In 1965, inspired by the sounds of the “British Invasion†groups, Bill Coleman convinced his father to buy him a guitar and began playing music in his hometown--Hamilton, Ohio, USA. His first band, The Morticians, played their one and only job at a party in a friend’s basement, where they performed their three-song, all-instrumental repertoire: “House of the Rising Sun,†“Satisfaction,†and “Peter Gunn.†When someone finally came up with a microphone, Coleman put down his guitar to sing and play harmonica “out front,†where he has remained for the past 40-plus years.
Through the late 60s and early 70s, he fronted various rock cover bands in the Cincinnati area. From 1973 to ’76, he attended the University of Cincinnati, where he earned degrees in English Literature and Education. He worked outside music in the late 70s, when the popularity of “disco†clubs made work for live bands scarce. In early 1980s, he formed Derriere, a rock/pop band that was very popular in the Cincinnati-Dayton area. With this group, Coleman recorded his first 45-rpm single in 1982. The “A†side was a cover version of the Beau Brummels’ hit “Just a Little,†while the “B†side featured one of Coleman’s early compositions, “Give It Hell.â€
In ‘85, Bill Coleman moved to Detroit, Michigan, where he stumbled onto radio station WQBH-AM and began listening exclusively to the blues and R&B records spun live at local clubs by DJ Jay Butler. Feeling that he had found his proper musical niche, Coleman became a student of the blues. “Since that time, I’ve played primarily blues, soul, and funky R&B,†he says.
In 1987, Coleman adopted the stage name “Billy Hamilton†and set out for London, England, where the Billy Hamilton Band played ’60s soul and R&B in local pubs. They recorded a few demos, which they shopped around to British labels. But the record companies at that time were more interested in “image†bands like A Flock of Seagulls or Milli Vanilli. “They told us we were good,†says Hamilton, “maybe ‘too good.’â€
The early ’90s saw Billy Hamilton return to the Cincinnati-Dayton, Ohio, area, where he fronted the White Boys Blues Band for a few years. Except for a very brief stint with the Long Island Blues Band in New York in 2000, Hamilton worked outside music from 1995 to 2001, when he founded Billy “Harp†Hamilton and the Lowriders in Cincinnati. This group played blues, soul, and R&B, including an increasing number of Hamilton’s originals, throughout southwestern Ohio and northern Kentucky for five years. With the Lowriders, Hamilton recorded three CDs: Blues/Soul/R&B (2002), Live at the Oxford Music Festival (2005), and Campesino Blues (2006). The first two include a mix of covers and Hamilton’s originals, while the third is Hamilton’s first all-original record. His song “My Baby Must Have Died†was included on a compilation CD released by British label Funkee Fish in 2004, while another, “I Sold Your Ring Today,†is featured on a 2006 CD sampler from California jazz-blues label Network-Pacific.
Armed with these recordings and 40 years of experience, Billy Hamilton left America in January of 2006 to pursue his career in Europe. He is currently based in Hamburg, Germany, a city with a rich tradition of American and British blues, soul, beat, and R&B music. To date, he has completed 12 successful tours of Central Europe and recorded another live CD, Live at Club Hades (2007). Meanwhile, Campesino Blues has received radio airplay in the UK, Poland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Argentina, India, Denmark, Brazil, and the U.S. The title track and two others are featured in "Bagged and Boarded," a 2008 film from Warm Milk Productions in New York City.
On October 23, 2008, at the Consortium in Harburg, Billy Hamilton played his debut show in Germany with his new Lowriders lineup: Alex Perel on lead guitar, Ron Vorpahl on drums, and David Hinze on bass. The new band, playing primarily Hamilton's original songs, was well-received and is now booking shows around Germany for 2009. Billy Hamilton is also available for solo/duo performances in smaller venues.
Since relocating to Europe, Hamilton has written three CDs’ worth of new material (mostly funky blues/soul, but with a little jazz and even some country mixed in). He is currently seeking management and a record label in Europe, as well as licensing/distribution of his previous CDs. Hamilton’s music can be ordered/downloaded through CD Baby and I-Tunes. Photos, sound/video clips, and tour dates can be found at www.thelowridersband.com and www.myspace.com/lowridersband. Booking inquiries and other correspondence may be directed to [email protected].
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