Linda Jones (December 14, 1944 – March 14, 1972) – You Can't Take It (1967)

The tragic soul singer's debut album included this superb rare track that was only issued as a single in France, produced by George Kerr and arranged by Richard Tee.

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The great singer Linda Jones is best known for “Hypnotized” which hit #4 R&B in 1967. She was sick for most of her short life, and with her powerful, gospel-trained voice poured heart and suffering into her songs. Her premature death cemented her status as a soul legend.

Born in Newark, New Jersey, Jones was six years old when she first sang with her family’s gospel group the Jones Singers. From childhood onwards, she suffered from a particularly debilitating case of Type 1 diabetes (formerly known as juvenile diabetes) which often left her fatigued.

Billed as “Linda Lane,” she recorded her first single for MGM subsidiary Cub Records, a cover of Jackie Wilson’s “Lonely Teardrops.” Its B-side was the heartfelt “Cancel The Celebration,” written by Bill Cook who also produced both sides. The single was released in 1963 when she was 19.

Songwriter Gerald Harris discovered her performing at a Newark nightclub the following year. He and his frequent collaborator, songwriter/producer George Kerr, started co-writing and producing her records beginning with the upbeat, gospel-flavored “Take The Boy Out Of The Country” b/w “I'm Taking Back My Love,” released on ATCO in 1965.

Its follow up was the superb jam “Fugitive From Love” (1966), a dark, emotional song on which Jones’ powerful vocals soared. With “You Hit Me Like T.N.T.” on the flip, it came out on the tiny Blue Cat label, a subsidiary of New York City-based Red Bird Records. Original copies today sell for an average of $150 and up on Discogs.

Jones’ next single was the one that put her on the map. Interviewed by her daughter Terry on Linda Jones Day in Newark (December 14, 2021, when they renamed a street in her honor), producer George Kerr explained how Linda ended up singing her big hit “Hypnotized.” Songwriter brothers Richard and Robert Poindexter auditioned several songs for him in late 1966, one of which was “Hypnotized.” He said the song itself gave him goosebumps, but he knew he needed a singer “who could walk water” to make it a hit. After having worked with Jones on her two previous records, he and Gerald Harris thought she would be perfect for this new one.

She was, and took the beautiful love ballad to #4 R&B when it was released in March, 1967 on Warner Bros. subsidiary Loma. It crossed over to #21 on the Billboard Hot 100 on its way to becoming her signature song and the entire Loma label’s biggest-ever hit. Co-written by Richard Poindexter and Gloria Spolan, it was produced by Kerr and arranged by the great keyboardist Richard Tee. The two of them also produced and arranged its superb upbeat B-side “I Can't Stop Lovin' My Baby”

Jones released two more singles on Loma in 1967. “What've I Done (To Make You Mad)” b/w “Make Me Surrender (Baby, Baby Please)” went to #8 R&B that September, and “Give My Love A Try” b/w the upbeat jam “I Can't Stand It” was issued in November and peaked at #34 R&B in early 1968.

Her debut solo album Hypnotized came out in 1967. Propelled by its title track, it reached #26 on the R&B album charts. The soul masterpiece “You Can't Take It” was arguably the LP’s greatest song, although inexplicably it was never included on a U.S. single. However, it was issued as a jukebox single in France, and also included on a rare 4-song French EP. The going price on Discogs for original copies of either release is upwards of $200.

“You Can't Take It” was co-written by Richard and Robert Poindexter and Texas-born soul songwriter LeCharles aka Charles Harper. It was produced by Kerr, arranged by Tee, and released in France under the Warner Bros. label.

She released several more singles on Loma including “It Won't Take Much (To Bring Me Back)” b/w “I Who Have Nothing” and the Motown-esque “My Heart Needs A Break” with the superb, heartfelt “The Things I've Been Through” on the flip (co-written by Kerr and Harris), which featured a spoken word interlude that created a template Denise LaSalle and Millie Jackson would later follow. Both records were issued in 1968.

The same year, Warner Bros. shut down Loma and absorbed its artists and back catalog. Her final single on the label came out in 1969 on Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, the hard to find, phenomenal “I Just Can't Live My Life (Without You Babe),” written and produced solely by Kerr and arranged by Tee, b/w “My Heart (Will Understand).”

Jones next signed with Neptune Records for a short time, the label run by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff right before they founded Philadelphia International Records in 1971. Her last single there was “Ooh Baby You Move Me” (1970) b/w the superb jam “Can You Blame Me?” which did not chart. She then switched to Turbo Records, a subsidiary of Joe and Sylvia Robinson’s Englewood, New Jersey-based All Platinum Records.

In early 1972, Jones covered the Impressions’ first big song, “For Your Precious Love,” co-written by Jerry Butler in 1958. It was a comeback hit for her after several years of only moderate chart success, reaching #15 R&B and #74 on the Hot 100. Turbo immediately put out her second solo LP Your Precious Love, which hit #35 on the R&B album charts, and she played shows around the country to support it.

While in the middle of a week-long run at the Apollo Theater that March, Jones went back to her mother’s New York City apartment to rest between matinee and evening shows. She slipped into a diabetic coma and died in her sleep, gone far too soon at age 27.

Happy Heavenly Birthday to the legendary Linda Jones.

Further info:

“Linda Jones: Bod(ies)y In Pain,” by Mark Anthony Neal, The New Black: Magazine, 2009 / 2012.

“Everything I Got, Darling, It's Yours: The Drama of Linda Jones,” Virginian-Pilot, January 3, 2014.

“Where the Forgotten are Remembered: Linda Jones,” by Stuart Cosgrove, Glasgow Music City Tours, April 27, 2016.

“Linda Jones: A Portrait Of Linda Jones,” Stereo Candies, July 17, 2016.

“The Making Of Hypnotized,” interview with George Kerr by Terry Jones, LindaJonesTV, December 14, 2021.

#soul #NorthernSoul #LindaJones