys Knight & the Pips
Gladys Knight & the Pips were an American Rhythm and blues, R&B, soul music, soul, and funk family music group from Atlanta, Georgia, that remained active on the music charts and performing circuit for over three decades starting from the early ...
. It peaked at number 1 on the pop and R&B charts, and went on to win a
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...
. The song was subsequently inducted into the
Grammy Hall of Fame
The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...
in 1999, and was chosen by the
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...
and the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
as No. 29 of the 365
Songs of the Century
The "Songs of the Century" list is part of an education project by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the National Endowment for the Arts, and Scholastic Inc. that aims to "promote a better understanding of America's musical an ...
.Ray Price has recorded 38 of Weatherly's songs. Both Gladys Knight & the Pips (in 1972) and
Bob Luman
Robert Glynn Luman (April 15, 1937 – December 27, 1978) was an American country and rockabilly singer.
Early life and career
Luman was born in Blackjack, Texas, United States, and raised in Nacogdoches, Texas. His early interest in music was ...
(in 1973) had top five records with "Neither One of Us". Other artists who have recorded Weatherly's songs include:
Glen Campbell
Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...
,
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Ray Rogers (born Kenneth Donald Rogers) (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particul ...
Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. He has sold more than 130 million records worldwide, making him one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling musicians of all time.
He has written and ...
,
Kenny Chesney
Kenneth Arnold Chesney (born March 26, 1968) is an American country singer. With 30 million albums sold worldwide, he released his debut, '' In My Wildest Dreams'', in 1994, and has since released 19 follow-ups. His albums spawned 27 singles tha ...
and
Garth Brooks
Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American Country music, country singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him his immense popularity, particularly in the United States, ...
.
Gladys Knight and the Pips have recorded twelve other Weatherly compositions, such as "
Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)
"Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)" is a song recorded by Gladys Knight & the Pips. Released in December 1972 on Motown's Soul Records imprint as S 35098, it became one of their biggest hit singles to date, and was also the ...
Record World
''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...
'' magazine charts, and became a number one R&B record. It was followed by "Where Peaceful Waters Flow"," Midnight Train to Georgia" and "Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me", which were all pop and R&B hits. Weatherly's catalog includes songs that have been performed by Ray Price,
Lynn Anderson
Lynn René Anderson (September 26, 1947 – July 30, 2015) was an American country singer and television personality. Her crossover signature recording, " Rose Garden", was a number one hit internationally. She also charted five number one ...
,
Brenda Lee
Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Primarily performing rockabilly, pop, country and Christmas music, she achieved her first ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' hit aged 12 i ...
,
Bob Luman
Robert Glynn Luman (April 15, 1937 – December 27, 1978) was an American country and rockabilly singer.
Early life and career
Luman was born in Blackjack, Texas, United States, and raised in Nacogdoches, Texas. His early interest in music was ...
''Weatherly vs. Universal Music Publishing Group''
Weatherly filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) in October 2002, which is now considered a
landmark case
Landmark court decisions, in present-day common law legal systems, establish precedents that determine a significant new legal principle or concept, or otherwise substantially affect the interpretation of existing law. "Leading case" is commonly u ...
in the entertainment community. He claimed that he was underpaid royalties for "Midnight Train to Georgia" for years. Universal Music argued that Weatherly could not proceed on his action because the one-year contractual limitations frequently found in entertainment contracts, had passed or tolled. This became the issue that the
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts for the following federal judicial districts:
* Distric ...
decided, in a published decision which set new legal precedent. Most contracts allow an artist to look back for a maximum of one, two or three years retroactively. However, the court decided ''Weatherly vs. Universal Music Publishing Group'' that this one-year time limitation would not apply. "A defendant cannot hinder the plaintiff's discovery through misrepresentation and then fault the plaintiff for failing to investigate", the court wrote, referring to a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision. Because the landmark decision was published by that court, other artists could cite this decision to support independent claims that they had also been underpaid royalties.
Recording
Weatherly made his recording debut with "Jim Weatherly & The Vegas" on 20th Century Fox Records in 1965. He then formed The Gordian Knot with one LP released by
Verve Records
Verve Records is an active American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the label is home to the world's largest jazz catalogue, which includes recordings by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Ca ...
and later reissued on CD by
Rev-Ola Records
Rev-Ola Records is a British independent record label formed in 1990 that specializes in reissues, as well as select new releases. The label is headed by Joe Foster, a former child actor and musician/producer. He, along with Alan McGee and ...
. He was offered a solo recording contract with
Buddah Records
Buddah Records (later known as Buddha Records) was an American record label founded in 1967 in New York City. The label was born out of Kama Sutra Records, an MGM Records-distributed label, which remained a key imprint following Buddah's foundin ...
after the success of "Georgia", and he released a number of albums in the 1970s. As an artist, Weatherly had a pop and adult contemporary hit with "
The Need to Be
"The Need to Be" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Jim Weatherly. First recorded for Weatherly's 1974 album ''The Songs of Jim Weatherly'', the single release peaked at No. 6 on the ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary chart, No. 11 on ...
" and a country hit with " I'll Still Love You".
Weatherly's songs have been used in movies and TV shows such as '' Broadcast News'', ''
Modern Family
''Modern Family'' is an American television sitcom, created by Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd, that aired on ABC for 11 seasons from September 23, 2009, to April 8, 2020. The series follows the lives of three diverse but interrelated fa ...
'', ''
Chicago Hope
''Chicago Hope'' is an American medical drama television series created by David E. Kelley, that originally aired for six seasons on CBS from September 18, 1994, to May 4, 2000, with a total of 141 episodes. The series is set in a fictional pr ...
'', ''
Ally McBeal
''Ally McBeal'' is an American legal comedy-drama television series created by David E. Kelley that originally aired on Fox from September 8, 1997, to May 20, 2002. It revolves around Calista Flockhart in the title role as a lawyer working ...
'', and others.
Awards
Weatherly was inducted into the
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame
The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 1970 by the Nashville Songwriters Foundation, Inc. in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. A non-profit organization, its objective is to honor and preserve the songwriting legacy that i ...
Songwriters Hall of Fame
The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work represent and maintain the heri ...
in 2014. He was also conferred the Governor’s Award for Excellence in Music by the government of Mississippi that same year.
Death
Weatherly died from natural causes at his home in
Brentwood, Tennessee
Brentwood is a city in Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 45,373 as of the 2020 United States census.