JERRY BLAIR REMEMBERED

As the biz begins to process the loss of a beloved member of the music community, Jerry Blair, our own Lenny Beer remembers a strong friendship and a final meeting.

Jerry Blair was my friend. I will miss him always.

A while back, around the beginning of the pandemic or probably right before, I received a call from him. He was working with eOne at the time and wanted to discuss signing one of my clients. I was spending time in Laguna Beach and he was in Los Angeles.

I could have easily said no and avoided an hour each way in the car, especially since I knew there wasn’t really going to be any dealmaking. But I said yes because I wanted to see Jerry.

There was a time when Jerry and I spoke every day. When he was heading Promotion at Columbia he was just so much fun, so warm and kind. We had laughs and helped each other whenever possible. That was a while ago, but our affection for each other never waned. Work just took us in different directions.

So I jumped at the chance for a visit, and when I walked into the restaurant and said “Hi Jerry,” and he smiled his big smile and said “Hi Lenny,” I knew the drive was worthwhile. We laughed and reminisced, and I realized that while we might establish a great many business relationships, true friendships that grow from our work lives are a rare and wonderful thing.

Oh, and of course there was no deal, but it didn’t matter.

Today I find myself sad, and yet grateful that we had that last meeting. I’ll miss Jerry. He was one of the great Promotion heads of all time. He was a great guy.