It even added its sound to The Beatles 'reunion' track', Real Love', in 1995. (Theres a delightful photograph of Henrik with Bill Blacks daughter on page 14). A cool collector's item. When Elvis Presley first shot to fame in 1956 he had a trio called The Blue Moon Boys with guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black. Some of his vocal horsing around can be heard at the start of a 'Hayride' version of 'That's All Right', which is widely available these days. Elvis has left the building. Its a remake of Bob Dylans folk tune Too Late, performed in reggae style. Elvis would chat with him, tell him about his father, Bill. 03 Jun. And Bill would start riding the bass and clowning, and get the crowd loosened up. While the Wranglers went through various changes, the best-known members would seem to be these: Millard Yow (Firestone) - fiddle.Tommy Seals - steel guitar.Scotty Moore - guitar.Bill Black (Firestone) - bass.Doug Poindexter (banker) - vocals.Clyde Rush (Firestone) - guitarNote: In some places the spelling of names is different. EIN Website content Copyright the Elvis Information Network. Bill was trying to come to grips with his first Fender electric bass. Carl McVoy, an original group member, was the cousin of Sun rocker Jerry Lee Lewis, plus Mickey Gilley and evangelist Jimmy Swaggart. The Holifield's owned record stores and also booked concerts by artists such as Johnny Cash and Elvis. Interview with guitarist Reggie Young(Member Bill Black Combo) Bass links rock and roll royalty Interview with D.J. But less than 10 years later and Bill was dead. Each one of them has an individual style of their own'. Elvis offered then another 50 dollars and, for a short time, the rift was healed. Always seeming to be in need of a good meal. Fun and games still continued away from the spotlight. Scotty confirmed that, If it hadnt been for Bill, we would have bombed many times in the early days.. On entering the army in 1958, according to Scotty Moore, Elvis never said 'goodbye' but', So long. Bill's bag of tricks ranged from blacking out his front teeth, to swinging his arm out real far, slapping the strings of his bass, and dancing with or riding it! Nine years older than Elvis, Bill did appear to be further down life's highway, with his hair receding at the sides, even in early photos. He also looked a little 'chubby'. Bill himself stopped road work in the early '60s, when ill health started to take its toll. Elvis Don't Be Cruel is featured along with The Bill Black combo version of the same song. Sidenote: The book also comes with a neat Bonus of a flexi-disc. Their version being recorded at the Norman Petty Studio, Clovis, New Mexico, where Vee's idol Buddy Holly cut his hits. [citation needed]. At one point the Colonel is claimed to have wanted to drop Scotty and Bill, and bring in Hank Snow's backing group for Elvis. During 1956, when asked for his favorite tracks, Bill named 'That's All Right' and 'Hound Dog'. At one time Carl too recorded as a singer for Sun, cutting the single 'You Are My Sunshine' / 'Tootsie' (Sun International 3526). He played in Elvis Presley's early trio. This done them nothing but good and they went on to become one of the most popular instrumental groups in the States during that final year of the '50s and the early '60s. Black performed as an exaggerated hillbilly with blacked-out teeth, straw hat and overalls. Never before have we seen an Elvis Presley concert from the 1950's with sound. 2022617 why did bill black leave elvis . Actor Elliott Street portrayed Black in the TV movie Elvis, starring Kurt Russell. Fontana, how he and Scotty got on with Bill, during a trip to Scotland in October 1993, since it was well known that Elvis didn't get on with him, D.J. We're taking a little break and he starts beating on the bass and singing "Blue Moon of Kentucky," mocking Bill Monroe, singing the high falsetto voice. We practice a little bit. "[13], Phillips took several acetates of the session to DJ Dewey Phillips (no relation) of Memphis radio station WHBQ's Red, Hot and Blue show. In the twenty-first century, GnR remains a nostalgic act. He was an important part of the Elvis Presley band, and he helped to create the unique sound that was associated with Elvis Presleys music. It was truly the end of an era. According to Louis Black, Elvis said, "If there's, anything that y'all need, you just let me know and