Who was/is Billy Lee Riley ? - CDs, Vinyl LPs, DVD and more

Billy Lee Riley

Kayattracted an answer disc, Wendy Dawn's John,in which Kay hears the record and comes home to live happily ever after. Instead, here’s Kayin Memphis.In Billy Riley's former lives, he'd been a radio hillbilly singer in Arkansas, a rockabilly singer on the original Sun label (in fact, just possibly the best rockabilly singer on any label), a blues man (his Lightnin' Leon single fooled the compilers of the original Blues Recordsdiscography), and a club-a-go-go singer. He'd been an artist, backing musician, label owner, and producer. Some of his tracks had appeared on a Bo Diddley album, and he'd recorded under more pseudonyms and for more labels than anyone besides John Lee Hooker. In 1967, an album he recorded for his own Mojo label was acquired by Stax Records in Memphis. Riley was in Atlanta at the time but decided that Memphis was happening again.

Stan Kesler, known to Riley from his first go-round in Memphis, was running the Sounds of Memphis studio and that's where Riley recorded Kaywith a sharp-tip funk groove. He resituated the song in Memphis aka Soul City USA, so the line about Ft. Campbell (the military base north of Nashville where Jimi Hendrix served), was gone. The gulf between Memphis and Nashville was never more evident. Riley's rhythm track was created by Kesler's in-house group: guitarist Charlie Freeman, bassist Tommy McClure, drummer Sammy Creason, and Jim Dickinson on keyboards. The wah-wah guitarist could be Riley himself. All the musicians were white, but this was funk from the ground up.

On the label, Kay was credited to Riley’s Libra Productions. Riley played Kayfor Sam Phillips, who said it was Riley's finest record. "Sam suggested I play it for Shelby Singleton who had just bought all the old Sun masters and had formed the Sun International label," Riley said later. "I did all the arranging and I had part of the Memphis Symphony, the Memphis Horns. I had the cream of the crop on that one. Shelby bought the record and gave me a job as producer and moved me to Fort Walton Beach, Florida to produce in his studio there."Singleton licensed it on June 17, 1969, a couple of weeks before he officially bought Sun from Phillips. Soon after Riley left for Florida, Jerry Wexler at Atlantic Records whisked Kesler's studio group away to Criteria Studios in Miami, and Kesler himself left for Nashville. Once again, everybody was leaving town. Riley grew disillusioned, but lived to enjoy late acclaim for his early records. He died on August 2, 2009.  COLIN ESCOTT

 

Billy Lee Riley Classic Recordings 1956-1960 (2-CD)
Read more at: https://www.bear-family.com/riley-billy-lee-classic-recordings-1956-1960-2-cd.html
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More information about Billy Lee Riley on Wikipedia.org

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Billy Lee Riley Rocks (CD)
Billy Lee Riley: Billy Lee Riley Rocks (CD) Art-Nr.: BCD17597

Ready to ship today, delivery time** appr. 1-3 workdays

1-CD Digipac with 40-page booklet, 35 tracks. Total playing time approx. 79 minutes. Frequently Asked Questions Q: Does the CD include recordings from the original masters? A: Yes, the original masters were used except on the Darron Lee...
$15.23 $19.18
The Outtakes (2-CD Deluxe Box Set)
Billy Riley: The Outtakes (2-CD Deluxe Box Set) Art-Nr.: BCD17122

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2-CD-Album Cap-Box, CD-size with 68-page Booklet, 79 tracks. Playing time: 148:59. Billy Riley is a classic figure from Sun's golden age. The set contains outtakes of every one of Riley's Sun singles. 78 tracks with studio chatter and...
$20.33 $33.89
Classic Recordings 1956-1960 (2-CD)
Billy Lee Riley: Classic Recordings 1956-1960 (2-CD) Art-Nr.: BCD15444

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2-CD with 38-page booklet, 49 tracks. Playing time approx. 110 mns. Classic... and then some! When people talk about rockabilly, Billy Lee Riley is usually in the 'A' list, even tho' he never had a hit. His spectacularly untamed vocals,...
$20.33 $33.89
The Mojo Albums, Plus (CD)
Billy Riley: The Mojo Albums, Plus (CD) Art-Nr.: BCD16529

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1-CD DigiPac, four panel, with 32-Page booklet, 29 tracks. Playing time 87:59 mns. Both of Bill Riley 's rare and sought-after Mojo albums available now for the first time in 30 years. The'Vintage' rock 'n' roll album features rockabilly...
$14.21 $18.05
The Many Sides Of...(Best Of Billy's Blues)
Billy Lee Riley: The Many Sides Of...(Best Of Billy's Blues) Art-Nr.: CDRBR5693

This article is deleted and can no longer be ordered!

(Rhythm Bomb Records) 14 tracks (55:14) Billy Lee Riley's Blues and R&B sessions, recorded at Sun Studios, Memphis from 1996-2000. Billy Lee Riley (voc/harmonica) James Lott(lead gtr.) Ray Sanders(bass) Pete Sull (drms.) Engineered and...
$18.05
Red Hot - Pearly Lee (7inch, 45rpm)
Billy Lee Riley: Red Hot - Pearly Lee (7inch, 45rpm) Art-Nr.: 45REPSUN277

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Reproduction of SUN 277
$11.26
Hint!
Billy Lee Riley with the Bellhops - Still Got My Mojo! (CD)
Billy Lee Riley with the Bellhops: Billy Lee Riley with the Bellhops - Still Got... Art-Nr.: CDRBR5696

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Billy Lee Riley hat nichts von seinem Charisma und seiner Stimme eingebüßt. Treibender Backbeat, schneidende Gitarren, Standbass und Bluesharp, beigesteuert von den BELLHOPS und Billy's rauhe Stimme ergeben ein perfektes Rock & Roll...
$11.26 $16.92
The Roland Janes Sessions (LP)
Billy Lee Riley & The Little Green Men: The Roland Janes Sessions (LP) Art-Nr.: BFX15272

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(Bear Family Records®) 14 Tracks 1959 - 1964 Gatefold Cover
$33.89
Rock With Me - Rock Originals Collection Vol.10 (CD)
Billy Lee Riley: Rock With Me - Rock Originals Collection Vol.10... Art-Nr.: CD662064

Ready to ship today, delivery time** appr. 1-3 workdays

(Fnac Music) 19 tracks Singer, author, composer, harmonica player, drummer, bass player and guitar player - sorry/bit! - Billy Lee Riley was born on October 5, 1933 in Pocahontas, Arkansas, of Indian descent. After a stay in the army he...
$10.14 $20.31
In Action (7inch, EP, 45rpm)
Billy Riley: In Action (7inch, EP, 45rpm) Art-Nr.: 45INT18124

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(CP) 4 tracks
$16.92