Brian Potter, the British songwriter and producer who teamed with Dennis Lambert on the Billy Jack theme “One Tin Soldier,” the Four Tops’ “Ain’t No Woman (Like the One I’ve Got)” and Glen Campbell’s Rhinestone Cowboy, has died. He was 87.
Potter died June 30 at a residence for seniors in Granada Hills after living with vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s for several years, his daughter, Courtney Potter, announced.
Other hits written by Lambert & Potter included 1971’s “Don’t Pull Your Love” by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds, which made it to No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100; 1971’s “Two Divided by Love,” from The Grass Roots; 1974’s “Dream On,” by The Righteous Brothers; and 1975’s “It Only Takes a Minute” by Tavares, which peaked at No. 10.
They also produced Dusty Springfield’s 1973 album, Cameo; The Righteous Brothers’ 1974 LP Give It to the People (featuring the No. 3 single “Rock & Roll Heaven”); Player’s 1977 debut album of the same name, which included the No. 1 single “Baby Come Back”; and Santana’s 1978 album, Inner Secrets.
Lambert & Potter were honored with recent nominations to the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and their work was very much a part of the soundtrack of a generation.
Brian August Potter was born on May 25, 1939, in Billericay, Essex, England, in a pub run by his parents, Frederick and Carmen. He attended the nearby Brentwood School with his younger brother, Howard, and taught himself to play the drums as a teenager.
While writing music and touring across the U.K. and Europe — once as a drummer for Chuck Berry — he worked as an assistant to composer Lionel Bart, creator of the musical Oliver!
In 1965, Potter had his first hit as a songwriter, partnering with Ian Samwell on “Whatcha Gonna Do About It” by Small Faces. Not long after, he was introduced to the Brooklyn-born Lambert, a singer and songwriter then stationed overseas with the U.S. Army.
They decided to write and produce songs together, and once Lambert was discharged, Potter immigrated to California.
Their first big hit was 1969’s “One Tin Soldier” by the Original Caste; the tune, performed by Coven, was used for the theme song to the unexpected box office hit Billy Jack (1971), starring Tom Laughlin.
Also in 1971, they wrote the theme song for ABC’s fall TV campaign, “This Is the Place to Be,” and signed with ABC/Dunhill Records, where they would find success with the Four Tops, who had just left Motown.
Changing the group’s sound to a West Coast R&B style, they wrote and produced —with the help of frequent collaborator Steve Barri — the 1972 album Keeper of the Castle, which included the million-selling No. 4 hit “Ain’t No Woman (Like the One I’ve Got).”
They continued with the albums Main Street People and Meeting of the Minds in 1973 and 1974, respectively. “Are You Man Enough?” from Main Street People became the theme for Shaft in Africa (1973), starring Richard Roundtree.
At Capitol Records in 1974, they began working with Campbell on a concept album chronicling the life of an over-the-hill country musician. The 1975 LP Rhinestone Cowboy and its No. 1 single of the same name (written by Larry Weiss) revived the singer’s career.
At the 1976 Grammys, the single was nominated for record of the year, and Lambert & Potter received a producer of the year nom. Another song on the album, “Country Boy (You’ve Got Your Feet in L.A.),” written by them, went to No. 3 on the country chart.
In the late 1970s, Lambert & Potter optioned the story of Abe Saperstein and the creation of the Harlem Globetrotters for a stage musical entitled Score, with a book by The Wiz’s William F. Brown. (“Why Do People Fall in Love,” written for Score, was recorded by Tony Bennett in 1986.)
The pair amicably split as the 1980s advanced, with Potter teaming with other songwriters including Frank Wildhorn and John Lewis Parker before he connected with composer Wayne Green for another prolific partnership.
They wrote songs for two musical theater productions through SGI-USA, the Buddhist organization of which they were both longtime members, and for the Sanrio Puroland theme park in Japan that opened in 1990.
Also in the early 1990s, Potter consulted at Universal Studios Hollywood on various projects, including the original versions of Beetlejuice’s Rockin’ Graveyard Revue and The Blues Brothers Show.
With Terry Lupton, he penned “Christmas With You” for Stephanie Mills’ 1991 holiday album.
He also reteamed with Parker on several tunes, including “It’s Gonna Be Rain,” featured on the 1992 soundtrack for the NBC Saturday morning sitcom California Dreams.
In 1992, Lambert & Potter were surprised when their song “It Only Takes a Minute” became the breakthrough single for the boy band Take That.
Potter & Green worked concurrently on several projects as the ’90s continued: two children’s music albums they wrote and produced for Hear We Go, Kids — Another New Day and Fun Stuff Holiday — as well as the original musical Steps in Time.
As the 2000s arrived, Potter dabbled in acting, appearing in a Foo Fighters music video, in a commercial for Canadian beer and in a production of 12 Angry Men at Conejo Players Theatre in Thousand Oaks.
His health began to deteriorate in 2021 after a fall.
In addition to his daughter and brother, survivors include his wife of 55 years, Karen; his step-daughter, Mary; nephews Kary and Gareth; and niece Nia.
A celebration of life will be held in the fall. Donations in his memory can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association or to the Motion Picture & Television Fund.
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