The Impressions became one of the most influential and significant groups in African-American music. Founding members included Chattanooga residents Arthur Brooks, Fred Cash, Richard Brooks, and Sam Gooden, and their hits from the 1960s and 1970s bridged doo-wop, rhythm and blues, gospel, and soul while some songs addressed African-American identity issues and became civil rights anthems. In 1953, Arthur Brooks, Gooden, and Cash, together with Catherine and Emanuel Thomas, formed the Chattanooga-area doo-wop group Four Roosters and a Chick. After limited success, Gooden and the Brooks brothers went to Chicago in 1957 while Cash and the Thomases remained in Chattanooga. At a Chicago YMCA, Richard Brooks met Jerry Butler, who joined the trio and brought his friend Curtis Mayfield. Renamed The Impressions, they recorded “For Your Precious Love,” written by Butler with Richard and Arthur Brooks; it became a No. 3 R&B hit and No. 11 pop hit in 1958 and was later revived many times. Butler soon became the group’s star and left for a solo career after the third single, with the last concert by the original line-up held in Chattanooga. The remaining members then persuaded Fred Cash to join. The next four singles failed to chart, bookings declined, and Mayfield rejoined Butler as a guitarist, songwriter, and backup singer. In 1960, Mayfield co-wrote Butler’s first No. 1 R&B single, “He Will Break Your Heart.” He then brought The Impressions to New York, where they signed with ABC-Paramount. Their first ABC single, “Gypsy Woman,” became a No. 2 R&B hit, and the follow-up, “It’s All Right,” reached No. 1. In February 1963, the Brooks brothers left, leaving Mayfield, Cash, and Gooden. Mayfield became a prolific songwriter, and his falsetto vocals with Cash and Gooden’s gospel harmonies gave the group a distinctive sound that was sophisticated yet celebratory. His writing became increasingly political without abandoning commercial appeal. The group’s hits included “Keep on Pushing,” “Woman’s Got Soul,” “We’re a Winner,” “This Is My Country,” “Fool for You,” and “Choice of Colors.” Their best known song, “People Get Ready,” was ranked No. 24 on Rolling Stone magazine’s “The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time,” entered the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998, and was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry in 2016. In 1968, Mayfield started Curtom Records and brought The Impressions to the label. He left the group for a solo career in 1970 but continued writing for them and producing their records until 1976. Gooden and Cash then used several lead singers, including Leroy Hutson, Ralph Johnson, and Reggie Torian, and the group continued placing records on the R&B charts until 1987. In 1983 and occasionally afterward, Butler, Mayfield, Cash, and Gooden performed reunion shows, and Richard and Arthur Brooks returned when the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.