it's yours.. Bill Black looked for a future elsewhere, he went after his dream, and a more permanent career within music. Read More. His antics on stage twirling his bass, riding it as if it was a bronco to be tamed, trading corny jokes with Elvis delighted the audiences. These would include Liverpool teenagers John Lennon and Paul McCartney. When Elvis Presley first shot to fame in 1956 he had a trio called The Blue Moon Boys with guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black. According to Moore, the first song they recorded was "I Love You Because", but after a few country music songs that weren't impressive they decided to take a break. Bill and Scotty were heavily involved in constructing a song. If Axl handled his ego with the same passion and intelligence that his solo acts performed, they would have had the careers of the Stones and Slash, Duff, Gilby, and Izzy. I think Linda thought, God, talk about a birthday present! She organised it all and gave it to me. Despite any misgivings, Bill might have held after that first short meeting, the two began to work with Elvis in the tiny studio at 706 Union Avenue, an address they were destined to make world-famous. The Starlight Wranglers were a Sam Phillips group. They married in 1946 and returned to Memphis. In 1959, the Combo signed to Joe Cuoghi's Hi label. William Patton Black Jr. was born on September 17, 1926, in Memphis, Tennessee, to a motorman for the Memphis Street Railway Co. Last edited on 23 February 2023, at 08:46, List of artists who reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart, "Official Legal Title of Crudup's (and Elvis's) "That's All Right", "Elvis Presley's Sun Recordings: SUN Studios, Memphis Tennessee: Elvis Articles:: 'For Elvis Fans Only' Official Elvis Presley Fan Club", "RCS Label Shot for RCA Victor (N.J.) 6357", "RCS Label Shot for RCA Victor (N.J.) 6380", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bill_Black&oldid=1141091970, This page was last edited on 23 February 2023, at 08:46. Hollywood's new leading man, 31, told . He was only 39, and just weeks short of his 40th birthday. - Elvis, on stage, 1954. may be re-printed for public display without permission. Scotty Moore, Elvis Presley, Bill Black and D.J. They'd heard the records, but they had not seen him. String of hit singles and popular LP releases.2. Beautifully matching Scotty Moore's biography That's All Right, Elvis at last we have a fascinating exploration of Paul Belards Don't Be Cruel, Elvis - The Bill Black Story. His favourite class was wood shop. Smokie Pt.2 - #17 - 1959.White Silver Sands - #9 - 1960.Josephine - #18-1960. Ironically, twelve years later, Elvis Presley himself would be pronounced dead at the same hospital. Scotty had in fact moved home to be closer to Bill and Evelyn on Belz Blvd. Much of Bill Black's career was spent as Elvis Presley's charismatic bass player, but Black also led a successful career as a bandleader, landing charting in the Hot 100 nearly twenty times. When it was asked of D.J. That same evening, the duo wrote a letter of resignation. Scotty Moore would later return to Elvis, and last with him from the first session after the army, in March 1960, until the historic Singer TV Special of June 1968. He was a member of some of the most famous groups of all time, including The Who, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey of The Who, the Red Hot Chili Peppers Flea, and Atoms For Peaces James Jamerson. It is easy to forget that, in the beginning, Elvis was only one part of a trio put together by Sam Phillips, which included Bill Black on bass and Scotty Moore on lead guitar. He returned home to have his then-wife tell him that Bill had passed on a few days before. His day job at the time was cleaning and blocking hats at his brothers' dry cleaning firm. Scotty recalled that Bill saved the session: Bill is the one who came up with Blue Moon of Kentucky. Sidenote: I never realised Starlight Wranglers lead-singer Doug Poindexter had quit the music business as early as 1954. (These three were million sellers)Don't Be Cruel - #11 - 1960.Blue Tango - #16 - 1960.Hearts Of Stone - #20 - 1961.Ole Buttermilk Sky - #25 - 1961. Author Robert Gordon put it well when he said that', Bill Black was an extremely affable, warm-hearted, and humorous guy who loved and appreciated the craziness in rock and roll'. There were several personnel