Jerry Gillespie

Jerry Wayne Gillespie
Born	Decatur, Alabama

Jerry Wayne Gillespie (born Decatur, Alabama) is an American country songwriter. He co-wrote "Do You Love as Good as You Look", a #1 song in 1981 for The Bellamy Brothers^[1] and wrote "Heaven's Just a Sin Away", a #1 country hit in 1977 for The Kendalls. He co-wrote "Somebody's Knockin'", a Grammy Award finalist in 1982 for Terri Gibbs, and "I Just Can't Stay Married With You", a #5 hit for Christy Lane in 1979. He wrote or co-wrote a number of successful songs for Tommy Overstreet, including "Gwen (Congratulations)", co-written with Ricci Mareno,^[2] a #5 country hit in 1971, and "That's When My Woman Begins^[3] a #6 country hit in 1975. Gillespie also worked as a producer with Christy Lane, The Kendalls, and Micki Fuhrman.^[4]

Other Gillespie songs that charted

• "Catch the Wind" (Jerry Gillespie, Ricci Mareno) Jack Barlow, #26 Country, 1971
• "A Seed Before the Rose" (Jerry Gillespie, Ricci Mareno)^[5] Tommy Overstreet, #16 Country, 1972
• "It'll Be Me" (Gillespie/Clement/Bourke) Tom Jones, #34 Country, 1983
• "You Really Go for the Heart" (Charles Black, Tommy Rocco, Jerry Gillespie) Dan Seals, #37 Country, 1983
• "The Jagged Edge of a Broken Heart" (K. T. Oslin, Jerry Gillespie) Gail Davies, #20 Country, 1984
• "We Just Gotta Dance" (Jerry Gillespie) Karen Taylor-Good, #66 Country, 1984
• "I Love You By Heart" (Jerry Gillespie, Stan Webb), Sylvia and Michael Johnson, #9 Country, 1985
• "She's Ready for Someone to Love Her" (Charles Black, Jerry Gillespie, Tommy Rocco) The Osmond Brothers, #67 Country, 1983. Also covered by Kenny Rogers and Jerry Reed
• "Baby Wants", The Osmond Brothers, #45 Country, 1986

"Heaven's Just a Sin Away" also charted in a minor way for Kelly Willis in 1993 (#63 Country). "Old Pictures" and "Dr. Dr." were written by Gillespie with K. T. Oslin, and appeared on her platinum-selling 1987 debut album 80s Ladies. His Christmas song "Blue Decorations" was covered by B. B. King on his 2001 Grammy-winning album A Christmas Celebration of Hope.

References

1. Alabama Music Hall of Fame entry for Gillespie (now offline: Internet Archive page retrieved October 12, 2014)
2. "Gwen (Congratulations)" (Mareno-Gillespie), release details at 45cat.com, retrieved October 5, 2014; see also copyright details at ASCAP, Work ID: 370100426
3. "That's When My Woman Begins" (Gillespie), release details at 45cat.com, retrieved October 5, 2014; see also copyright details at SESAC, Song number: 151105
4. Billboard, Feb. 2, 1982, p. 62, "First Collaboration 'A Charm'"
5. "Seed Before The Rose" (Gillespie-Mareno), release details at 45cat.com, retrieved October 5, 2014; see also copyright details at ASCAP, Work ID: 490299059