(Bio segments taken from RockabillyLegends.com)

Jerry Naylor is a forty-five year veteran of the entertainment industry. Jerry began his successful career as a singer with his own country/Rockabilly group in 1954 at age 15. In 1956, Jerry became a member of the San Angelo, Texas based rock group, The Cavaliers, who are remembered for their 1964 national number one hit recording, “Last Kiss.”

Jerry Naylor also began a duel career in broadcasting in 1954, working as a teenage radio disc jockey on the popular San Angelo, Texas KPEP country music radio station. KPEP was co-owned by Joe Treadway and Dave Stone who also owned the now legendary KDAV radio station in Lubbock, Texas, which is featured in the worldwide British hit stage production on the life and time of Buddy Holly and the Crickets, “Buddy.” The KPEP and KDAV radio station owners regularly promoted major country music concerts in San Angelo and Lubbock featuring the top stars of country music from the Grand Ole Opry and the Louisiana Hayride, such as Johnny Horton, Sonny James, Hank Snow, Hank Thompson, Ray Price, Ernest Tubb,
Billy Walker, George Jones, Johnny Cash, Bill Monroe, Kitty Wells, Elvis Presley, Bob Luman, Gene Vincent, Roy Orbison, among many others. Jerry Naylor, as a young singer managed by Joe Treadway, performed on each of these shows. Buddy Holly and his “country music blue-grass group” performed on KDAV Radio and on some of these shows at this time in Lubbock. Little could anyone have imagined, in these early years, that Jerry Naylor could become the lead singer of the Crickets after the tragic 1959 death of Buddy Holly.

Jerry joined the drummer and co-founder of the Crickets, Jerry Allison, lead guitarist, Sonny Curtis, and pianist, Glen D. Hardin, to re-form the Crickets in the fall of 1960. Jerry was the lead singer of the Crickets on most of the Liberty/EMI Records recordings and Crickets’ concert dates until he left the group for a solo career in 1965. The Crickets, with Jerry Naylor as lead singer, had several hit records in Great Britain, including Carol King’s penned, “Please Don’t Ever Change,” the Sonny Curtis written, “My Little Girl,” plus, “Teardrops
Fall Like Rain,” “Don’t Try to Change Me,” and “La Bamba,” among others. They also had a top five hit album with pop singer, Bobby Vee, entitled ”Bobby Vee Meets The Crickets” in 1962. This legendary album is still in release around the world, on CDs, through EMI/Liberty Records. The Crickets are credited with influencing the careers of many of the
legendary British rock acts, including Elton John and the Beatles. The Beatles publicly state that they named themselves after the Crickets because of their admiration for the group. Since 1991, EMI Liberty Records Inc. and the EMI Records Group, Ltd. have released or licensed to third party labels for release, more than twelve CD’s on the “Liberty Years” masters on which Jerry Naylor was the lead singer. Jerry also wrote or co-wrote some of the early EMI/Liberty Records recordings for the Crickets such as “thoughtless,” (written by Jerry Naylor and Mike Curb) and “Break It Easy” (written by Jerry Naylor). Jerry and the Crickets appeared with the Beach Boys and Leslie Gore in the 1964 Paramount Pictures beach movie classic, “Girls on the Beach,” and the Crickets, with Jerry Naylor as lead singer, were featured singing their hits, “My Little Girl” and “Teardrops Fall Like Rain,” in the 1962
Columbia Pictures British classic rock music movie, “Just For Fun.”

 In 1965 the Crickets broke up and Jerry signed a multiple-performance contract with the popular ABC-Television network music variety show, ”Shindig.” Also in 1965, Jerry Naylor signed a record production contract with newcomer/record producer, Mike Curb. This close friendship and [professional association would last for sixteen-years as Jerry continued as a single performer recording for numerous major record labels through Mike Curb Productions. Jerry had his first solo pop hit, ”But For Love” (#5 Billboard Easy Listening Chart) for CBS/Sony Records in 1970. This recording garnered Jerry four Grammy nominations and
Cashbox Magazine acclaimed Jerry Naylor as one of the “Top Forty Male Vocalists of 1970.” Jerry moved to country music in the early 1970′s and his Nashville recordings produced a string of eight nationally charted records, including his 1974 signature hit, “Is This All There Is To a  Honky Tonk.” During this time, Jerry’s records were released through Mike Curb Productions on MGM/Polygram Records. Warner Brothers/Curb Records and  Motown/Melodyland Records.

