Jonathan Gus Lind (April 14, 1948 – January 15, 2022), professionally known as Jon Lind, was an American songwriter, performer and A&R executive.

Biography

Lind was born in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

on April 14, 1948, and raised in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. He studied

classical guitar The classical guitar, also known as Spanish guitar, is a member of the guitar family used in classical music and other styles. An acoustic wooden string (music), string instrument with strings made of catgut, gut or nylon, it is a precursor of the ...

at the

Mannes College of Music The Mannes School of Music (), originally called the David Mannes Music School and later the Mannes Music School, Mannes College of Music, the Chatham Square Music School, and Mannes College: The New School for Music, is a Music school, music con ...

. His first break was in the 1970s where he worked with Bob Cavallo. During this period he met producer

Maurice White Maurice White (December 19, 1941 – February 4, 2016) was an American musician, best known as the founder, leader, main songwriter and chief producer of the band Earth, Wind & Fire, also serving as the band's co-lead singer with Philip Bailey. ...

who recorded his songs with

Ramsey Lewis Ramsey Emmanuel Lewis Jr. (May 27, 1935 – September 12, 2022) was an American jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and radio personality. Lewis recorded over 80 albums and received five RIAA certification, gold records and three Grammy Awards ...

and Earth, Wind and Fire. He was also a member of the band Howdy Moon and the Fifth Avenue Band. He wrote songs for artists such as

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...

the Emotions The Emotions are an American soul/ R&B vocal group from Chicago. The group started out in gospel music but transitioned into R&B and disco music. The Emotions were named by VH1 as one of the 18 most influential girl groups of all time. Hist ...

, Jennifer Holliday, D.J. Rogers, Atlantic Starr and

. In 1984, Lind signed with

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

. He was a Senior Vice President of A&R at

Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label owned by the Disney Music Group which focuses on pop, rock, alternative, hip hop and country genres, also specializing in recordings for a more mature audience not suitable for the flagship Wal ...

. Lind died from cancer on January 15, 2022, at the age of 73.

Compositions

Some songs written or co-written by Lind include: * Howdy Moon - "Cheyenne Autumn" and "Mill Stream" (Co-written with Francine Tacker) *

& Earth, Wind and Fire - "Sun Goddess" (Co-written with

) * Earth, Wind and Fire with

The Emotions The Emotions are an American soul/ R&B vocal group from Chicago. The group started out in gospel music but transitioned into R&B and disco music. The Emotions were named by VH1 as one of the 18 most influential girl groups of all time. Hist ...

- " Boogie Wonderland" (Co-written with Allee Willis) *

- " Crazy for You" (Co-written with John Bettis;

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), ...

#1) *

- " Skin Deep" (Co-written with Mark Goldenberg) *

Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American rock band formed in Rockford, Illinois in 1970 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. Their work bridged elements of '60s pop rock, guitar pop, '70s har ...

- " No Mercy" (Co-written with Jim Scott) * Cher - " Kiss to Kiss" (Co-written with Mary D'astugues and Phil Galdston) and "All Because of You" (Co-written with Sue Schifrin) *

The Temptations The Temptations is an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961 as The Elgins, known for their string of successful singles and albums with Motown from the 1960s to the mid-1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield ...

- "Big Fun (Harry Crumb)" (Co-written with Galdston and David Was) * Jon Lind - "I'm Gonna' Be the One" (Co-written with

Don Was Don Edward Fagenson (born September 13, 1952), known professionally as Don Was (), is an American musician, record producer, music director, film composer, documentary filmmaker and radio host. Since 2011, he has also served as president of the ...

) * Gene Miller - "Can't Believe My Eyes" (Co-written with Bettis) * Vanessa Williams - " Save the Best for Last" (Co-written with

Wendy Waldman Wendy Waldman (born Wendy Steiner on November 29, 1950) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Biography Early life Waldman grew up in the Los Angeles area and was raised in a musical environment. Her father Fred Steiner was a ...

and Phil Galdston; Billboard Hot 100 #1) *

Mica Paris Michelle Antoinette Wallen (born 27 April 1969), known professionally as Mica Paris ( ), is an English singer, presenter, and actress. Her debut album, '' So Good'', was released in 1988, spawning the singles " My One Temptation" and " Where I ...

- " Whisper a Prayer" (Co-written with Waldman and Galdston) * Vanessa Williams - " The Sweetest Days" (Co-written with Waldman and Galdston) *

BBMak BBMak are a British band consisting of Mark Barry, Christian Burns and Stephen McNally (musician), Stephen McNally. Formed in Liverpool in 1996, they sold over three million albums worldwide between 1999 and 2003. The band first achieved success ...

- "

Ghost of You and Me "Ghost of You and Me" is a 2001 single by British pop music, pop band BBMak. It appears on BBMak's debut studio album, ''Sooner or Later (BBMak album), Sooner or Later''. The song peaked at number 8 on the US Adult Contemporary chart. It was writ ...

" (Co-written with Richard Page) * Warren Wiebe - "I Believe in Us" (Co-written with Waldman and Galdston) *

Akina Nakamori is a Japanese Singing, singer and Actor, actress. She is one of the most popular and List of best-selling music artists in Japan, best-selling music artists in Japan. Akina achieved national recognition after winning the 1981 season of the tal ...

- "Heartbreak" , "Femme Fatale" from the studio album ''Femme Fatale'' (

Oricon Albums Chart The Oricon Albums Chart is the Japanese music industry standard albums popularity chart issued daily, weekly, monthly and yearly by Oricon. Oricon originally published LP, CT, Cartridge and CD charts prior to the establishment of the Oricon A ...

#1)

Discography

The Fifth Avenue Band

*''The Fifth Avenue Band'' (Reprise 6369 - 1969) ;Side 1 # "Fast Freight" (Peter Gallway) # "One Way or the Other" (Kenny Altman) # "Good Lady of Toronto" (Peter Gallway) # "Eden Rock" (Kenny Altman - Peter Gallway) # "Country Time Rhymes" (Peter Gallway) # "Calamity Jane" (Peter Gallway) ;Side 2 # "Nice Folks" (Kenny Altman) # "Cockeyed Shame" (Peter Gallway) # "Faithful Be Fair" (Kenny Altman) # "In Hollywood" (Peter Gallway) # "Angel" (Jon Lind) *''The Fifth Avenue Band - Really'' (Pony Canyon, Japan, 1990)

Howdy Moon

*'' Howdy Moon'' (A&M 1974)

White Horse

*''White Horse'' (Capitol 1977)

References

External links

* * 1948 births 2022 deaths Musicians from New York City Songwriters from New York (state) {{US-music-bio-stub