From:   "Dik de Heer" 
Date:  Sun May 12, 2002  2:00 am
Subject:  Born To Be With You : Billy Swan
 
BILLY SWAN (By Phil Davies)

Born Billy Lance Swan, May 12th 1942, in Cape Girardeau, Missouri (a small town
on the Mississippi river between Memphis and St Louis).

Raised by his older sister after his mother's death, Billy's interest in music
was kindled by Hank Williams on the radio, by an uncle who played the saxophone,
and by singing cowboy Gene Autry in the movies. "The rock & roll of Jerry Lee
Lewis and Buddy Holly made me want to start playing it myself," says Billy, who
took up the drums at age 14 and hitchhiked to gigs in local beer joints. He
later taught himself to play electric piano, rhythm guitar and organ. Local band
Mirt Mirley went to Memphis to record with Bill Black, so Billy tagged along.
Black liked one of Billy's songs, "Lover Please". The group recorded it, as did
Black later with vocalist Dennnis Turner 's name on the record but it wasn't
until much later, when Clyde McPhatter cut his version of the song, that it
became a hit.

While in Memphis, Billy lived with Elvis Presley's uncle. Billy joined the group
that did "Lover Please" originally, Mirt Mirley and The Rhythm Steppers, and
worked with them for two years. When he turned twenty-one, Billy moved to
Nashville and quit playing music temporarily. He toured as a road manager for
singer Mel Tillis and for the Masters of Music Festival, which featured Chet
Atkins, Boots Randolph, and Floyd Cramer. Most people have heard about Kris
Kristofferson's early days in Nashville when he swept floors and moved
microphones around the Columbia Recording Studios. But Billy has the dubious
distinction of holding that job first, and he gave it to his friend Kris when he
left. Billy and Kris, back when they were both total unknowns scuffling around
the edges of the music business, were charter members of what is now referred to
as the Nashville Underground. Fred Foster, President of Monument Records, and
Bob Beckham, head of Combine Music publishing firm, were among the first people
to encourage these talented newcomers. They gave Billy his first opportunity to
produce records. He worked on three Tony Joe White albums for Monument and
recorded several singles in the late 60s with no success.

In 1974 he joined Kris' band for a world tour shortly after Billy recorded some
sides for a Monument project at Chip Young's Murfreesboro studio. One of the
tunes he'd written on an RMI organ that Kris and Rita Coolidge had given the
Swans as a wedding present changed his life. I Can Help with its charming retro
feel became a smash hit all over the world, topping the US charts (knocking
Lennon off the top)and reaching number 6 in the UK at Christmas. The follow up
I'm Her Fool was a much smaller hit (banned by the Beeb for the line "She pets
me when I bury my bone").The slowed down Don't Be Cruel also charted but
would've been a far better choice as the follow up as it had received a lot of
airplay as an album cut. Mike Berry covered it in the UK.

His Monument albums always had great session players like Young, Emmons, Wood,
Leech and Carrigan and sometimes cool guests like Carl Perkins and Scotty Moore
( Billy Swan lp 1976).

Amongst the contemporary material were great covers of the likes of Ubangi
Stomp, Wedding Bells, Shake Rattle & Roll,Home Of The Blues, Got You On My Mind,
Your True Love and Lover Please of course, these were staples of my college
record collection. Later he moved on to A&M and Epic but with the exception of a
few minor country hits nothing as adventurous as his early Monument lps.

Billy was thrilled when both Elvis and Jerry Lee both later covered I Can Help.
Producer Felton Jarvis even getting Billy a pair of Elvis' socks!! He worked
with Jerry Lee on the Great Balls of Fire soundtrack, alongside his pal T-Bone
Burnett. They co-wrote the classic Drivin' Wheel, covered by Robert Gordon.
Billy's Black Tie cd also worth finding for the belting Jerry Lee tribute song
featuring one Kenneth Lovelace.

Managed by UK based Oz Dennis Muirhead (who's a huge fan of Billy's) he
rekindled his recording career in the mid 90s with albums cut at Sun Studios and
an excellent live cd with Stu Colman alongside. I had the pleasure of sharing a
great day with Billy when we stayed at the same small farm guesthouse near
Swindon when I went to see him play in a small pub, a tremendously friendly guy
with reams of great stories, like the time he was rocking up the Beatles I Feel
Fine JLL style on piano whilst awaiting the Killer's arrival at the studio, all
of a sudden he realised JLL was behind him watching intently and nodding his
head appreciatively saying that's cool, we'll cut that, who wrote it. When Billy
said the Beatles, JLL flung his cigar on the floor and stomped out of the
studio!!! The song, with neat pumpin' piano, can be found on the Black Tie cd.
Billy modestly describes himself as the Forrest Gump of rock and roll but he's a
fine talent, a cracking songwriter and singer/instumentalist and a real
gentleman to boot.

Recommended listening:

2fers of the first 4 Monument lps are on See For Miles

US release Choice Cuts has some good unissued sides mixed in with the hits

I Can Help live on Hallmark turns up in the bargain bins and is worth checking
out

706/Pickwick cds inc Bop To Be and like Elvis Used To Do have their moments,
though Julie (Shaun's missus) hates the latter, I think it's durn cool in
places, so there!

Recommended reading:

2 part NDT interview by Master Cajiao, issue 149/150

Homepage: http://rosecity.net/billyswan/