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Solo forums => Fifth Beatles and the Merseybeat Scene => Topic started by: An Apple Beatle on February 23, 2005, 10:51:48 PM

Title: Billy Preston
Post by: An Apple Beatle on February 23, 2005, 10:51:48 PM
Hey guys, thought we should acknowledge a thread to this wizard of the Fender Rhodes. Heres a biog. What a career! Not many can
 put all this on their resume. lol

Billy Preston's career has spanned five decades, starting as a child prodigy playing the movie role of young W.C. Handy and then playing organ for the likes of Ray Charles and Little Richard. His accomplishments are highlighted by a string of hits, including collaborating with some of the most celebrated names in the music industry, The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, The Jackson Five, Sly and the Family Stone, Barbara Streisand, Sammy Davis Jr., Quincy Jones and perhaps the most famous of all, The Beatles.

Billy's relationship with The Beatles led to his signing with Apple Records in the 60's. Billy is widely acknowledged as the "Fifth Beatle" having been the only party to ever hand his name included in the label credits of the "Let It Be" and the "Abbey Road" albums as well as the landmark "White Album". Billy also appeared with them in the films "The Complete Beatles" and "Let It Be" as well as performing as part of them during their historic rooftop final concert.

In the late '60s Billy worked with John Lennon and Yoko Ono on their solo "Plastic Ono Band" album as well as Ringo Starr's solo single "Oh My My" and he participated in George Harrison's American Tour. In addition Billy Preston was a leading character in the movie "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" also featuring Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees, performing a stunning version of "Get Back".

Preston's name and fame were solidified as a solo artist when he scored a string of Number 1 hit singles including the Grammy winning "Outta Space", "Will It Go Round In Circles", "Nothing From Nothing" and "Space Race".

A prolific writer, Billy Preston penned the multi-platinum standard "You Are So Beautiful" which was performed by his friend Joe Cocker. He also wrote the title songs for a series of box office champions including "Never Gonna Say Goodbye" "Fast Break" and "O'Hara's Wide". The title song from "Fast Break" became a Preston classic hit when performed as a duet with the late Syreeta Wright. Billy also co-wrote the score for the Sidney Poitier movie "They Call Me Mr. Tibbs" with Quincy Jones.

In recent years Billy Preston was the first black musical director of a late night television show "Nightlife" starring David Brenner, was a regular on the UPN series "Good News" and he made a cameo appearance in "Blues Brothers 2000" as part of the super group that included Eric Clapton and Stevie Winwood and B.B. King among others. Billy's participation in the tribute concert "Concert for George Harrison" at Royal Albert Hall and his performance of "My Sweet Lord" has received critical acclaim. Billy recorded on the last album his mentor Ray Charles was to record, toured with The Funk Brothers and Stevie Winwood in Europe in early 2004 and then hit the road, touring extensively and garnering rave reviews for his performances with his dear friend Eric Clapton through Europe and North America. Billy's keyboard dominance was highlighted with the release of the "Let It Be--Naked" album issue.

With his extensive touring and studio involvement Billy Preston has found the time to create special project tribute to his dear friends The Beatles. He's even penned two new songs, one in tribute to George Harrison and another to all four of the fab fellows, "John, Paul, George and Ringo". This project along with a historic DVD companion is due for a fall 2004 release with special appearances and bonuses for Beatles fans.


http://www.billypreston.net/biography.html
http://www.billypreston.net/
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on February 23, 2005, 11:08:01 PM
He was one of the guests at the Chicago Beatlefest last year, right off the tour with Clapton, and he is one of the nicest, most unaffected people you could ever meet or talk to. Just amazing. He released a Beatles tribute album last year and said he'd probably do another one. He had everyone laughing when he spoke about playing with John and Yoko, and he said "I don't know what she was doing in that bag, but it didn't sound good." Maybe you had to be there, but it was funny as hell. Just an incredibly talented good natured man, no ego trip whatsoever, and he's done it all.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on February 23, 2005, 11:09:39 PM
p.s. If he hasn't been inducted, he really deserves to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: An Apple Beatle on February 23, 2005, 11:12:01 PM
Certainly a worthy contender....Just for breathing the same air as all those greats!!! lol. Really nice to hear about him. I know little other than his Beatle appearances. Did you get to talk with him JF?
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on February 23, 2005, 11:48:42 PM
Quote from: An_Apple_Beatle
Certainly a worthy contender....Just for breathing the same air as all those greats!!! lol. Really nice to hear about him. I know little other than his Beatle appearances. Did you get to talk with him JF?


