The Impressions

Originally founded as gospel group The Roosters in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the group’s founders – Sam Gooden, Richard Brooks, and Arthur Brooks – relocated to Chicago, Illinois and, in 1958, added singer-songwriters Curtis Mayfield and Jerry Butler to the line-up. Under new management, they were renamed Jerry Butler & the Impressions and signed with Vee-Jay Records. After scoring R&B hits “Your Precious Love” (1958) and “Come Back My Love” (1958), Jerry Butler left the group to pursue a solo career in 1960, and Curtis Mayfield took over as front man. Now calling themselves the Impressions, their soulful pop developed with the times, and they started to tackle racial politics and social inequality on US Top 10 album Keep on Moving (1964). Their combination of pop and politics would later inspire future music icons Bob Marley, Public Enemy, and even Bruce Springsteen, while hit singles “It's All Right” (1963), “Talking About My Baby” (1964), “Amen” (1964), “We're A Winner” (1967), and their all-time classic “People Get Ready” (1965) marked Mayfield out as one of the most important songwriters of his generation. He left the group in 1970 and went on to enjoy solo stardom and, while the group continued to record and tour in various guises. their only major subsequent success was with the single “Finally Got Myself Together (I’m a Changed Man),” which made the US Top 20 in 1974. Of the original line-up, Curtis Mayfield died in 1999, followed by Arthur Brooks in 2015, Sam Gooden in 2022, and Richard Brooks in 2023. The group’s last surviving original member, Jerry Butler was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and died on February 20, 2025, at the age of 85.

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