May 2024 · 8 minute read

Jerry Fuller, a songwriter and producer whose No. 1 hits included Ricky Nelson’s “Travelin’ Man,” Gary Puckett & the Union Gap’s “Young Girl,” Al Wilson’s “Show and Tell” and the Knickerbockers’ U.K. chart-topper “Lies,” has died at 85. He died at home in Sherman Oaks Thursday night, where he was said to have been surrounded by family and loved ones; the cause was complications from lung cancer.

The Texas-born Fuller also had a short career as a recording artist himself, releasing a lone solo album and several modestly charting singles in a pop-rockabilly vein in 1959-61, before he found far greater success writing and producing for his contemporaries in multiple genres.

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Among the hundreds of artists who recorded his 1,000-plus compositions were Reba McEntire, Gene Vincent, Cher, Glen Campbell, Ray Price, Don McLean, Sam Cooke, Ray Charles, Barbara Mandrell, Percy Sledge, Eddy Arnold, Marty Robbins, Vanessa Williams, Lee Greenwood, Peabo Bryson, Steve Wariner, Lynn Anderson, the Kingston Trio, Pat Boone, Hank Snow, Billy J. Kramer and Lou Rawls. Additional production clients included Johnny Mathis, Roger Miller and Collin Raye.

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Fuller’s success as a producer on songs he didn’t write was especially notable with the Knickerbockers’ Beatles-style classic “Lies,” which went to No. 1 in the U.K., although it only made it to No. 20 hit in the U.S., and Wilson’s “Show and Tell,” which went to the top of the soul as well as pop chart in 1973.

It was his work with Ricky Nelson (later known as “Rick”) that first put Fuller on the music industry map as a writer in a big way. Nelson recorded about 20 of Fuller’s songs altogether, many of which were sung on the hit TV show “The Adventures of Ozzy and Harriet” as well as making their mark on radio. “Travelin’ Man,” which Fuller demoed with his good friend Glen Campbell, was written with Sam Cooke in mind but ended up in the hands of Nelson and went to No. 1 on the Billboard chart and No. 2 in the U.K. Other early ’60s hits for Nelson via Fuller included “Young World” (No. 5), “It’s Up to You” (No. 6) and “A Wonder Like You” (No. 11).

After his run of hits with Nelson, he was most associated with Puckett & the Union Gap, as a producer as well as writer, with “Young Girl” being their most enduring collaboration. Puckett issued a statement of appreciation after hearing of Fuller’s death, saying, “What can I say about a guy whose vision defined my musical identity and destiny. What can ANYONE say about a man who gave SO much to SO many through his talents and efforts in the world of music. Thank you, Jerry — the world was a better place with you in it.”

Fuller was born on Nov. 19, 1938 in Forth Worth to a musical family, with both parents, Clarence and Lola, being singers. At age 11, Lola led Jerry and his brother to become a duo, the Fuller Bros., singing a cappella at local engagements.

His professional career as a solo artist began when, soon after graduating high school, he recorded an original song, “I Found a New Love,” for Lin Records in 1958. His highest-charting single was a rockabilly cover of “Tennessee Waltz” that reached No. 63 in Billboard in 1959; his lone album, “Teenage Love,” did not chart, but has a following even now.

In 1960, Fuller was touring with the Champs before coming to L.A., where he found work as a demo singer, as well as getting “Travelin’ Man” into the hands of the teen idol Nelson.

Fuller was drafted into the Army and spent two years stationed in New York at Seneca Army Depot, still writing songs and entertaining the troops there. Moving to New York after getting out of the service, he went to work for Four Star and was visiting a nightclub in Albany when he discovered the house band, the Knickerbockers, and got approval to sign them to a contract. Soon he moved back to the west coast and stepped into the producer’s chair for the first time with that group’s still-indelible “Lies.”

On his first day back in L.A., Fuller was introduced by his good friend Glen Campbell to his future bride, Annette Smerigan. Campbell served as best man at the wedding. (Despite their long friendship, Fuller didn’t actually produce a Campbell record till 1982.)

Gary Puckett & the Union Gap turned out to be his most reliable production client, beginning with the group’s Wrecking Crew-aided debut single, “Woman, Woman,” which reached No. 4 on the Hot 100. Puckett and company went from “Woman”-hood to “Girl”-hood with their second single, “Young Girl,” which hit No. 1. That smash was written as well as produced by Fuller, and it went on to be recorded by more than 20 other artists, from the Lettermen to Matthew Morrison, the latter on the “Glee 2” soundtrack. Their third single together, “Lady Willpower,” also written solely by Fuller, went to No. 1 at Cashbox and No. 2 in Billboard. The streak continued as a fourth consecutive song hit the top 10 — “Over You,” which reached No. 7 in 1968.

Fuller’s producing success continued with O.C. Smith’s “Little Green Apples,” a No. 2 hit on the Hot 100 in 1968, hitting that same mark on the R&B chart.

Fuller also worked with Mark Lindsay, who had a solo career apart from Paul Revere and the Raiders, with “Arizona” reaching the top 10.

Moving into the 1970s, Fuller formed his own companies, Moonchild Productions Inc. and Fullness
Music Company, and worked for Columbia, signing a young Mac Davis. He eventually started moving more into the realm of country. He had a long affiliation with Ray Price that included “That’s All She Wrote,” “To Make A Long Story Short” and “Feet,” and found success with Reba McEntire’s early songs “I Still Long To Hold You Now and Then” and “That Makes Two Of Us” (a duet with Jacky Ward)

His greatest ’70s success was Al Wilson’s “Show And Tell,” which was named Cashbox’s Single of the Year for 1973 and reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100, also going top 10 on both the easy listening and soul charts.

Fuller did return to recording as a singer at a few points after his burst of songwriting and producing success, including an album for MCA in 1979, “It’s My Turn Now.” Beginning in the late ’90s, he started recording some of the greatest hits he’d enjoyed as a writer or producer, in his own interpretations, culminating in four volumes of “From the Vault” released in 2016-18.

Fuller is survived by his wife, Annette, and their children, Adam Lee and Anna Nicole.

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