Bill Withers
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Background information
Born July 4, 1938
Slab Fork, West Virginia, United States
Origin Los Angeles
Genre(s) Soul, R&B
Instrument(s) Voice, acoustic guitar
Years active 1967-1985
Label(s) Sussex Records
Columbia Records
Website
http://www.billwithers.com/
Bill Withers (born July 4, 1938 in Slab Fork, West Virginia) is an American singer-songwriter who performed and recorded from the late 1960s until the mid 1980s. Some of his best-known songs include "Ain't No Sunshine," "Use Me," "Lean on Me", "Grandma's Hands", and "Just the Two of Us".
Early life
Bill Withers was born the youngest of nine children in the small coal-mining town of Slab Fork, West Virginia. Raised in nearby Beckley, West Virginia, he was thirteen when his father died. He joined the United States Navy at seventeen and served for nine years, during which time he became interested in singing. He began writing songs to fill a need for lyrics that expressed what he felt. Following his discharge from the Navy in 1965, he moved to Los Angeles in 1967 to pursue a career in music.[1]
Withers worked full-time in a Lockheed assembly plant, assembling toilets for Boeing 747s, while recording demo tapes he shopped around and performing in the juke joints during the night.[2] When he debuted on the music scene with "Ain't No Sunshine" he refused to give up his job because of his belief that the music business was a fickle industry and that he was still a novice compared to other working acts like The Temptations or Sammy Davis, Jr.[citation needed]
Career
Sussex Records
In early 1970, Withers' demo tape was received favorably by Clarence Avant of Sussex Records. Avant signed Withers to a record deal and assigned Booker T. Jones to produce Withers' debut album. Four three-hour studio sessions were planned to record the album, but funding caused the album to be recorded in three sessions with a six-month break between the second and final sessions. Just As I Am was released in 1971 with the tracks "Harlem" and "Ain't No Sunshine" as singles.[3]
The album was a hit and Withers began touring with a band assembled from members of The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band: drummer James Gadson, guitarist Bernoce Blackmon, keyboardist Ray Jackson, and bassist Melvin Dunlap. During a break in touring, Withers recorded his second album, Still Bill. The single "Lean on Me" went to number one the week of July 8, 1972.
A 1973 performance was recorded for the live album Bill Withers, Live at Carnegie Hall. It was followed by the 1974 album +Justments.
After +Justments, Withers became engaged in a legal dispute with the Sussex label and was unable to record. During this time, he wrote and produced two songs on the Gladys Knight & the Pips record I Feel A Song and performed in concert as part of the historical Ali/Forman fight in Zaire. Footage of his performance appeared in the 1996 documentary film When We Were Kings and the accompanying soundtrack.
Columbia Records
Withers signed with Columbia Records in 1975. His first released with the label was Making Music, Making Friends, which had the single "She's Lonely" appear in the movie Looking for Mr. Goodbar. The next three years saw an album released each year with Naked & Warm (1976), Menagerie (1977) and 'Bout Love (1978).
He then focused on joint projects for several years, including the multiple Grammy-nominated "Just the Two of Us," which he performed with jazz saxophonist Grover Washington, Jr., "Soul Shadows" with The Crusaders, and "In The Name Of Love" with Ralph MacDonald, which was nominated for a vocal performance Grammy.
His final new release was 1985's Watching You, Watching Me, with the singles "Whatever Happens" and "You Just Can't Smile It Away". He retired from the music business after the album was released.
Other endeavors
After retiring, Withers focused on parenting with his wife Marcia, who handles the day-to-day running of his publishing company.[2] In 1987, he received his ninth Grammy nomination and third Grammy as a songwriter for the re-recording of "Lean On Me" by Club Nouveau.
Following the reissues of Still Bill in 2003 and Just As I am in 2005, there was speculation of previously unreleased material being issued as a new album.[4] Tapes of his unreleased material were delivered from Sony to Withers in 2006.[2]
