Billy Stewart

Billy Stewart emerged as a pianist and vocalist whose stuttering phrasing and penchant for repeating words drew directly from scat-singing traditions in jazz, establishing him as a singular and impactful figure in R&B. He entered the world in Washington, D.C., during 1937 and first performed in public as a teenager alongside his mother’s gospel ensemble, the Stewart Gospel Singers. Transitioning toward popular music, he occasionally substituted in the Rainbows, a vocal outfit from the D.C. region fronted by the future soul luminary Don Covay; like another occasional participant, Marvin Gaye, Stewart never committed any sides to tape with the group. Although he captured a local talent competition by delivering a singular take on Gershwin’s “Summertime,” Bo Diddley first noticed him not for his voice but for his keyboard work—overhearing Stewart playing backstage during a tour stop and promptly hiring him as a sideman.

That association with Diddley led Stewart to Chess, where he issued his debut solo release, “Billy’s Blues,” in 1956. He switched to Okeh the next year and waxed “Billy’s Heartache” with support from the Marquees, yet another D.C.-area act that included Gaye. Solo work remained on hold until 1962, when Stewart rejoined Chess and recorded “Fat Boy,” the straightforward nickname that had attached itself to him. The same session yielded “Reap What You Sow,” his initial R&B chart entry, while the warmly rendered “Strange Feeling” in 1963 signaled his emerging artistic maturity. “Count Me Out” registered only locally the following year, yet 1965 brought national recognition through two elegant R&B ballad successes—“I Do Love You,” which supplied the title for his debut long-player, and “Sitting in the Park.” Extensive touring supported these breakthroughs, and 1966 saw further entries with “How Nice It Is” and “Because I Love You.”

Later that year he returned to the Chess studio for Unbelievable, an album devoted to jazz and pop standards. By then his idiosyncratic vocal manner had fully blossomed, earning him the additional moniker “Motormouth”; his fresh version of “Summertime” climbed into the Top Ten on both the pop and R&B lists and remains one of the most daring reworkings of that frequently revisited standard. A treatment of Doris Day’s “Secret Love” fell just short of the R&B Top Ten. Chart momentum soon faded, however, while his longstanding weight issues progressed into diabetes. A motorcycle mishap in 1969 left him with only minor injuries, but tragedy arrived on January 17, 1970, when the automobile he was driving veered off the road and plunged into North Carolina’s Neuse River, claiming Stewart’s life along with those of the three fellow musicians traveling with him. He had not yet reached the age of 33.