Kerry Chater

Best known as a Nashville-based songwriter -- he's had songs covered by Alabama, George Strait, Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers, and Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn -- Kerry Chater had two '70s soft rock albums to his name before he settled into a role behind the scenes. Prior to that, he was known as the bassist and live bandleader for Gary Puckett & the Union Gap, getting in at the ground floor when the group formed in 1966. He stayed with Puckett until 1970, when he departed the group in the wake of slowly declining commercial fortunes. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine