William Hawkes (born September 3, 1941),
Retrieved 21 December 2013 known professionally as Billy Hawks (without the 'e'), was an American R&B 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. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

ist. He was born in

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

, and grew up singing, playing piano, and listening to the

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

. In 1961 he joined Steve Gibson's Red Caps, and the following year joined the Modern Flamingos. Under the guidance of manager Clifford Doubledee, he formed his own group, the Billy Hawks Organ Trio, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

in 1964, with guitarist Maynard Parker and drummer Henry Terrell. The group performed along the East Coast, notably at

Atlantic City Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city in Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of the Atlantic City- Hammonton metropolitan sta ...

. He recorded his first album, ''The New Genius of the Blues'', for

Prestige Records Prestige Records is a jazz record company and label founded in 1949 by Bob Weinstock in New York City which issued recordings in the mainstream, bop, and cool jazz idioms. The company recorded hundreds of albums by many of the leading jazz music ...

in November 1966, with Terrell, and with guitarist

Boogaloo Joe Jones Ivan Joseph Jones (born November 1, 1940), known professionally as Joe Jones or Boogaloo Joe Jones, is an American jazz guitarist. Discography His song, Brown Bag, currently has 1 544 936 streams on Spotify as of 11 April 2024. As leader * '' ...

replacing Parker. Prestige Records Catalog: 7500 series, ''JazzDisco.org''
Retrieved 21 December 2013 The album was produced by

Cal Lampley Cal Lampley (March 4, 1924 – July 6, 2006) was an American composer and record producer. Lampley was born in Dunn, NC. as the second child of Hettie Marina and William Lorenzo Lampley, and had a brother named William Elwood. He graduated with ...

. Released in 1967, it was followed by ''Heavy Soul!'' (sometimes known as ''More Heavy Soul!''), on which he, Parker and Terrell were joined on some tracks by

tenor sax The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

player Buddy Terry. Ralph Berton, ''Liner notes for 'Heavy Soul, Prestige 7556
Retrieved 21 December 2013 The album was recorded at

Rudy Van Gelder Rudolph Van Gelder (November 2, 1924 – August 25, 2016) was an American recording engineer who specialized in jazz. Over more than half a century, he recorded several thousand sessions, with musicians including Booker Ervin, John Coltrane, Mil ...

's studio in

Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey Englewood Cliffs is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 5,342, an increase of 61 (+1.2%) from the 2010 census count of 5,281, which in turn reflected a ...

, in December 1967. In 1968, the track "O Baby (I Do Believe I'm Losing You)" was released as a single in France on Stateside (FSS 604) and in 1988 the same track appeared on a BGP Records compilation LP "Dance Juice Vol.2" (BGP 1016) and subsequently, the tune became well-played on the

Acid Jazz Acid jazz (also known as club jazz, psychedelic jazz, or groove jazz) is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul music, soul, and hip hop music, hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1 ...

scene in the UK. Hawks seems not to have recorded subsequently. According to his younger brother Leroy Hawkes, who performs with a blues and

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

band the Hipnotics, Billy Hawks is deceased. ''The New Genius Of The Blues'' and ''Heavy Soul!'' were combined and reissued on a single CD by BGP Records in 1998. "O Baby (I Do Believe I'm Losing You)" was

sampled Sample or samples may refer to: * Sample (graphics), an intersection of a color channel and a pixel * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of something * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample ...

by Us3 on their 2002 track "Get Out". "O Baby (I Do Believe I'm Losing You)" at WhoSampled.com
Retrieved 21 December 2013

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hawks, Billy 1941 births Year of death missing American jazz organists American male organists Musicians from Richmond, Virginia Jazz musicians from Virginia American male jazz musicians 20th-century African-American musicians