Chater, Kerry

Websites:  http://www.chatersongs.com/
Origin: Vancouver, British Columbia, 🇨🇦 - Nashville, Tennessee, 🇺🇸
Biography:

Unfortunately, Kerry passed away from Covid in 2022.

Canadian born Kerry Chater’s childhood was filled with hours spent at the piano playing for fun and an extensive education in music composition, theory, arranging, and directing.

Chater was born on August 7, 1945, in Vancouver, British Columbia. A bass player, in the mid-'60s he joined a band called The Progressives with Doug Ingle (keyboards), Gary 'Mutha' Whitem (sax) and Danny Weis (guitar). The Progressives eventually became part of Jeri and the Jeritones and then Palace Pages by 1965, after Jeri married Kerry. By 1966, Ingle, and Weis went off to form Iron Butterfly and Chater and Whitem joined The Outcasts with their friend Gary Puckett and others; this eventually became The Union Gap, which was signed by Columbia Records in 1967. Over the next two years the band had four songs in the top 10. Chater did much of the arranging for the live shows,[citation needed] wrote or co-wrote some of the album cuts and b-sides, and on rare occasions did a shared lead vocal. Chater and Gary "Mutha" Withem, the original keyboardist, left the band in 1970 as its popularity was declining.

Chater spent the next five years studying musical theater with Lehman Engel. Chater released two solo albums in the late 1970s: Part Time Love (1977) and Love on a Shoestring (1978); neither charted.

With veteran songwriter Charlie Black, Chater wrote "I Know a Heartache When I See One", which reached number 19 on the US and number 10 on the US country chart in 1979 for Jennifer Warnes. Chater has also written hits with Glen Ballard and Rory Bourke ("You Look So Good in Love"), singer Renee Armand ("What She Wants"), and his wife, Lynn Gillespie Chater ("I Meant to Do That", with Paul Brandt).

The song "I.O.U.", co-written with Austin Roberts, was a nominee for the 1984 Grammy Award for Best Country Song. Lee Greenwood's performance of the song won him the Grammy Award for Best Male Country Vocal Performance.

Chater began his music career at the professional level in 1967 when he and his friend, Gary Puckett, formed the pop/rock band Gary Puckett and The Union Gap, and for the next four years Kerry was the group’s bass player and arranger for live performances. He also wrote for the group and many of his songs can be heard on their albums.

In 1970, Chater left the band to pursue a career in songwriting and expand his education into musical theatre. In 1972, Chater was one of a small group of writers invited into the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop instructed by Lehman Engel, then considered the dean of the American musical theatre. Over the next five years, and under the tutelage of Lehman Engel, Chater wrote several musicals that were performed locally in Los Angeles.

In 1978, Chater continued his songwriting career by teaming up with legendary country songwriters Rory Bourke and Charlie Black to write “I Know A Heartache When I See One.” Jennifer Warnes’ recording of that song climbed up both the pop and country charts. In 1982, Chater collaborated with singer/songwriter Dickey Lee to write “You’re The First Time I’ve Thought About Leaving,” which became a #1 single for Reba McEntire. Then, in 1983, Chater teamed up with Austin Roberts to write the song “I.O.U.” for which they received a Grammy nomination for Song of the Year. The recording of that song won Lee Greenwood a Grammy for Best Performance by a Male Artist. “I.O.U.” has since gone on to be honored with BMI’s 2 Million Broadcast Performances Award.

In 1983, George Strait recorded “You Look So Good In Love” written by Chater, Rory Bourke, and Glen Ballard and that song became a #1 Country hit, a BMI 3 Million Performances Award winner, and a Country music classic. Recently, Jamie Foxx sang his own rendition of “You Look So Good In Love” for the nationally televised All Star Salute To George Strait, celebrating Strait’s being named Artist of the Decade by the ACM. “You Look So Good In Love” was also covered twice by performers on CBS’ The Voice.

In 1989 the group Alabama took Kerry’s song “If I Had You” to #1 status, giving Kerry his fourth time at that cherished chart position.

In 1987, Chater moved to Nashville where he resides with his wife and writing partner, Lynn Gillespie Chater. Together, they have written songs for Mindy McCready, Restless Heart, Highway 101, Anne Murray, Paul Brandt, Eddy Raven, Lorrie Morgan, Jessica Andrews, just to name a few. Most recently, their songs can be heard on 2018 SPBGMA Songwriter of the Year winner Donna Ulisse’s CDs, including: “Walk This Mountain Down,” “Holy Waters,” “Easy Climb,” and “All The Way To Bethlehem.”

Chater has received one BMI 3 Million Broadcast Performances Award, two BMI 2 Million Broadcast Performances Awards, five BMI 1 Million Broadcast Performances Awards, and 16 BMI Certificate of Achievement Awards. He has written four #1 songs and well over 40 of his songs have made it onto the charts. His songs can be heard on over 100 albums and are featured on over 35 million records sold. Chater has received CMA’s #1 Song Award, and ACM’s #1 Song Award. He is a graduate of Nashville’s prestigious Leadership Music program.

Kerry and Lynn have also moved into book authorship with the release of their thriller novels, Kill Point, and Blood Debt, both of which made it onto Amazon’s Best Sellers list. They have plans for a third book, Collusion, to complete the trilogy.

Kerry and Lynn are now entrenched in their latest endeavor (along with Tony-nominated lyricist Ellen Fitzhugh) on the musical comedy, CURED! How Crazy Is That!?!