From 1965 to 1982, Jerry and his band toured 250 to 300 dates per year performing concerts and playing major nightclubs and casinos throughout the United States, Canada, England, Europe and Asia. Jerry Naylor and his group, with the direction of Jim Halsey and the Jim Halsey Agency, helped to debut country music as a headline act in the major hotel/casinos of Las Vegas, Reno, and Lake Tahoe, Nevada, where he co-starred with some of the top stars of country music from 1970 to 1982. Jerry headlined in the main show rooms of the Landmark, Sahara, Thunderbird, Golden Nugget and Showboat hotels and casinos in Las Vegas, and at the Harrah’s, Mapes, Holiday, and Sahara hotels and casinos in
Reno and Lake Tahoe, Nevada.

Jerry Naylor also wrote, co-wrote, produced and performed many songs for motion picture sound tracks from 1965 to 1982. Jerry sang the title song, “Vangie’s Theme,” for the award winning Rod Taylor, Jane Russell 1970 suspense movie, “Darker Than Amber,” and the main theme, “Helga,” for the European art-film classic, “Michael and Helga,” among others. He
also performed on camera and as the singer/soloist on many national radio and television commercials for such corporate clients as Mutual of Omaha Insurance Company, Wrigley’s Chewing Gum, Frito-Lay, Safeway Stores, Avis Rental, Honda Motors, World Football League, Thrifty Drug Stores, among others.

 Jerry Naylor, as a television documentary film producer has garnered several prestigious awards for documentaries, which he produced for PBS, BBC and for commercial network broadcast and non-broadcast (corporate). The Jerry Naylor Company/North Media Group – Jerry’s current company - was instrumental in creating the concept and producing the first “Video News Releases” in America, in cooperation with Newslink Satellite Broadcast Communications Company, Inc. This medium for delivery of privately financed news/public relations stories has become a standard for all news programming throughout the nation today on both network news and local news television stations.

From 1986 to 1987, Jerry was the on-camera announcer/co-host with Pat Boone on Pat’s daily one-hour television talk show, “Pat Boone, USA,” for the Christian Broadcast Cable Network.

The Jerry Naylor Company is currently in development and/or pre-production on several broadcast television network and cable television network movie and documentary productions based on original non-fiction books on which The Naylor Company has purchased the exclusive creative rights. Currently, Jerry is also completing the development of a three-hour television documentary production, “Tribute to My Friends; The Legends of Rockabilly.” This is a special tribute to the pioneers of rockabilly music with whom Naylor began his professional entertainment career in 1954.

Jerry Naylor is a member of the Academy of Country Music, The Country Music Association, and The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Jerry is listed in, or has creative works in, The Country Music Hall of Fame (“The Legend of Johnny Brown Country Opera” album on which Jerry Naylor sings the lead role of Johnny Brown). The Who’s Who
of Country Music, The Who’s Who of Rock and Roll, The Encyclopedia of Country Music, The Encyclopedia of Rock and Roll and his creative works are registered in the United States Library of Congress. He is a member of the Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity, Zeta Phi Chapter. Jerry Naylor is also one of the founders, and a member of the Board of Directors, of The West
Texas Music Hall of Fame/Museum Foundation.

In 1991, Jerry Naylor was inducted into the Marquis’ Who’s Who in the West, in 1993 he was honored in the Marquis’ Who’s Who in Finance and Industry for his contributions to international business consultation, and in 1994, Jerry was inducted into the Marquis’ Who’s Who in Entertainment and Marquis’ Who’s Who in America.

In 2000 Jerry was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame.