William Morris Nicholls Jr (born 15 February 1949) is an English singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and musical director. He was born into a musical family, his father Billy Nicholls (Sr.) being a double bassist and

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

singer, performing with such bands as The Oscar Rabin Romany Band (Hammersmith Palais), Alan Green with his boys, the RAF band The Squadronaires and later performed on radio with Will Hay with Royal Command Performances. Nicholls first gained fame in the 1960s while still a teenager with his ''

Pet Sounds ''Pet Sounds'' is the eleventh studio album by the American Rock music, rock band the Beach Boys, released on May 16, 1966, by Capitol Records. It was produced, arranged, and primarily composed by Brian Wilson with guest lyricist Tony Asher. R ...

''-influenced album, '' Would You Believe'', originally released on

Immediate Records Immediate Records was a British record label, started in 1965 by The Rolling Stones' manager Andrew Loog Oldham and Tony Calder, and concentrating on the London-based blues and R&B scene. History Immediate Records was started in 1965. Signe ...

. Nicholls' compositions have been

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of ...

by many artists. His first success came in 1977 when

Leo Sayer Leo Sayer (born Gerard Hugh Sayer, 21 May 1948) is an English-Australian singer and songwriter who has been active since the early 1970s. He has been an Australian citizen and resident since 2009. Sayer launched his career in the United Kingd ...

covered " I Can't Stop Loving You (Though I Try)"; it rose to No. 7 in the UK Singles Chart. Nicholls wrote several of the tracks for the film '' McVicar'' (starring

Roger Daltrey Sir Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is the co-founder and lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Who, known for his powerful voice and charismatic stage presence. His stage persona ear ...

) including " Without Your Love", which was a success in the United States. The Babys covered "White Lightning" on their '' Head First'' album in 1978. An American

southern rock Southern rock is a subgenre of rock music and a genre of Americana. It developed in the Southern United States from rock and roll, country and blues, and is focused generally on electric guitars and vocals. History 1950s and 1960s: origin ...

group, the Outlaws, recorded "I Can't Stop Loving You" on their 1980 release ''Ghost Riders''. More recently,

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and later became the lead singer of the rock band Genesis (band), Genesis and had a successful solo career, ac ...

also recorded "I Can't Stop Loving You" in 2002 and it proved successful as a U.S. single, appearing on several of his albums; Collins included it in his last world tour. A longtime acquaintance and occasional collaborator with

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is the co-founder, guitarist, keyboardist, second lead vocalist, principal songwriter and leader of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s an ...

, Nicholls was involved in the Deep End concerts in Brixton and Cannes. He toured with

The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

in 1989 and 1996–1997, serving as backup singer and music director; he also provided backing vocals for the band's version of " Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting", which appeared on the tribute album '' Two Rooms: Celebrating the Songs of Elton John & Bernie Taupin''. He has contributed backing vocals for many friends and artists over the years, including uncredited backing vocals on The Nice's 1967 debut single " The Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack". In 2003, Nicholls received an ASCAP award for "I Can't Stop Loving You".

Keith Urban Keith Lionel Urban ( né Urbahn; 26 October 1967) is an Australian and American country singer, songwriter and guitarist. Recognised with four Grammy Awards, he has also received 15 Academy of Country Music Awards, including the Jim Reeves Int ...

recorded the song in 2006 on his fifth studio album, '' Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing''. In 2009 a promotional copy of '' Would You Believe'' was sold on

eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...

for £7,312. Nicholls set up Southwest Records in 1998 and has so far released nine albums featuring his own work. He is the father of musician Morgan Nicholls, singer songwriter Amy Nicholls, and film director Will Nicholls.

Discography

Solo

References

External links

*
Billy Nicholls on Soundcloud
*
Billy Nicholls Yahoo! Group mailing list where Billy's career and his music are discussed
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicholls, Billy 1949 births Living people 20th-century English singers 21st-century English singers English male singer-songwriters English singer-songwriters English rock singers English pop singers Singers from the London Borough of Barnet Singers from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham People from Chipping Barnet People from Finchley Followers of Meher Baba The Who members