[First things first - if you want to email Bill, the email address is in the pics section, saved as a photo]
Bill has been playing blues piano in the North West and beyond for nearly twenty years now. Below are some of the highlights of this career.
His formative live playing years were served with excellent blues band “The Hustleâ€, who performed at many prestigious festival gigs and went on to record a CD in 1995. This received excellent reviews (Paul Jones loved it!), sold-out its 1000 copies and enjoyed airplay on Radio2, Radio Lancs and Radio Cumbria.
During this period Bill also formed the still popular “Betty’s Bluesâ€, a jazz boogie and swing duo with the inimitable diamante diva Liz Jackson. Their unique blend of boogie and banter earned them a strong following, and the Dynamic Duo’s achievements include:
• Headline spot at 2005 Lancaster Jazz Festival, as a double Bill with Snakebite Burnett.
• Played at London’s 100 Club in 2001 with a full band for a classic one-off show.
• Supported Jools Holland’s big band, culminating in a dueling piano session with Bill and Jools at the piano at the aftershow party.
• Recorded a CD “Paying Homage†in 2003 to commemorate their 10th anniversary.
Bill lived in London from 2000 to 2004, during which time he became piano man with London’s classiest jump-jump group “The Jive Catsâ€, with whom he enjoyed appearances at the 100 Club, the Royal Festival Hall, and many swing dance festivals around the country.
During the summers of 2000 and 2001, Bill was involved in the first of many musical exchange trips to Chicago, organised between he and Ben Ruth of cmeas.com. During both trips many dreams were realised as he got to sit in with some legendary players in the city's most famous blues clubs (e.g. Buddy Guy's Legends, B.L.U.E.S. on Halstead) and some of the less salubrious but utterly authentic South Side bars such as Lee's Unleaded - (what a place!)
Bill spent a year in 2005 working with award winning blues guitarist and festival favourite “Otis Grand†and his Big Blues Band. Having now gone fully pro as a musician, Bill toured the country with Otis and got a real taste of life on the road. During this year Bill also toured with visiting American bluesman "Studebaker John" for a whistlestop UK tour.
Since leaving OG’s band, Bill is very busy with various duo and band projects, session work and building up his career as a solo artist. Bill is also a freelance music workshop leader, running workshops for schools, hospitals and community organisations.
