Topically Yours - Singer, musician, producer Jonathan Butler

Rainbow Soul

Host Deardra Shuler talks with singer Jonathan Butler who was born and raised in Cape Town during Apartheid. Jonathan Butler started singing and playing acoustic guitar as a child. Racial segregation and poverty during Apartheid has been the subject of many of his records. His first single earned a Sarie Award, South Africa's equivalent to the Grammy Awards. Butler has achieved chart-topping success, Grammy ® nominations and other accolades for his recordings. His self-titled debut album put him on the map internationally and garnered two Grammy ® nominations, which include the R&B-pop vocal statement "Lies" and the poignant instrumental, "Going Home." Butler, a multi-talented musician, produces, arranges, and plays guitar, bass and keyboards. He has released several best-selling Gospel CDs, most notably "Gospel Goes Classical" and "Brand New Day. He has come full circle and back to his love of Bacharach with the music of his new album, Close To You. The 11-­song project features 10 Bacharach/David gemstones from the mid-­60s to early 70s (including vocal versions of “The Look Of Love,” “Walk On By,” “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again,” “This Guy’s In Love With You” the first single “What The World Needs Now Is Love,” plus instrumental versions of “Do You Know The Way To San Jose” and his new smooth jazz single “I Say A Little Prayer,” as well as one original composition, the ebulliently autobiographical “Cape Town.”