Jimmy Jones, whose hits included Handy Man and Good Timin’, passed away last Thursday in Aberdeen, NC at the age of 82.
Jimmy Jones
Jones was born in Birmingham, AL and started his entertainment career as a tap dancer before joining the vocal group The Berliners (later The Sparks of Rhythm) in 1954. A year later, he formed his own group, The Savoys who later changed their name to The Pretenders.
It was in 1959 that Jones went out on his own and soon hooked up with Otis Blackwell who helped him take an old Sparks of Rhythm song, Handy Man, and turn it into a major national hit which peaked at number 2 in early 1960.
Later that same year, Jones had a second major hit with Good Timin’ which went to number 3 but it was the last time that the singer would see the upper reaches of the charts. Still, Jones was able to carve out a long-term career in the music industry by working as a songwriter and touring on his hits, especially on England’s Northern Soul circuit. His use of falsetto on his early music were said to have influenced such artists as Del Shannon and Frankie Valli.
Jones is survived by his wife Mattie, two daughters, a son, four grandchildren and a number of great-grandchildren.
