William Lance Swan (born May 12, 1942) is an American

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

singer-songwriter, best known for his 1974 single " I Can Help".

Background

Swan was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri southeast of St. Louis on the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

. As a child, he learned drums, piano and guitar, and began writing songs. His first big break was in 1962 when Clyde McPhatter recorded " Lover Please", a song Swan wrote when he was in a local band, Mirt Mirly & the Rhythm Steppers, who had first recorded the song on Bill Black's Louis label. McPhatter's version quickly became a No. 7 pop hit. Swan moved to

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

, to work with Black, but that was cut short with Black's illness and later death in 1965. It was rumored that Swan worked as a security guard at Graceland. While he was friends with one of the security guards he never worked at Graceland. He then moved to

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

which enabled him to write hit

songs for numerous artists including Conway Twitty,

Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He is considered one of the pioneers of the Outlaw country, outlaw movement in country music. Jennings started playing ...

, and Mel Tillis. In 1969, Swan first took on the role of record producer producing Tony Joe White's Top Ten hit " Polk Salad Annie". Swan also played bass guitar for

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (June 22, 1936 – September 28, 2024) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He was a pioneering figure in the outlaw country movement of the 1970s, moving away from the polished Nashville sound and toward a m ...

and then signed a solo recording deal with Monument Records. Swan moved to Nashville in 1973 and cut his first album, ''I Can Help'' in early 1974, which included the track "Lover Please". The album budget was only $19,000 and a music business professional who was hired by the president of Monument Records, Fred Foster, declared pre-release that there were no hits on the record. However, the single " I Can Help" proved this wrong; it was recorded at Young 'Un Sound in Murfreesboro, Tennessee southeast of Nashville. It was a

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...

number which topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 as well as the US and Canadian country charts in 1974, also becoming a hit in many other countries. Swan wrote the song using an RMI organ which Kristofferson and singer Rita Coolidge had bought for him as a wedding gift. However, the RMI organ wasn't used on the final recording, contrary to popular belief, it was actually a portable

Farfisa Farfisa () is a manufacturer of electronics based in Osimo, Italy, founded in 1946. The company manufactured a series of compact electronic organs in the 1960s and 1970s, including the Compact, FAST, Professional and VIP ranges, and later, a se ...

from Bobby Emmons, a Memphis session musician. Swan recalls, "Chip set up a vocal mic, I stood in front of the organ, and what you hear was captured on the second take." The lyrics were written in under twenty minutes. It was recorded in two takes (without overdubs), and co-produced/engineered by the owner of the recording studio, Chip Young. The label pushed for "The Ways of a Woman in Love" to be the single, but Young insisted the hit was "I Can Help". However, other albums with Monument, A&M, and Epic did not have nearly the success of "I Can Help". In 1979, Swan traveled to

Havana, Cuba Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Havana Jam festival from March 2–4 alongside Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, the Trio of Doom, Fania All-Stars, Weather Report, Bonnie Bramlett, Mike Finnigan, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge, and

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Piano Man" after his Signature song, signature 1973 song Piano Man (song), of the same name, Joel has ha ...

plus an array of Cuban artists including Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines, and Orquesta Aragón. Swan's performance is captured on Ernesto Juan Castellanos's documentary ''Havana Jam '79''.

Collaboration

Swan continued to tour as a member of Kristofferson's band and recorded with Randy Meisner of The Eagles. In 1986, as part of a band called Black Tie, he along with Meisner, Jimmy Griffin (

Bread Bread is a baked food product made from water, flour, and often yeast. It is a staple food across the world, particularly in Europe and the Middle East. Throughout recorded history and around the world, it has been an important part of many cu ...

), David Kemper (drummer), David Miner, and David Mansfield recorded an album called ''When the Night Falls'' at a

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

studio (Bench Records). He recorded another solo album, ''Like Elvis Used to Do'' in 2000 and another Black Tie-style album with Meisner and Charlie Rich, Jr. billed as "Meisner, Swan & Rich". , Swan is still a backing singer and

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

Personal life

Swan was married to his late wife Marlu for 30 years. Marlu died on February 12, 2003, from cancer. They had two daughters, recording artists Planet Swan and Sierra Swan.

Discography

Albums

Singles

References

External links

Interview with Billy SwanYahoo! Music biography

Billy Swan at Discogs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swan, Billy 1942 births Living people American male singer-songwriters American country rock singers People from Cape Girardeau, Missouri American session musicians American country singer-songwriters Monument Records artists Red Baron Records artists Singer-songwriters from Missouri Country musicians from Missouri Black Tie (band) members