Billy Gayles (October 19, 1931 – April 8, 1993) was an American

rhythm & blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western bands that play rock, pop, jazz, or R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeeping and embellishing the musical timbre. The drummer' ...

and

vocalist Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or witho ...

. Gayles was a member of

Ike Turner Izear Luster "Ike" Turner Jr. (November 5, 1931 – December 12, 2007) was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, record producer, and talent scout. An early pioneer of 1950s rock and roll, he is best known for his work in the 1960s and ...

's Kings of Rhythm in the 1950s with whom he recorded for Flair Records and

Federal Records Federal Records was an American record label founded in 1950 as a subsidiary of Syd Nathan's King Records and based in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was run by famed record producer Ralph Bass and was mainly devoted to Rhythm & Blues releases. The co ...

as the lead vocalist. Gayles also backed various musicians, including Earl Hooker, Robert Nighthawk,

Otis Rush Otis Rush Jr. (April 29, 1934 – September 29, 2018) was an American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter. His distinctive guitar style featured a slow-burning sound and long bent notes. With qualities similar to the styles of other 1950s art ...

Albert King Albert Nelson (April 25, 1923 – December 21, 1992), known by his stage name Albert King, was an American guitarist and singer who is often regarded as one of the greatest and most influential blues guitarists of all time. He is perhaps ...

, and Richard Arnold "Groove" Holmes.

Life and career

Willie James Gayles was born in

Sikeston, Missouri Sikeston is a city located both in southern Scott County and northern New Madrid County, in the state of Missouri, United States. It is situated just north of the " Missouri Bootheel", although many locals consider Sikeston a part of it. By wa ...

on October 19, 1931. He became interested in blues and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

music after he moved to

Cairo, Illinois Cairo ( ) is the southernmost city in Illinois and the county seat of Alexander County. The city is located at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Fort Defiance, a Civil War camp, was built here in 1862 by Union General Ulysse ...

as a teenager. Gayles learned to play the drums and toured with blues musicians Earl Hooker and Robert Nighthawk. In the early 1950s, he relocated to

Clarksdale, Mississippi Clarksdale is a city in and the county seat of Coahoma County, Mississippi, United States. It is located along the Sunflower River. Clarksdale is named after John Clark, a settler who founded the city in the mid-19th century when he establish ...

. In March 1954, Gayles recorded with

's King's of Rhythm, resulting in the release of the Turner-penned single "Night Howler" / "My Heart In Your Hands" on Flair Records. By 1956, Gayles had joined the band now based in

East St. Louis East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

, mainly as a vocalist. That year, Turner took the band to

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...

to record for

. The single, "I'm Tore Up" / "If I Never Had Known You," featuring Gayles singing lead, became a regional hit. Gayles briefly left Turner's band to pursue a solo career. He returned to the band as a drummer. In 1958, Gayles traveled to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

with Turner to record for Cobra Records. Gayles and Turner sang on the Cobra release "Walking Down The Aisle," the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

to " Box Top." They also backed

in a Cobra session that produced the singles " Double Trouble" and " All Your Love (I Miss Loving)." Gayles performed off-and-on with Turner until 1963. He later formed his own band and played around St. Louis. Gayles backed blues musician Larry Davis on his 1982 album ''Funny Stuff''. In 1986 and 1987, Gayles toured Europe with several original members of the Kings of Rhythm, including

Clayton Love Clayton D. Love Jr. (November 16, 1927 – February 28, 2010) was an American blues pianist, who led his own band, the Shufflers, in the early 1950s. He was later a vocalist in Ike Turner's band, the Kings of Rhythm. Biography Love was bo ...

Erskine Oglesby Erskine Oglesby (January 20, 1937 – March 7, 2004) was an American tenor saxophonist and blues singer. He was a native of St. Louis and as a teenager he played in a local band with Chuck Berry. He later played with Little Milton, Albert King, a ...

, Stacy Johnson,

Oliver Sain Oliver Sain Jr. (March 1, 1932 – October 28, 2003) was an American saxophonist, songwriter, bandleader, drummer and record producer, who was an important figure in the development of rhythm and blues music, notably in St Louis, Missouri. ...

