- Billy Fury
Infobox musical artist
Name = Billy Fury
Img_capt = Billy Fury statue at Albert Dock, Liverpool, by Tom Murphy, a Liverpool sculptor, in 2003. The sculpture was donated to National Museums Liverpool by 'The Sound of Fury' fan club. Picture taken 2008-03-08. Birkenhead and the River Mersey in the background.
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Ronald William Wycherley
Born = Birth date|1940|4|17|df=yesLiverpool ,England .
Died = Death date and age|1983|01|28|1940|4|17|df=yesPaddington ,West London ,England
Origin =
Instrument =Guitar
Genre = Rock, Pop,Rockabilly
Occupation =Singer ,Songwriter ,Musician
Years_active = 1959 – 1983
Label =Decca ,Parlophone
Associated_acts =Georgie Fame
URL = [http://www.billyfury.com billyfury.com]
Notable_instruments =Billy Fury (born Ronald William Wycherley,
17 April 1940 -28 January ,1983 ), was an internationally successful Britishpop singer from the late 1950s to the early 1960s, and remained an activesongwriter until the 1980s. Rheumatic fever, which damaged his heart, contributed to his death.Early years
Born at Smithdown Hospital (now Sefton General Hospital), Smithdown Road,
Liverpool , Ronnie Wycherley first attended a gig in Birkenhead [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/liverpool/content/articles/2005/12/12/billyfury_book_feature.shtml BBC biography of Fury] ] run byimpresario Larry Parnes , in the hope of interesting established artisteMarty Wilde in some of the songs he had written. Instead, in an episode that has become pop music legend, Parnes pushed young Wycherley up on stage right away. He was such an immediate success that Parnes signed him, added him to the tour, and renamed him "Billy Fury".He released his first hit for Decca, "Maybe Tomorrow", in 1959. By March 1960, he hit UK Number 9 with his own composition "Colette", followed by "That's Love" and his first album "
The Sound Of Fury " (1960), which featured a young Joe Brown on lead guitar, with backup vocals byThe Four Jays .After further hits and sacking his band "The Blue Flames"—which included
keyboardist Georgie Fame —auditions were held for a new group and held by Parnes in Liverpool. Among those who failed were the pre-fameBeatles , who for the first time called themselves The Silver Beetles. They were offered the job for £20 a week on condition that they sackedbass guitar playerStuart Sutcliffe .John Lennon refused and the band left after Lennon had secured Fury'sautograph . The Beatles were salvaged, however, by being sent on a tour ofScotland withJohnny Gentle andDuffy Power , who were a couple more of Parnes' acts.UK chart and film success
Fury concentrated less on
Rock 'n' Roll and more on mainstreamballads , such as "Halfway to Paradise " and "Jealousy" (both 1961, each of which reached number 2 in theBritish Singles Chart ). This was Decca's decision to mould Fury into ateen idol after his last self-penned song, "My Christmas Prayer", had failed to chart. 1962 and 1963 were Billy Fury's best years chartwise. However, he was not a typical teen idol; there was too much sexuality in his performances and his renditions were never lightweight in the mould of some singers likeCraig Douglas or Jimmy Justice. Fury's fans and contemporaries in music knew he was arocker and the real thing musically.In 1962 Fury appeared in his first film "Play It Cool", modelled on the Elvis movies. It featured
Helen Shapiro ,Danny Rivers ,Shane Fenton (akaAlvin Stardust ) andBobby Vee who appeared withthe Vernons Girls . The hit single from the film was "Once Upon a Dream ". In the film Fury did not get the girl but stayed with his friends. There are notable performances by many well-known British actors and performers such asRichard Wattis ,Lionel Blair andDennis Price . The music highlight of the film is Fury's singing of the title track.Billy Fury was known for excellent albums. His "
We Want Billy " (released 1963, withThe Tornados ) was one of the first live albums in British rock history and featured renditions of his major hits and covers of several classicR&B songs such as "Unchain My Heart" byRay Charles . "Turn Your Lamp Down Low" (recorded in 1965 with backing band The Gamblers) was one of the earliest examples of a British act recording a track in thereggae style (with the emphasis on the second and fourth beats of each bar).In 1965 he appeared in the film "
I've Gotta Horse ", which featured the bandThe Bachelors . It was not a success but it seemed more real, and there are many interesting references to the British seaside towns of the 1960s. Appearing in minor roles wereMichael Medwin , andJon Pertwee of "Doctor Who " fame. The album from the film is available instereo .Having had more UK hits, such as "
It's Only Make Believe " and "I Will" (written byDick Glasser , not to be confused with thePaul McCartney song), both in 1964, and "In Thoughts of You" in 1965, Fury began a lengthy absence from the charts in 1967, and underwent surgery for heart problems caused byrheumatic fever which led to his abandoning touring. Despite spending many weeks on the charts, Billy Fury never achieved a number one single, but he remained popular even after his hits stopped. Fury's song "I Will" became aUS hit forDean Martin in 1965 and forRuby Winters in 1977.Later years and death
In 1973, Fury came out of retirement to play rock 'n' roller "Stormy Tempest" in the film "That'll Be The Day". The film, starring
David Essex andRingo Starr , was roughly based on the early days ofThe Beatles . Ringo Starr was from the same Dingle area of Liverpool as Fury and had originally played drums forRory Storm & The Hurricanes , who the Stormy Tempest group were said to be modelled on.In 1981 and 1982, Fury was signed to
Polydor Records byA&R man Frank Neilson and recorded a comeback album, "The One And Only" (released posthumously) withShakin' Stevens ' producerStuart Colman and several singles. Because of his health, Fury did little touring to promote the new album. His last public appearance was at the Sunnyside,Northampton , in December 1982. He recorded a live performance for the television show "Unforgettable" featuring six of his old hits. At the request of his mother, only four were transmitted, however, as the two others had such great emotional attachment for her.Fury lived with Lee Middleton from 1959 to 1967, married Judith Hall in May 1969 and lived with the property
heiress Lisa Rosen from 1971 until his death on 28 January 1983 atPaddington ,West London .The song "A Wondrous Place", a great favourite of Fury's (so much so that he recorded it at least four times during his career) later received much airplay on British television when it was used as the theme for a
Toyota Yaris car advertisement in 1999 and 2000.Billy Fury was a keen amateur birdwatcher.
He is buried at the Paddington District Cemetery, Milespit Hill, Mill Hill, London NW7. His grave is always well maintained, with fresh flowers and messages from fans.
Discography
ingles
References in Popular Culture
*His life was dramatised for
BBC Radio in 1994, in a play called "The Sound of Fury", withAnton Lesser playing the singer.References
*imdb name|id=0299233|name=Billy Fury
*amg|11:hifwxqe5ldke~T1|Billy Fury
* [http://www.nic.fi/~nallew/pages/bio.html Billy Fury Biography] by Nalle Westman & Chris EleyNotes
External links
* [http://www.billyfury.com www.billyfury.com]
* [http://www.thesoundoffury.org/ 'Sound of Fury' fan club]
* [http://www.thebillyfuryfanclub.com www.thebillyfuryfanclub.com]
* [http://www.billyfurystory.co.uk/ www.billyfurystory.co.uk] Fury's Tornados, former backing band
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