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All Music Guide:
Best remembered for his 1974 neo-rockabilly smash "I Can Help," Billy Swan had a long and varied career in the music biz, with a large percentage of it spent behind the scenes. Swan was born in Cape Girardeau, MO, in 1942 and grew up listening to country music until he discovered rock & roll as a teenager. He learned drums, piano, and guitar and also began writing songs. "Lover Please," a song he wrote at age 16, was recorded by a local group he played with called Mirt Mirly & the Rhythm Stoppers; later, when Swan's friends traveled to Memphis to record with Elvis bassist Bill Black, Black wound up cutting the tune himself. Not long after, "Lover Please" found its way to R&B star Clyde McPhatter, who turned it into a Top Ten hit in 1962. Swan stayed in Memphis to write for Black's combo and also worked as a guard at Graceland for a time. He soon moved to Nashville, where he worked as a janitor at the Columbia studios (later handing the job over to a young Kris Kristofferson) and later as a roadie for Mel Tillis; he also wrote songs recorded by Tillis, Conway Twitty, and Waylon Jennings. An association with Monument Records led to Swan's first gig as a record producer, in which he oversaw Tony Joe White's 1969 Top Ten smash "Polk Salad Annie." The following year, Swan joined Kristofferson's backing band as the bass player and toured with him for the next year and a half. He next served as a sideman for Kinky Friedman and Billy Joe Shaver, and shortly after his return to Kristofferson's band, he got a recording deal of his own with Monument.
Tossed off in the studio during sessions for Swan's first album, "I Can Help" was a bouncy, rockabilly-styled number that featured Swan's distinctive electric organ work. It went to number one on both the pop and country charts in 1974, and the accompanying album of the same name also topped the country list. Swan never came close to duplicating its success, but he did reach the country Top 20 with a 1975 single, "Everything's the Same (Ain't Nothing Changed)," and cut three more albums for Monument. He later recorded an album for A&M in 1978 and another for Epic's country division in 1981. He also continued to play in Kristofferson's touring band and worked with T-Bone Burnett frequently during the '80s as well. In 1986, Swan teamed with Randy Meisner in the country-rock band Black Tie, which released the album When the Night Falls. Taking time out from his still-active career as a session and backup musician, Swan recorded a new album at the original Sun studios, Like Elvis Used to Do, in 2000. In 2002, he teamed up with Meisner again, as well as Alan Rich, on a self-titled album from the aptly named Meisner, Swan & Rich.
Wikipedia:
Billy Lance Swan (born 12 May 1942) is an American songwriter and singer, best known for his 1974 single, "I Can Help".
Life
Swan was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. 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 written by Swan when he was in a local band called Mirt Mirly & the Rhythm Stoppers, and which had first been recorded by Bill Black. McPhatter's version quickly became a #7 pop hit.
Swan moved to Memphis to work with Black, but this was cut short with Black's illness and subsequent death in 1965. He also for a time worked on Elvis Presley's Graceland estate. He then moved to Nashville, which enabled him to write hit country songs for numerous artists, including Conway Twitty, Waylon Jennings, 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, and then signed a solo recording deal with Monument Records.
His first album included the song "I Can Help", a rockabilly number that topped both the Billboard Hot 100 and country charts in 1974, also becoming a hit in many other countries. Swan recorded the song in two takes (without overdubs) with an RMI organ that Kristofferson and singer Rita Coolidge had bought for him as a wedding gift. However, other albums with Monument, A&M, and Epic did not have nearly the success of his first.
In 1979, Swan travelled to Havana, Cuba, to participate in the historic Havana Jam festival that took place between 2–4 March, alongside Stephen Stills, the CBS Jazz All-Stars, the Trio of Doom, Fania All-Stars, Weather Report, Bonnie Bramlett, Mike Finnegan, Kris Kristofferson, Rita Coolidge and Billy Joel, plus an array of Cuban artists such as Irakere, Pacho Alonso, Tata Güines and Orquesta Aragón. His performance is captured on Ernesto Juan Castellanos's documentary Havana Jam '79.
Swan continued to tour as a member of Kristofferson's band, and has recorded two albums with Randy Meisner of The Eagles. In 1986 he walked into a Californian studio (Bench Records) as part of a band called Black Tie and along with Meisner, Jimmy Griffin (Bread), David Kemper (drummer), David Miner and David Mansfield recorded an album called When the Night Falls. 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". As of 2005, Swan remained a back-up and session musician.
Swan was married to his late wife Marlu for 30 years. They had two daughters, recording artists Planet Swan & Sierra Swan.