Just briefly when he was walking from the Grand Ballroom where he spoke/fielded some questions to a smaller room where he was signing autographs, etc. It was hard because everyone was clustered all around him, but I was walking toward the signing room and there's this short black guy walking in front of me and lo and behold. What do you say? I thanked him for making the Fest so special and probably babbled a few more things before someone else started asking him some questions. There was a piano by the room and people started clapping as he made his way, so standing up, he just pounded out part of "Lady Madonna". It was great. He's one of those guys that just makes a room smile, his demeanor, his impromptu piano jam. Just salt of the earth.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: pc31 on February 24, 2005, 11:09:26 AM
dorothy from oz recorded the chicago beatle fest and sent me the video.i got to see billy and pete.
the first time i heard billy was on get back but later discovered will it go round in circles or so i thought.in my 45 stack i had the blackbird single on a&m records.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on February 24, 2005, 01:06:00 PM
Quote from: pc31
dorothy from oz recorded the chicago beatle fest and sent me the video.i got to see billy and pete.
the first time i heard billy was on get back but later discovered will it go round in circles or so i thought.in my 45 stack i had the blackbird single on a&m records.

I got Pete's autograph--he was selling photos and drumsticks right before Billy spoke. I put the signed drumstick right underneath that classic photo of the 5 of them at the fair in Hamburg, which is signed by Astrid. You can buy them from the Beatlefest site if interested. I remember "Nothing from Nothing" from when I was a kid, then he had that hit with Stevie Wonder's wife "With You, I'm Born Again" in the early '80s.

Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: In Blue Hawaii on February 24, 2005, 06:34:45 PM
Billy's keyboard dominance was highlighted with the release of the "Let It Be--Naked" album issue.

True, true.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on February 24, 2005, 07:29:21 PM
Here's my Moment Of Zen: Posted about Billy early this a.m. Had an interview this morning and I met the interviewers at a hotel by O'hare. Walk in. Wot's on the muzak? 'Nothing From Nothing'. Hope that wasn't foreshadowing of how the interview turned out, but it was just one of those Holy S**t moments, where you're having a 'conversation' about something, then, wham, there it is, and I haven't heard that song in a looong time. Had'ta be there.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: pc31 on February 25, 2005, 12:41:13 AM
i use to think billy was kinda dumb for doing that sargent peppers role in that bad movie but now i realize that it was a very heartfelt thing he did...rock on billy.
you might have met a moondog there junior.did you see a blonde hounding mark hudson?dorothy from oz adores the man.ringos lucky to have him as a pal....
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on February 25, 2005, 01:14:45 AM
Quote from: pc31
i use to think billy was kinda dumb for doing that sargent peppers role in that bad movie but now i realize that it was a very heartfelt thing he did...rock on billy.
you might have met a moondog there junior.did you see a blonde hounding mark hudson?dorothy from oz adores the man.ringos lucky to have him as a pal....

Is she a huge Cheap Trick fan? I guess Rick Nielsen was roaming around and posing for this one artist who does Rock n Roll Ornaments, and she was big time into CT. I got into a long conversation with her while we were in line to get Pete Best's autograph.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: pc31 on February 25, 2005, 01:22:14 AM
not sure i will ask her.she adores ringo starr too...over at my moondogs forum she the biggest ringo pimp.
i am glad for ringo he needs dedicated fans such as her.
i saw cheap trick in concert a few times.i thought the would be as good live as on record.no chance they were a bit lame....
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: Herecomesyoursun on February 25, 2005, 02:22:30 AM
Quote from: pc31
.she adores ringo starr too...over at my moondogs forum she the biggest ringo pimp....

no small feat that
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: Lenny Pane on February 26, 2005, 10:43:01 AM
awsome ... i wish i could of been there .. it sounds like alot of people had a fantastic time ... ( well jealous ) lol
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on February 27, 2005, 05:18:27 PM
Quote from: Mr_Kite
awsome ... i wish i could of been there .. it sounds like alot of people had a fantastic time ... ( well jealous ) lol


That's really one of the coolest things about the 'fests is that these folks are accessible and usually very warm and happy to answer questions or talk for a few minutes, you see them wandering around, they have their Q & A times, etc. Over the years they've had so many great guests. Astrid was lovely, Louise Harrison was very nice, Billy Preston was great, Neil Innes was great, etc. The only person I can say that the only person that was really was kind of put-offish was Robert Freeman, but one out of many isn't bad going.

Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: An Apple Beatle on July 06, 2005, 10:44:48 AM
Heard Mr. Preston's name round here recently....bump!!!
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: lennring on July 06, 2005, 09:01:49 PM
Quote from: juniorsfarm
p.s. If he hasn't been inducted, he really deserves to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

really, you think so? i mean he didnt have a THAT successful solo carreer did he? oh well, he was great on get back, and great friends to the beatles...
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on July 07, 2005, 03:20:19 AM
Quote from: lennring

really, you think so? i mean he didnt have a THAT successful solo carreer did he? oh well, he was great on get back, and great friends to the beatles...

Take a look at his resume sometime. Its unbelievable.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on July 07, 2005, 03:31:52 AM
Here's a small part of his contributions, and it doesn't even mention Mahalia Jackson and a host of others:

Billy Preston's career has spanned five decades, starting as a child prodigy playing the movie role of young W.C. Handy and then playing organ for the likes of Ray Charles and Little Richard. His accomplishments are highlighted by a string of hits, including collaborating with some of the most celebrated names in the music industry, The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, The Jackson Five, Sly and the Family Stone, Barbara Streisand, Sammy Davis Jr., Quincy Jones and perhaps the most famous of all, The Beatles.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: lennring on July 07, 2005, 03:36:13 PM
wow guess he is great"! id really like to meet this guy!
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: An Apple Beatle on July 10, 2005, 11:12:10 AM
Some guys round here have.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on July 11, 2005, 03:57:20 AM
If anyone gets to go to the Beatlefests this year, he'll be there. He's awesome and a nice guy as well, very approachable, unlike when they had Alan Parsons there and he was a pompous ass.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: pc31 on July 12, 2005, 10:33:31 AM
billy has a new album coming out soon.....
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on July 12, 2005, 03:38:50 PM
He had his Beatle tribute album in the can, and has decided to re-record most of it because he's not happy with the way it turned out.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: An Apple Beatle on July 12, 2005, 04:59:19 PM
I'll be keeping an eye out for that. ;)
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: pc31 on July 12, 2005, 09:54:42 PM
he is one of the great unsung heros.....
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: pc31 on July 12, 2005, 09:55:18 PM
spanking of albums......how goes yours rick???
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: on July 12, 2005, 10:07:15 PM
Quote from: An_Apple_Beatle
I'll be keeping an eye out for that. ;)

JULY 6TH UPDATE: Art and Music cannot be rushed. We have just received word that Billy Preston's Beatles Salute CD/DVD has been pushed back again. We can only tell you that Billy wants this to be the best it can be and he was not satisfied with it. He is going back in the studio with some 'friends' in an effort to finish it up in a grand way.

This was from the Beatlefest website.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: pc31 on July 12, 2005, 10:39:57 PM
thanks for that update...
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: An Apple Beatle on July 12, 2005, 10:40:06 PM
Nice one JF.

Music is cool PC, concentrating more on Beatle gig now. Flying off to JFK airport, Liverpool tomorrow to watch The Mighty reds in their first round defence of their European Cup victory. I'm gonna stand in the legendary KOP terrace at Anfield, visit The Cavern, Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields and Menlove Ave. if I can fit it all in before I return on Thursday.
As you may tell, I'm quite excited. This is a dream coming true!

The reality begins to sink in......Nice.  ;D 8)
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: pc31 on July 13, 2005, 02:35:06 AM
well then you enjoy the hell out of yourself and i suggest skipping all sleep entirely...that way you have more time to do everything...eat only when hungry and quickly...run don't walk and have a safe time....
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: An Apple Beatle on July 13, 2005, 08:57:23 AM
lol...Cheers PC..Glad to see your back and well. Hows the hurricane situation your way?
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: pc31 on July 15, 2005, 02:13:41 AM
all we got was severe rain......maybe the next one will create me more work...
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: An Apple Beatle on July 16, 2005, 03:57:56 PM
Quote from: pc31
all we got was severe rain......maybe the next one will create me more work...

Good luck...I think..lol

Skipped lots of sleep and my walk was at lightning speed and the food was eaten on the go, no messing around!!! lol

I still couldn't fit it all in. I'm just going to have to go back. Maybe Beatles week in August......Anyone else? ;)
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: KelMar on September 24, 2015, 05:16:24 AM
Hey guys, thought we should acknowledge a thread to this wizard of the Fender Rhodes.


That's what I thought when I came across this Shindig! video from 1965. I guess he listened to the Jodimars record just like The Beatles did!

http://youtu.be/8atF1_-4kjs (http://youtu.be/8atF1_-4kjs)



Quote from: An Apple Beatle
Heres a biog. What a career! Not many can put all this on their resume. lol

Billy Preston's career has spanned five decades, starting as a child prodigy playing the movie role of young W.C. Handy and then playing organ for the likes of Ray Charles and Little Richard. His accomplishments are highlighted by a string of hits, including collaborating with some of the most celebrated names in the music industry, The Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, The Jackson Five, Sly and the Family Stone, Barbara Streisand, Sammy Davis Jr., Quincy Jones and perhaps the most famous of all, The Beatles.