changes. Bobby Vee and The Shadows had out a cover of the latter in March 1960. In 1995, he played it on "Real Love", the last "new" Beatles record (one of two in which McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr overdubbed a full arrangement onto a John Lennon home recording from the late 1970s). The commentary on Bill Black's importance and style of his bass playing even made me go back to re-visit some Elvis fifties classics once again, helping me discover something new. For Bill Black though, the decision had been made. As Elvis did everything to the extreme womanizing, pill-taking, gunning, eating he also dieted with little to no concern for his personal well-being. But a few of them started playing them all. Those who claimed that grunge bass lacked finesse were way ahead of their time. They married a year later, in 1946. He's just an all-American boy, and all the American girls like him. These three men had bonded in a way Sam Phillips could only have dreamed of. Rumors of instrumental releases came and went. If you have any interest in Elvis early sound, American early sixties music, or always wanted to know more about Bill Black then this book is an essential purchase. I, for one, was more than a little amazed at the number of places I had to look to collect this information, which I hoped to put together in a form which would help in some way towards righting a wrong, and giving a somewhat clearer picture of just how important Bill was in the Elvis Presley story and beyond it. Other highlights are discovering new stories including. Very sadly Bill Black died of a brain tumour in October 1965, he was only 39 years old. I'll have plenty of 'em, before the show, during the intermission, after the show. The single version, like most of his Sun work, features fine bass work from Bill. It appears that the spirited act from Bill during 'Blue Suede Shoes' on Berle's national tv show was the final straw for Parker. Until Now! The unique sound that emerged from their early sessions was the result of a close collaboration of like-minded musicians and an engineer who wanted to generate something as yet unheard. [2][3] His father played popular songs on the banjo and fiddle to entertain the family. Jerry Scheffs Memo From Turner could be the greatest concert recording ever by a major rock artist, or it could be the worst. According to Express, one of Presley's cousins discussed his particular quirk.Billy Smith was one of the few of Presley's inner circle to visit the upper floor of Graceland. The Beatles: Paul McCartney announces identity of Eleanor Rigby, Could UK finally escape Eurovision humiliation? Elvis takes great care to show the origins of the singer's musical stylings, putting the spotlight on the Black artists who inspired him. Written by Reggie Young and Bobby Emmons. The meeting lasted something like two hours. Finally, they were both interested in pursuing other musical projects. Interestingly, today Bills double bass is owned by Beatles legend Sir Paul McCartney, who played the instrument on his latest solo album McCartney III. To a great extent, they were the creators of the Sun Elvis sound. Speaking at the British Fan Club 'Party', at Mablethorpe, on Wednesday, 3rd November 1999, longtime Elvis pal Red West commented, when talking about fun and games on the road, simply', Bill Black was one of the craziest guys I ever met'. Despite this, Bill usually appears to have slits for eyes and a face A born joker in both image and nature. That was necessary for us because we played for a lot of country crowds that weren't used to people jumping up and down on stage."[20]. While Elvis would claim in 1956 that he'd never met Scotty or Bill before Sun Records, he was friendly with Johnny Black, so must have at least been aware of older brother Bill. Finally, they were both interested in pursuing other musical projects. Country radio stations said Elvis sounded too Black to play, and the stations that played rhythm and blues said he sounded too much like a hillbilly. rob stafford daughter chicago fire. I've never seen him blow his top more than once or twice, and that was when he was just worn out.". He was kind of mocking Bill Monroe, singing in a high falsetto voice. [4] Black and Moore also played in a band with Paul Burlison, Johnny Burnette, Dorsey Burnette on steel guitar, and a drummer. But that wasn't destined to be the way history would remember them. [23] A follow-up release, "White Silver Sands" (Hi 2021), was a Top 10 hit (#9) and, like its predecessor, topped the R&B charts for four weeks.