, and former Ikette

Robbie Montgomery Robbie Montgomery (born June 16, 1940) is an American singer and restaurateur. She is noted for being one of the original Ikettes in the Ike & Tina Turner Revue in the 1960s. After her tenure as an Ikette, she was a member of the Mirettes, and ...

as part of the St. Louis Kings of Rhythm. Mayor Vincent Schoemehl officially appointed them as ambassadors for the City of St. Louis. In the early 1990s, Gayles played in a band called Billy and the Preachers. After being hospitalized for three months at St. Louis Regional Medical Center, Gayles died from inoperable

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal bl ...

at the age of 61 on April 8, 1993. He is buried at Friedens Cemetery & Mausoleum in St. Louis.

Discography

Singles

Billy Gale and His Orchestra

* 1954: "Night Howler" / "My Heart In Your Hands" (

Flair Flair can refer to: *''Flair'', a short-lived magazine edited by Fleur Cowles *Flair (miniseries), a 1990 Australian miniseries *Flair (pens), a brand of felt tip pens *Flair (horse), a Thoroughbred racehorse *The Flair family of American professi ...

1031)

Billy Gayles with Ike Turner's Rhythm Rockers

* 1956: "I'm Tore Up" / "If I Never Had Known You" (

Federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

12265)

Billy Gayles

* 1956: "Take Your Fine Frame Home" / "Let's Call It A Day" (Federal 12272) * 1963: "I'm Hurting" / "Dreaming Of You" (Shock 200)

Billy Gayles with Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm

* 1956: "Do Right Baby" / "No Coming Back" (Federal 12282) * 1956: "Just One More Time" / "Sad As A Man Can Be" (Federal 12287)

Willie King with The Ike Turner Band

* 1956: "Peg Leg Woman" / "Mistreating Me" (Vita V-123)

Seaphus Scott, The Five Masquerades And Billy Gale Orch.

* 1958: "Nature's Beauty" / "Summer Sunrise" (Joyce 303)

Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm

* 1959: "Walking Down The Aisle" ( Cobra 5033)

Albums

Featured appearances

* 1985: Ike Turner & His Kings Of Rhythm – ''Ike Turner & His Kings Of Rhythm Vol. 2'' ( Ace Records) * 1986: St. Louis Kings Of Rhythm – ''St. Louis Kings Of Rhythm'' (

Timeless Records Timeless Records is a jazz record label based in the Netherlands. Timeless was founded in Wageningen in 1975 by Wim Wigt. It has specialized in bebop, though it also did a sub-series of releases of Dixieland and swing recordings. As of 2000, the ...

) * 1989: ''R&B Confidential No.1: The Flair Label'' (Ace Records) * 1993: Ike Turner – ''Rocks The Blues'' (

P-Vine Records P-Vine Records is an independent record label based in Tokyo, Japan. History It was started in 1976 by Blues Interactions, a firm founded in 1975 by Yasufumi Higurashi and Akira Kochi, as a record label focused on black music. The label name c ...

) * 2008: Ike Turner – ''Classic Early Sides 1952-1957'' (

JSP Records JSP Records is a British record label, founded in 1978 by John Stedman (John Stedman Promotions), releasing recordings by blues musicians such as Professor Longhair, Buddy Guy, Jimmy Witherspoon, Louisiana Red, Deitra Farr, Charlie Sayles, ...

)

As a sideman

* 1982: Larry Davis – ''Funny Stuff'' ( Rooster Blues Records) * 1989:

– ''The Cobra Sessions 1956-1958'' (P-Vine Records) * 1993: ''The Cobra Records Story'' (

Capricorn Records Capricorn Records was an independent record label founded by Phil Walden and Frank Fenter in 1969 in Macon, Georgia. Capricorn Records is often credited by music historians as creating the southern rock genre. History Label and studio fou ...

)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gayles, Billy 1931 births 1993 deaths African-American drummers 20th-century American drummers American male drummers Rhythm and blues drummers American rhythm and blues singers American blues singers Music of St. Louis St. Louis blues musicians People from Sikeston, Missouri Ike & Tina Turner members Kings of Rhythm members Flair Records artists Federal Records artists Cobra Records artists 20th-century American male musicians