Soul singer Bill Coday first achieved recognition when his single "Get Your Lies Straight" reached listeners during the spring of 1971. Crajon Productions, the company run by husband-and-wife team Bill Jones and Denise Jones—the latter performing as Denise LaSalle and earning a gold single that year with "Trapped by a Thing Called Love"—signed him and found an ideal interpreter for LaSalle's blues-inflected R&B material.
Born on May 10, 1942, in Coldwater, MS, Coday launched his vocal career while still a teenager, appearing in juke joints near Blytheville, AK, alongside a band featuring Son Seals. He moved to Chicago, IL, in 1961 and adopted the stage name Chicago Willie. LaSalle discovered him during a performance at the Black Orchid club and paired him with Memphis, TN, producer Willie Mitchell, a frequent collaborator on her Westbound sides for the Detroit, MI, label as well as on Crajon projects for other artists, including the Sequins' "Hey Romeo" and "The Third Degree." Mitchell later scored hits with fellow Chicago vocalist Syl Johnson and enjoyed gold and platinum success with Al Green on Hi Records.
Coday's initial Crajon releases, "Sixty Minute Teaser" and "I Get High on Your Love," found regional success. The third single, "Get Your Lies Straight," broke through nationally, climbing to number 14 on Billboard's R&B chart in early 1971; its B-side was "You're Gonna Want Me." Crajon then licensed the fast-moving record to Galaxy, a Fantasy Records subsidiary based in Berkeley, CA, for broader distribution. The follow-up Galaxy single, LaSalle's "When You Find a Fool, Bump His Head," reached number 48 R&B in summer 1971. Additional Galaxy sides appeared, yet none registered on the national charts. Coday scored another regional success on Crajon with "I'm Back to Collect" during the first half of 1973. Several of his Crajon and Galaxy recordings later surfaced on the Ace Records compilations All Night Long They Played the Blues (1992) and Bad Bad Whiskey (1993), along with an '80s Japanese collection on Vivid Sounds.
He joined Epic Records in 1973, where the single "I Don't Want to Play This Game" was released. In 1984 Coday began touring as LaSalle's opening act. After a period away from recording, he signed with Memphis-based Ecko Records and delivered the aptly titled album Sneakin' Back; tracks such as "Her Love Is Good Enough to Put in Collard Greens," "I Can Move the Hoochie Coochie Man," "Doctor Thrill Good," and a new version of "Get Your Lies Straight" quickly became staples on blues radio and among blues audiences. His next Ecko album, Can't Get Enough, featured "In the Room Next to the Room" and "Not a Word," a duet with labelmate Barbara Carr. The third Ecko release, 1999's Put Me in the Mood, offered further examples of his spicy, blues-infused Southern soul style.
