Bill Black('s) Combo - Songs

ABOUT

Bill Black (September 17, 1926 - October 21, 1965) was a highly acclaimed and influential rockabilly and early rock & roll bandleader, bass guitarist, and double bassist who first became famous during the mid 1950s as a member of Elvis Presley's backing band before forming Bill Black's Combo. The group's best known songs include such hit instrumentals as "White Silver Sands" (1960), "Josephine" (1960), and the catchy "Smokie - Part 2" (1959), the latter of which is featured along with a number of other oldies classics in the soundtrack to the 1993 cult film, "The Sandlot."

Born William Patton Black Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, he learned to play music at 14 on a homemade guitar made from a cigar box and by 16, was performing publically in local bars. In 1952, he began playing with guitarist Scotty Moore in clubs, on radio shows, and as a member of Doug Poindexter's band, the Starlight Wranglers, and he became well known for his signature "slap bass" technique and comical onstage personna. Black's first major career breakthrough came in 1954 when he and Moore were recruited by Sun Records to serve as backing musicians for the as-yet unknown Elvis Presley. Billed as The Blue Moon Boys, Black, Moore, and drummer D.J. Fontana toured and recorded extensively with Presley throughout most of the late 1950s, and they can be heard on such early classics as "Heartbreak Hotel," "Don't Be Cruel," "Hound Dog," and "Jailhouse Rock." In 1959, Black joined a group of musicians based in Memphis that would soon after come to be known as Bill Black's Combo. Signed to Hi Records, the original lineup also included Jerry Arnold (drums), Joe Lewis Hall (piano), Martin Willis (saxophone), and Reggie Young (guitar), with a number of personnel changes over the years.

Bill Black's Combo debuted in 1959 with "Smokie - Part 2", which topped the R&B charts, made the Pop/Rock Top 20, and soon after went gold. This smash was followed by another R&B chart-topper, "White Silver Sands" (1960), and "Josephine" (1960), which both became Top 10 Pop/Rock hits. They also had a big hit on both charts with their instrumental remake of Elvis Presley's "Don't Be Cruel" (1960) on which Black had originally played bass. Their long string of hits also includes "Blue Tango" (1960), "Hearts Of Stone" (1961), "Ole Buttermilk Sky" (1961), "Movin'" (1961), "Honky Train" (1961), "Twist-Her" (1961), and "Monkey-Shine" (1963). After Black died in 1965 at age 39 from a brain tumor, producer/engineer Larry Rogers and Bobby Tucker, who had joined the group in 1963 as a road manager and guitar/bass player, became the leaders for Bill Black's Combo, and the group continued to record throughout most of the 1970s. They re-emerged years later on the Country charts and had a Top 40 hit in 1975 with "Boilin' Cabbage."

Bill Black is widely acknowledged as a pioneering figure in early rock & roll, both through his work with Elvis Presley and his own band. On The Beatles' request, Bill Black's Combo became the opening act for their first American tour in 1964, although Black himself was too ill to attend. His numerous honors and accolades included being inducted posthumously into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2009.

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SONGS

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Bill Black('s) Combo

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