Billy's relationship with The Beatles led to his signing with Apple Records in the 60's. Billy is widely acknowledged as the "Fifth Beatle" having been the only party to ever hand his name included in the label credits of the "Let It Be" and the "Abbey Road" albums as well as the landmark "White Album". Billy also appeared with them in the films "The Complete Beatles" and "Let It Be" as well as performing as part of them during their historic rooftop final concert.

In the late '60s Billy worked with John Lennon and Yoko Ono on their solo "Plastic Ono Band" album as well as Ringo Starr's solo single "Oh My My" and he participated in George Harrison's American Tour. In addition Billy Preston was a leading character in the movie "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" also featuring Peter Frampton and the Bee Gees, performing a stunning version of "Get Back".

Preston's name and fame were solidified as a solo artist when he scored a string of Number 1 hit singles including the Grammy winning "Outta Space", "Will It Go Round In Circles", "Nothing From Nothing" and "Space Race".

A prolific writer, Billy Preston penned the multi-platinum standard "You Are So Beautiful" which was performed by his friend Joe Cocker. He also wrote the title songs for a series of box office champions including "Never Gonna Say Goodbye" "Fast Break" and "O'Hara's Wide". The title song from "Fast Break" became a Preston classic hit when performed as a duet with the late Syreeta Wright. Billy also co-wrote the score for the Sidney Poitier movie "They Call Me Mr. Tibbs" with Quincy Jones.


[url]http://www.billypreston.net/biography.html[/url] ([url]http://www.billypreston.net/biography.html[/url])
[url]http://www.billypreston.net/[/url] ([url]http://www.billypreston.net/[/url])


"Preston first met the Beatles as a 16-year-old in 1962, while part of Little Richard's touring band, when their manager Brian Epstein organized a Liverpool show, at which the Beatles opened. The Washington Post explained their subsequent meeting: “They'd hook up again in 1969, when the Beatles were about to break up while recording the last album they released, Let It Be (they would later record Abbey Road, which was released prior to Let It Be). George Harrison, a friend of Preston, had quit, walked out of the studio and gone to a Ray Charles concert in London, where Preston was playing organ. Harrison brought Preston back to the studio, where his keen musicianship and gregarious personality temporarily calmed the tension.”

Preston is one of several people referred to by commentators as the "Fifth Beatle". At one point during the "Get Back" sessions, John Lennon proposed the idea of having him join the band (to which Paul McCartney countered that it was difficult enough reaching agreements with four). Preston played with the Beatles for several of the Get Back sessions, some of the material from which would later be culled to make the film Let it Be and its companion album. Preston also accompanied the band for its rooftop concert; the group's final public appearance. In April 1969, their single "Get Back" was credited to "The Beatles with Billy Preston", the only time such a joint credit had been given on an official Beatles-sanctioned release (as distinct from an unsanctioned reissue of some Hamburg-era recordings on which they were the backing group for Tony Sheridan). The credit was bestowed by the Beatles to reflect the extent of Preston's presence on the track; his electric piano is prominent throughout and he plays an extended solo. Preston also worked, in a more limited role, on the Abbey Road album, contributing to the tracks "I Want You (She's So Heavy)" and "Something."

In 1978, he appeared as Sgt. Pepper in Robert Stigwood's film Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, which was very loosely based on the Beatles' album of the same name, and sang "Get Back" as the penultimate song." Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Preston)

He died June 6, 2006.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: KelMar on September 24, 2015, 05:26:03 AM
Before I knew anything about Fifth Beatles I liked this:

http://youtu.be/I_e-RQZVwxg (http://youtu.be/I_e-RQZVwxg)
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: Normandie on May 15, 2021, 04:28:05 PM


Billy Preston was just inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame by means of a Muscial Excellence Award:

https://www.rockhall.com/story-billy-preston (https://www.rockhall.com/story-billy-preston)

Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: Moogmodule on May 15, 2021, 09:12:25 PM

Billy Preston was just inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame by means of a Muscial Excellence Award:

[url]https://www.rockhall.com/story-billy-preston[/url] ([url]https://www.rockhall.com/story-billy-preston[/url])


Good to see. I didn’t realise there are different categories of inductees. Well deserved.
Title: Re: Billy Preston
Post by: Normandie on May 16, 2021, 07:18:56 PM


I too was not aware there were different categories, and I agree, good to see.