Booker Newberry III

Born on January 19, 1956, in Youngstown, Ohio, Booker Newberry III launched his professional vocal career around 1971 as a member of Mystic Nights. Relocating to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he took the role of lead singer for the mid-’70s soul ensemble Sweet Thunder alongside drummer John Aaron, bassist Rudell Alexander, and guitarist Charles Buie. The group signed with the Philadelphia label WMOT Records, and their single “Baby I Need Your Love Today” backed with “I Don’t Care What You Say” generated enough attention to be licensed for release by Fantasy Records in Berkeley, California. Sweet Thunder ultimately issued three albums: Above the Clouds in 1976, Sweet Thunder in 1978, and Horizons in 1979, the last of which contained the single “I Leave You Stronger” that reached number 63 on the R&B chart late that year. Newberry next joined another WMOT Records act, Impact, best remembered for the dance tracks “Give a Broken Heart a Break” and “Rainy Days Stormy Nights.” In 1983 he signed with Neil Bogart’s Casablanca Records, where the single “Love Town” climbed into the U.K. Top 20 and the accompanying Love Town album appeared the same year. Additional recordings followed on Malaco Records and Omni Records, including the album Take a Piece of Me. Newberry died on April 5, 2023, at the age of 67.