[3][22]. Interview with Dick Grob, Elvis' Head Of Security: Hollywood veteran Michael Hoey talks to EIN: Interview with 'Elvis Films FAQ' author Paul Simpson: "My Fast Life" Rare Elvis Presley 1964 Interview: Allyson Adams 'The Rebel and The King' Interview: Elvis Paradise Hawaiian Interview - with Peter Noone, Sam Thompson, Elvis' bodyguard, 2011 Interview. In May of 1955, Elvis gave both Scotty and Bill due credit. 5 of the Best Finnish Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Bands. This is an excellent release no fan should be without it. Classic movie 'Jailhouse Rock'.7. Fontana. Bill Black was a talented musician, and he was a key part of the Elvis Presley sound. You hear a competent unit before a largely unresponsive audience of older gamblers. Johnny Black, Bill's brother and also upright bass player, who knew Elvis at Lauderdale Courts before Bill, recalls visiting Bill at the studio and reported that Bill would be totally absorbed mixing and playing back tracks. This was during the making of the classic 'Jailhouse Rock' movie, Elvis' third. The group also played the Bon Air Club. The combination made for the classic rock and roll sounds, which paved the way and still effects listeners like a million volts all these years later'.Blackie' was every bit as important within that unit as any of the other three, even if he's not as well written up as them. But feelings were running deeper it seems. Elvis was on a 12, 500 dollar fee, per week. [6] Black slap played the double bass with Moore on lead guitar, while Presley played rhythm guitar and sang lead. EIN Website content Copyright the Elvis Information Network. In 2005, Clay Steakley portrayed Black in the 2005 CBS miniseries Elvis, starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers. "[3], In 1952, Black began playing in clubs and on radio shows with the guitarist Scotty Moore. [10] When the other two musicians joined in, Phillips taped the song. With all that was building and happening behind the scenes, it's really no surprise that Scotty and Bill did eventually leave Elvis, around the middle of September '57. in October '93, when talking about a mid-SO's trip to San Antonio, Texas'.We all went down to (Scotty's) aunt's and ate food there. He's big-hearted, naturally high-strung, not hot-tempered. Bill Black/Combo Post-Elvis Peaks: 1. They had auditioned for the Grand Ole Opry in October 1954, but they failed to impress the people in charge, or the audience, and were not invited back. Bill's final recordings with Elvis came on Sunday, 1st February 1958, when they cut 'My Wish Came True', Doncha' Think It's Time', Your Cheatin' Heart', and 'Wear My Ring Around Your Neck'. How & where do I sell my Elvis collection. Elvis Presley lived most of his life and career in the limelight. But less than 10 years later and Bill was dead.. At the time Doug Poindexter was the featured vocalist. Elvis has a personal appearance at the Mississippi-Alabama Fairat Tupelo Sept. 27. See today's front and back pages, download the newspaper, order back issues and use the historic Daily Express newspaper archive. Another reason is that they felt Presley was not giving them enough credit for their contributions to his music. Yours truly Bill Black. It was too much sitting around with little else to do. . Go here to Memphis Mansion website to purchase. After Elvis had left, Scotty asked Bill what he thought. 'A Boy From Tupelo' 2017 In-depth Review: 'Strictly Elvis: 1973-74-75' Book Review: ELVIS: Studio Sessions 1956' In-Depth Review: (Book Review) 'Being Elvis - A Lonely Life': 'Prince From Another Planet In-Depth Review: Once Upon A Time: Elvis and Anita (Memories of My Mother) - Book Review: 'A Boy From Tupelo' special In-depth Review: 'Elvis: Live at the International' Book Review: 'Young Man with the Big Beat' In-Depth Review: 'Fashion For A King' FTD in-depth Review: "ReBooked At The International'- in-depth Review: The Music of Elvis Presley - Australian Radio Show, Elvis Presley In Concert "downunder" 2006, Graceland - The National Historic Landmark. [15] Moore and Black left the Starlite Wranglers after the success of "That's All Right," jealousy within the group forcing them to split. For Scotty and Bill, the