'Fifth Beatle' Billy Preston Dead At 59!

The great singer-songwriter and performer Billy Preston, the real "Fifth Beatle" has died after a long illness as a result of malignant hypertension that resulted in kidney failure and other complications. As a result of a medical insult he'd been in a deep coma since last November 21st, but was still struggling to recover. He died at Shea Scottsdale Hospital in Scottsdale, Arizona where he'd lived for the last couple of years.

Billy was called the Fifth Beatle because he played keyboards on Let it Be, The White AlbumAbbey Road. He also played on the and Rolling Stones's hit song Miss You, and often played with Eric Clapton. He also did the organ work on Sly & the Family Stone's greatest hits. Preston's own hits included "Nothing from Nothing," "Will it Go Round in Circles," and "You Are So Beautiful," which Joe Cocker turned into an international hit.

Preston was actually mentored by Ray Charles, and acts like Little Richard, Mahalia Jackson, and James Cleveland had a huge impact on him at a young age. In the early 60s, Billy went to Europe with Little Richard who was playing in Hamburg. The Beatles were the opening act and as the story goes he was the one who made sure they got fed.

His friendship with them lasted through the 1960s and he was the first act signed to Apple Records thanks to George Harrison. The resulting album is called "That's the Way God Planned It." In 1971, Preston played in "The Concert for Bangla Desh." Last year, in one of his final appearances, he performed at a renuion in Los Angeles for the release of the Bangla Desh DVD with Ringo and Harrison's son Dhani on guitar.

More recently, Billy can be heard on the latest albums by Neil Diamond and Red Hot Chili Peppers. He's also featured on the Starbucks soul album "Believe to My Soul" featuring Mavis Staples and Ann Peebles.

I had the good fortune to know Billy the last few years, and saw him perform--as chronicled in this column--last August at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Connecticut and last October at the Atlantis in the Bahamas. He was one of those spectacular performers who put everything into his show even though he had no working kidneys by then and was receiving dialysis. He was a warm, wonderful human being with a mile wide smile. He was also a genius musician, the likes of whom we will not see again.

Rest in peace, Billy. You deserve it.

By: Roger Friedman

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Oh My Sweet Lordie, An Old Rastus Fan!

Yep, I have been scouring the net for years for anything Rastus, oh,
ever since I've been wired. Which has been since about 1992. But be
that as it may, I apparently ain't that good a researcher as I missed
your site until this day. But being the rabid credit-monger I am, I
DO recognize the Rhys moniker from the rear jacket of my gatefold
eponymous "Rastus" LP. Also note that you were a co-writer on "Warm"
& "the "I-75 Riff" both which were the two cuts off that disc that
got the best rotation here in Naptown on WNAP, as best as I could
tell. Also the "I-94 Riff" off of Steamin'", which along with "Lucy
Blubird" & "Lazy Kind of Day" got a great deal of airplay on the
Buzzard.

Can I say, that I idolized this band? I saw them everywhere they
played around Indy. Mostly at the Sherwood Country Club on South
Emerson in the sticks, but also at the Rivoli and some club on far
East Washington near Post Road (I cannot recall its name). Got many
hoarse throats and wet jeans over these shows & I'm a guy...straight!
;-) But good music is pure sex, ya know?

Anyway, I feel as though I've missed the party boat? I managed to
find the astonishing release of "Steamin'" on CD on Amazon and
ordered it in a nonce, but see that you had real audio of the first
album up on your site a while back, but it no longer works. Any chance
you have them located elsewhere I am not looking? Sadly I saw that
there was a Mark Allan (a 2nd Gen. Rastus of which I am unfamiliar)
who posted on the Tower of Power website (in pre-blog 2003) about
offering to sell copies of their unreleased 3rd & 4th albums.
I'd have killed! Especially if my monies went to Rastus.
I'd love to see them resurrect, but I am not naive and know this
is not their era.

So, again....the files, where, if anywhere can I find? Would you sell
master tapes that have been burned to CD to a previous Rastus LP
owner. I can offer proof of ownership on a command performance, have
both vinyl jackets in my possession as we speak.

Also, can you verify if the rumor that Smelko is dead? What of? And
when? Man....


Thanx

Being blue ain't all THAT bad,
Rex Stocklin
Fishers

Listen to Rastus here:
Part One....http://demo.bluepower.com/media/rastus-1-32ks.mp3
Part Two....http://demo.bluepower.com/media/rastus-2-32ks.mp3
Part Three..http://demo.bluepower.com/media/rastus-3-32ks.mp3