Only the Strong Survive: Memoirs of a Soul Survivor (Black Music and Expressive Culture)

Jerry Butler’s Only the Strong Survive presents a portrait of a remarkable performer, as well as an up-close and personal look at the world of rhythm-and-blues. Filled with intimate anecdotes about such R&B legends as Otis Redding, Curtis Mayfield, Patti LaBelle, Sam Cook, and Dionne Warwick, Butler’s compelling, sometimes hilarious, narrative is told against the backdrop of 1960s America. Only the Strong Survive, as told to Earl Smith, is an autobiography; but more than that, it is history. Drawing on countless conversations and interviews with Butler and others, Smith chronicles the "Iceman’s" journey from rural Mississippi to Chicago, and the founding and eventual breakup of the legendary Impressions vocal group.

Currently serving his fourth term on the Cook County Board of Commissioners, Butler also gives us a glimpse inside the world of Chicago politics. He shares stories of Harold Washington, Chicago’s first African American mayor, and others, including Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.

Only the Strong Survive is an entertaining, moving chronicle of one of America’s music pioneers.