first show on departing from Elvis in '58 was back in Memphis. By 1956, the friendship was already pulling apart, with Bill, Scotty and D.J. We never rehearse outside of record sessions. He was going to put us in jail. According to Louis Black, Elvis said, here to Memphis Mansion website to purchase. This includes a lengthy Memphis Press-Scimitar interview from December 1956. Black later formed Bill Black's Combo. Contact the author to order: pbelard@hotmail.com, Elvis Firearm & Weapon Collector An Louisiana Hayride appearances - establishing the new sound.4. Rather strangely fans will find Elvis version is actually driven by Bill Blacks bass-line while The Bill Black Combo version lacks Bill Blacks input and instead features more of a jangly yakety-sax! Hell, thats differentthat's a pop song now, nearly bout. + Plus Bonus DVD Audio. The rise to 250 dollars coincided with concerts at San Francisco, Oakland, and Los Angeles, between Saturday, 26th and Tuesday, 29th October 1957, and shows in Hawaii, on Sunday and Monday, 10th - 11th November, that same year. Fontana called Evelyn, but the funeral was over and done by then. They created a very fresh and lively sound that was destined to make a large impact on exposure. Again this was over money. Johnny Black too worked at Firestone. Perhaps a good indication of how things stood can be seen in the often-told tale of the recording session which produced '(You're So Square) Baby I Don't Care', on Wednesday, 8th May 1957. Don't pay him no mind'. Black continued his onstage "clown" persona and developed comedy routines with Presley. River of Deceit, a forgotten rock album from the 1990s, is one of the best. 17 U.S. pop hit, and made number one on the "black" music charts. John Entwistles influence on bass playing was undeniable, and his death at the age of 66 leaves a huge void in the music world. Eight of the recordings by Bill Black's Combo placed in the Top 40 between 1959 and 1962. D.J. The line was being drawn. This was mainly due to the others in the group being wiry and angular. For daily Elvis discussions click here to EIN's Facebook group. There are a number of reasons why Scotty Moore and Bill Black left Elvis Presleys band. Elvis certainly capitalized on this through his choice of material and performance stylehis sexualized scandalousness was linked in large part to the fact that he was imitating, or referencing,. Early in 1963, Black sent from two to five different versions of the Combo to different regions of the country at the same time, while staying off the road himself, wanting to concentrate on his business, family and his health.[3]. It was during one of these hectic tours, during 1954, that Bill is credited with totaling Elvis' 1951 Lincoln Continental. The balance fit the group's performances. Fontana. It's all too easy to forget the importance of Bill Black in the early Elvis sound, such as the essential back-beat he supplied before the arrival of D.J. Haven't heard a word from you on the money situation you were going to look into after we left. They deduced (correctly) the Colonel was working against them. As much as the King binge-ate, he felt guilty and upset about packing on the pounds he so famously added to his sparkly jumpsuit-covered frame in the 1970s. John Entwistle was a rock bassist who had an enormous impact on the industry. 'Blackie' with John 'Ace' Cannon and Hank Hankins, The Bill Black Combo - with 'Ace' Cannon, Hank Hawkins and a very young Bobby Emmons (later included on Chips Moman's Elvis Memphis Sessions) playing keyboards. See you when I get out'. Mae would later receive co-writer credit, with Tommy Durden and Elvis, for 'Heartbreak Hotel'. Yet when the session was over, they were told to pack up and leave. Scotty commented, in Scotland during October '93, that', If it hadn't been for Bill, we would have bombed so many times in the early days. nc high school coaching jobs; why did bill black leave elvis. They were receiving just 100 dollars a week while at home, and 200 when on the road. The private letter from Bill Black to Tom Diskin says it all, Dear Tom, He wanted it made clear who the star was. He played in Elvis Presley 's early trio. Bill Black. Returning to Memphis, following his stint in the U.S. Army, Bill worked at Firestone Tyres and Ace Appliance Co., plus played in one or two local groups, before joining up with the Starlight Wranglers.