The home for Songs That Saved Your Life Radio on WKNY 107.9FM where Jami explores the very queer roots of rock n roll and plays a lot of great music!
Listen to the episode below:
Tonight, we celebrate an artist who had a string of soul hits in the '70s but was perhaps better known as a piano, organ, and clavinet prodigy who collaborated on some of the most famous songs in the history of rock & roll. Billy Preston's resume is a mile long, touching every corner of music from Miles Davis, Aretha Franklin, Barbra Streisand, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Johnny Cash. He filled in the missing pieces of some of rock’s most iconic songs. Perhaps, most famously, Preston is known unofficially as the "Fifth Beatle" as he is the only non-Beatle to be credited on not one but two of their biggest hits, "Get Back" and "Don't Let Me Down." John Lennon even asked him to join the group but obviously that never came to pass.
Billy Preston's story is one of true genius. He was a child prodigy who taught himself to play the piano at the age of 3 and was a touring musician by the age of 9. But his story is also one of great pain. He died before anyone in his life truly got to see the “real” person. Billy Preston spent the breadth of his career helping others get unstuck from creative stagnation. But he was never able to get out of his own way, constantly stuck going “round in circles” on a path of self-destruction.
Tonight, we'll tell you the story of a gifted artist whose talent made an indelible mark on rock & roll history, but whose history of abuse and having to live most of his life as a closeted gay man sidelined his legacy. The “Almost Beatle” spent his career saving others from creative stagnation but couldn’t save himself. Tune in to listen to so many iconic hits that maybe wouldn't exist if Billy Preston hadn't inspired them.
Music in this episode includes songs by the Beatles, Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Sam Cooke, the Band, Rolling Stones, and Beyonce.
For a deeper dive into Billy Preston’s story:
The moments of Billy Preston in the Get Back film are spellbinding. Such a wonderful playing style, and it seemed like he really eased the creative flow of those sessions! Maybe it was his gentle interjections. Or maybe it was the diet of tea and toast...
So much great music went from his hands to the keyboard...