Jonathan Butler
(born 10 October 1961 in Athlone, Cape Town, South Africa) is a singer-songwriter and guitarist.
His music is often classified as R&B, jazz fusion or smooth jazz.
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JONATHAN BUTLER TICKETS
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Jonathan Butler Tickets 5/10 | May 10, 2024 Fri, 6:00 PM | | Jonathan Butler Tickets 5/10 | May 10, 2024 Fri, 9:30 PM | | Jonathan Butler Tickets 5/11 | May 11, 2024 Sat, 6:00 PM | | Jonathan Butler Tickets 5/11 | May 11, 2024 Sat, 9:30 PM | | Jonathan Butler Tickets 5/12 | May 12, 2024 Sun, 5:00 PM | |
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Biography
Born and raised in
Cape Town during
Apartheid, Butler started singing and playing acoustic guitar as a child. Racial segregation and poverty during Apartheid has been the subject of many of his records. His first single, the first by a black artist played by white radio stations in the racially segregated South Africa, earned a Sarie Award, South Africa's equivalent to the
Grammys.
He began touring at the age of seven when he joined a traveling stage show, and was later signed up to perform on a string of hit recordings, turning him into a local teenage idol. In 1978 he found the inspiration and encouragement to begin expressing himself as a composer and songwriter when he joined Cape Town's best known jazz/rock outfit,
Pacific Express. Two albums were recorded with the Express personnel, and some Pacific Express songs were later released on the 1988 "7th Avenue" album. All three releases were issued by Mountain Records.
Butler was signed to
Jive Records in 1977, and in the early 1980s he moved to
England where he remained for 17 years. His international breakthrough came in 1987 with his
Grammy nominated hit "Lies" and his version of the
Staple Singers song "If You're Ready (Come Go with Me)", which he performed with
Ruby Turner.
Butler maintained a loyal following in the 1980s and 1990s, in South Africa, the
U.S. and
Europe.
In 2006, Butler was featured vocalist on the CD titled "Gospel Goes Classical," produced by
University of Alabama at Birmingham music professor
Henry Panion. This recording, featuring arrangements by Panion,
Tommy Stewart,
Michael Loveless and
Ray Reach, rose to #2 on the Billboard Gospel chart, and #3 on the Classical Crossover chart.
Nominated for a Grammy Award for his single
Going Home.
Discography
- Introducing Jonathan Butler
(1985)
- Jonathan Butler
(1987)
- Inspirations
(1987)
- 7th Avenue
(1988)
- More Than Friends
(1988)
- ''Deliverance (1990)
- Heal Our Land
(1990)
- Best Of Jonathan Butler
(1993)
- Head To Head
(1994)
- Do You Love Me?
(1997)
- Story Of Life
(1999)
- The Source
(2000)
- Surrender
(2002)
- Ultimate Butler
(2002)
- Worship Project
(2004)
- Jonathan
(2005)
- Gospel Goes Classical
(2006) (with Juanita Bynum) #2 Top Gospel Albums - US
- ''Brand New Day (2007)
Gallery
References