Jim Yester

James Yester (born November 24, 1939) is an American musician. He is a member of the sunshine pop group the Association, who had numerous hits on the Billboard charts during the 1960s, including "Windy", "Cherish", "Never My Love" and "Along Comes Mary", among many others.

Yester was a core member of the Modern Folk Quartet when they reformed in the 1980s. He is the older brother of former Lovin' Spoonful member Jerry Yester, and he played briefly with that band in the 1990s. Since 2007, Yester has remained a member of the Association, co-leading alongside original member Jules Alexander and Del Ramos (brother of late Association member Larry Ramos).

Early life (1939–1952) Jim Yester was born in Birmingham, Alabama to Lawrence and Martha Yester. Yester's family moved to Burbank, California when he was three because his father wanted to get involved in the film industry. His father was a local Birmingham radio broadcaster, who played the part of a band member in the 1948 film Fort Apache, and was also a freelance piano player and author of numerous books based around the accordion. The first concert Jim attended was a Fats Domino concert at the Olive Recreation Center.

Growing up, Yester attended Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, California and was a member of the Falconry club there. He first learned how to play the harmonica while walking to and from elementary school. Then, later on, Yester learned how to play the piano at the home of a fellow Falconry club member who had a piano in the garage where their meetings would take place; Yester would watch him play the instrument, and then play it himself after his friend finished. Mutt's brother, Herbie, would later manage the Modern Folk Quartet,

The Association (1965–)

1965–1966 In 1966, Yester was asked to join the group The Association when their original rhythm guitarist Bob Page left two weeks after the band formed: The group rehearsed for six months Yester was one of the group's main songwriters.

The band is known for their harmonies and multiple lead vocalists, with Jim contributing on Tenor vocals, that can be heard on "Cherish".

The group's other hits in the following years included "Windy", "Everything That Touches You", "Never My Love", and "Requiem for the Masses". Windy and Never My Love scored at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, and Everything That Touches You charted at number ten.

On Friday, June 16, 1967, the band were the lead-off act at the Monterey International Pop Festival. The band were introduced onto the stage by The Mamas & the Papas member John Phillips (who was also a key-organizer of the event) however, due to them being the first act, the camera crew were still setting up equipment, meaning the first half of the group's performance wasn't filmed, and what set of songs they performed aren't 100% known, but the songs The Machine, Along Comes Mary, and Windy, have surviving footage, performed in that respective order.

As a member of the Association, he has been nominated for a Grammy Award six times, three times each in the 9th and 10th Annual Grammy Awards, both of which were held in 1967 and 1968, respectively. He composed the title song for the movie Goodbye Columbus, which earned the Association a nomination for Best Original Song at the 1969 Golden Globe Awards.

In August 1969, a collection of Poems, penned by the seven members of the Association, were released as the book "Crank Your Spreaders".

1970s–1980s Yester appeared on the band's last two studio albums, Stop Your Motor (1971) and Waterbeds in Trinidad! (1972). Soon after the death of Brian Cole of a heroin overdose, the band was reportedly "in a state of flux, releasing singles intermittently along with sporadic touring", and many members were drifting in and out of the band, and Yester would leave the Association in 1973, however, Jim returned to the band later on that year. In 1975 the band signed with RCA Records where they released two singles, "One Sunday Morning" (produced in Canada by Jack Richardson) and "Sleepy Eyes". An album called The Association Bites Back was to follow but was never released.

During this period, the band was offered a production deal with Mike Curb, who wanted them to record a disco version of the prior hits, "Cherish", "No Fair At All" and an original song which Larry Brown wrote and sang entitled "It's High Time To Get High". The deal did not go through. Yester left the group again in 1976 and shortly after, the band temporarily split up in 1978. A year later, in September 1979, the surviving key members, reunited at the Ambassador Hotel's Coconut Grove nightclub in Los Angeles for an HBO special called Then and Now.

The following year the reunited group also appeared at a charity show hosted in Dallas by Ed McMahon called Ed McMahon and Company that ran on the Showtime cable network in August 1980. These reunions led to the band getting back together again in 1979.

In 1981, the band appeared on American Bandstand, and in 1983, Jim left the Association.

2000s-present In 2003, the Association were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, where the then-surviving members performed "Along Comes Mary" and "Windy".

The current lineup of the group consists of Yester (rhythm and lead guitar; 1965–1973, 1974–1977, 1979–1983, 2007–present), Jules Alexander (lead and rhythm guitar; 1965–1967, 1969–1974, 1979–1989, since 2012), Bruce Pictor (drums since 1985), Paul Holland (bass 1988–1999; rhythm and lead guitar since 2014), Del Ramos (brother of Association member Larry Ramos; bass since 1999) and Jordan Cole (son of Association member Brian Cole, keyboard since 1999).

The Band were recipients of the Rock Justice Awards on January 18, 2019, at Village Studios in Los Angeles.

Modern Folk Quartet (1985–1991) Yester played in the reformed Modern Folk Quartet, from 1985 to 1991, and contributed to the albums; Moonlight Serenade (1985) Live From Japan (1989) Bamboo Saloon (1990) MFQ Christmas (1990) MFQ Wolfgang (1991)

The Lovin’ Spoonful (1991–1994)

In 1991, after a long-awaited settlement with their record company, Joe Butler and Steve Boone, of the Lovin' Spoonful, decided to start the group up again with Jerry Yester, who had joined the band later on, in 1967. The Lovin' Spoonful are known for hits such as "Do You Believe in Magic", "Summer in the City" and "Darling Be Home Soon". They were joined by Jim, due to other original Spoonful members John Sebastian and Zal Yanovsky declining to participate. After a two-month rehearsal in the Berkshire Mountains, the group started touring. Jim Yester left this new grouping in 1994, and was replaced by guitarist Randy Chance.

Other works Yester co-wrote the song Raven In A Cage with Lovin' Spoonful member Zal Yanovsky for Yanovsky's 1968 solo album Alive And Well In Argentina.

In 1978, Yester opened for Robin Williams as a solo artist at the Ice House YBS toured until Somerville's death in 2015.

On July 28, 2013, Yester guest appeared with the ensemble, the YesterDaze.

Yester still continues to perform in clubs as a solo artist, albeit less often than he did earlier in his career.

Personal life Yester has two brothers, Ted (older brother) and Jerry (younger brother). Jerry has also played in the Modern Folk Quartet and the Lovin' Spoonful.

Yester currently resides in Galloway Township, New Jersey, after previously living in Hollywood, Los Angeles from 1943 to 1989, 1985 Live in Japan 1989 Bamboo Saloon 1990 MFQ Christmas 1990 MFQ Wolfgang 1991

Singles Title(s)YearTogether to Tomorrow / Keepin' the Dream Alive1990

YBS

Singles TitleLet's Give Them Something to Talk About

Partial songwriting credits

The Association

Solo Artists TitleForYearNoteRaven In A CageZal Yanovsky1968

Nominations As a member of the Association, he has been nominated for a Grammy Award six times, three times each in the 9th and 10th Annual Grammy Awards:

9th Annual Grammy Awards (1967) CategorySongNoteBest Contemporary Group PerformanceCherish Best Contemporary RecordingCherishBest Performance By A Vocal GroupCherish

10th Annual Grammy Awards (1968) CategorySong/AlbumNoteBest Contemporary Group PerformanceWindy Best Contemporary AlbumInsight OutBest Performance By A Vocal GroupNever My Love