Eddie "Chank" Willis (June 3, 1936 – August 20, 2018) was an American

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 ...

musician. Willis played electric guitar and occasional

electric sitar An electric sitar is a type of electric string instrument designed to mimic the sound of the sitar The sitar ( or ; ) is a plucked stringed instrument, originating from the Indian subcontinent, used in Hindustani classical music. The instru ...

for

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

's in-house studio band,

The Funk Brothers The Funk Brothers were a group of Detroit-based session musicians who performed the backing to most Motown recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles in 1972. Its members are considered among the most successful groups of stud ...

, during the 1960s and early 1970s.

Career

Born in

Grenada, Mississippi Grenada () is a city in Grenada County, Mississippi, Grenada County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1836, the population was 13,092 at the United States Census, 2010, 2010 census. It is the county seat of Grenada County, Mississippi, Gre ...

, Willis was known for his signature style of muted guitar riffs which added a distinctive tone or "color" to the beat, often timed with the snare, of the hundreds of hit songs recorded at

Hitsville U.S.A. "Hitsville U.S.A." is the nickname given to Motown's first headquarters and recording studio. The house (formerly a photographers' studio) is located at 2648 West Grand Boulevard in Detroit near the New Center area of the city. Motown founder B ...

for Motown artists. Among the recordings Willis performed on are " Please Mr. Postman" by

The Marvelettes The Marvelettes were an American girl group formed in Inkster, Michigan, Inkster, Michigan in 1960, consisting of schoolmates Gladys Horton, Katherine Anderson, Georgeanna Tillman, Juanita Cowart (now Cowart Motley), and Georgia Dobbins, who was ...

, " The Way You Do the Things You Do" by

The Temptations The Temptations is an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961 as The Elgins, known for their string of successful singles and albums with Motown from the 1960s to the mid-1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield ...

, "

You Keep Me Hanging On "You Keep Me Hangin' On" is a song written and composed by Holland–Dozier–Holland. It was first recorded in 1966 by American Motown group the Supremes, reaching number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The song has since been interpreted ...

" by

The Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959 as the Primettes. A premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successful Amer ...

, and " I Was Made to Love Her" by

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

. Influences for Willis included

Chet Atkins Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), also known as "Mister Guitar" and "the Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson (musician), Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nash ...

Wes Montgomery John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery (March 6, 1923 – June 15, 1968) was an American jazz guitarist. Montgomery was known for his unusual technique of plucking the strings with the side of his thumb and for his extensive use of octaves, which gave him a ...

, and

Albert King Albert King ( Nelson; April 25, 1923 – December 21, 1992), 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 best known for his popular and ...

. He played a

Gibson Firebird The Gibson Firebird is a particularly distinctive solid-body electric guitar manufactured by Gibson Guitar Corporation, Gibson beginning in 1963. It features several unusual features for a Gibson guitar. It has distinctive shape. It is made wit ...

guitar on most of his early 1960s work, later moving on to use a

Gibson ES-335 The Gibson ES-335 is a semi-hollow body semi-acoustic guitar introduced by the Gibson Guitar Corporation as part of its Gibson ES Series, ES (Electric Spanish) series 1958 in music, in 1958. It has a solid maple wood block running through the cente ...

. On recordings such as The Supremes' " No Matter What Sign You Are", Willis performed on a

Coral sitar An electric sitar is a type of electric string instrument designed to mimic the sound of the sitar, a traditional musical instrument of India. Depending on the manufacturer and model, these instruments bear varying degrees of resemblance to the ...

. He accepted an offer from

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 ...

to perform on his album of Motown and 1960s soul classics, '' Going Back''.

Death

Willis died on August 20, 2018, in Gore Springs, Mississippi from complications of

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

at the age of 82.

References

External links

* 1936 births 2018 deaths African-American guitarists American soul musicians People from Grenada, Mississippi The Funk Brothers members American soul guitarists American rhythm and blues guitarists Sitar players American session musicians 20th-century American guitarists Guitarists from Michigan Guitarists from Mississippi Deaths from polio American musicians with disabilities 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American musicians Polio survivors {{R&Bsoul-bio-stub