West Virginia
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| - | '''Claude A. Jeter''' (October 26, 1914 – January 6, 2009) was an [[African American singer|African American]] [[gospel music]] singer. Originally a [[coal miner]] from [[Kentucky]], Jeter formed the group that would eventually become one of the most popular gospel quartets of the post-war era – the [[Swan Silvertones]]. He was also, at one time, a member of the [[Dixie Hummingbirds]]. | + | West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia on the southeast, Kentucky on the southwest, Ohio on the northwest, and Pennsylvania and Maryland on the northeast. The capital and largest city is Charleston. |
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| - | Jeter was born in [[Montgomery, Alabama]] on October 26, 1914. Jeter's father died when he was eight-years old and he moved to [[Kentucky]] with his family, where he later found work in the coal mines in [[West Virginia]] as a teenager. | + | |
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| - | He formed the Four Harmony Kings in 1938 with his brother and two fellow coal miners, which was later renamed as the Silvertone Singers. After the group was hired by a radio program based in [[Knoxville, Tennessee]] that was sponsored by the local Swan Bakery, they were renamed as the Swan Silvertones. | + | |
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| - | Jeter was best known for his [[falsetto]] with the Swan Silvertones in which his graceful high melodies served in contrast to the rougher voices of the group's other members. The group recorded for the several different labels, but never achieved financial success, despite its widespread influence. | + | |
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| - | During the 1950s the group was popular and many of the elements of the group's style resembled the then-prevalent [[rhythm and blues]] vocal group style. Jeter received many offers to perform R&B or [[rock and roll]], but rejected them all, citing a commitment he had made to his mother that he would always sing for the Lord. | + | |
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| - | Elements of his performances in songs such as "Careless Soul" and "Saviour Pass Me Not" were picked up by later singers such as [[Al Green]] and [[Eddie Kendricks]] of [[The Temptations]]. "I'll be a bridge over deep water if you trust in my name", a line from his 1961 song "Mary Don’t You Weep" served as [[Paul Simon]]'s inspiration to write his 1970 song "[[Bridge over Troubled Water (song)|Bridge over Troubled Water]]". | + | |
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| - | Paul Simon hired Jeter to sing on the 1973 [[studio album]] ''[[There Goes Rhymin' Simon]]'' and gave Jeter a check for $1,000 for inspiring Simon to write "Bridge over Troubled Water". | + | |
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| - | In 1971, [[Anthony Heilbut]] wrote the book ''The Gospel Sound: Good News and Hard Times'', and later produced ''Yesterday and Today'', a 1991 album that was Jeter's only solo project. | + | |
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| - | Jeter died at age 94 on January 6, 2009 at the Doors of Jacob Home in [[the Bronx]]. | + | |
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West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia on the southeast, Kentucky on the southwest, Ohio on the northwest, and Pennsylvania and Maryland on the northeast. The capital and largest city is Charleston.
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "West Virginia" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
