Born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on January 26, 1946, Deon Jackson grew into a soul singer and songwriter who first learned clarinet and drums during childhood. In high school he assembled his own vocal group while simultaneously appearing as a solo performer at regional talent contests and writing his own songs. During one such performance at a school concert, producer Ollie McLaughlin—who had earlier guided the career of soul diva Barbara Lewis—took notice and soon oversaw Jackson’s first single, the self-penned “You Said You Love Me,” issued in 1962. The record scored locally in Detroit, as did the follow-up “Come Back Home,” yet neither reached a national audience. Jackson spent the ensuing two years playing school dances and nightclubs throughout Southeast Michigan before returning to the studio in 1965 with the smooth soul classic “Love Makes the World Go Round,” released on McLaughlin’s fledgling Carla label. Detroit radio personality Robin Seymour at CKLW championed the track, which soon climbed the national charts and peaked just outside the pop Top Ten. Atco issued a same-titled LP in 1966, and that spring Jackson scored another modest hit with “Love Takes a Long Time Growing.” Two additional Carla releases, “I Can’t Do Without You” and “Hard-to-Get Thing Called Love,” appeared before year’s end, while late 1967 brought the ethereal “Ooh Baby,” long treasured by Northern soul collectors. After issuing the final Carla sides “I Can’t Go On” and “You Gotta Love” in 1968, Jackson moved to Shout for 1969’s “I’ll Always Love You.” Reports of later recording sessions have never been verified. In subsequent decades he earned his living performing in Chicago cocktail lounges before becoming a teacher and counselor in the Wheaton, Illinois, school district. Deon Jackson died on April 19, 2014, at age 68. Though his singing and songwriting never fully realized the creative and commercial potential suggested by his mid-1960s work, that peak material continues to be cherished by devotees of classic soul.
