Bill Payne

For other people named Bill Payne, see Bill Payne (disambiguation).

Bill Payne
Payne with Little Feat at a benefit for Richie Hayward, Burlington, Vermont January 14, 2010
Background information
Birth name	William Payne
Born	(1949-03-12) March 12, 1949 Waco, Texas United States
Genres	Rock and roll, blues, Swamp rock, Southern rock, Funk, jazz rock, jazz fusion
Occupation(s)	Musician, songwriter, record producer. pianist
Instrument(s)	Vocals, organ, piano, synthesizers
Years active	1969–present
Labels	Hot Tomato Records
Website	Bill Payne website

William "Bill" Payne (born March 12, 1949 in Waco, Texas, USA) co-founded, with Lowell George, the American rock band Little Feat. He is considered by many other rock pianists, including Elton John, to be one of the finest American piano rock and blues music artists. In addition to his trademark barrelhouse blues piano, he is noted for his work on other keyboard instruments, particularly the Hammond B3 organ. Payne is also an accomplished songwriter whose credits include co-writing, with Lowell George, the Little Feat classic, "Oh, Atlanta." Payne is currently a member of Boulder band Leftover Salmon.

Payne has worked and recorded with other musicians including J. J. Cale, Doobie Brothers, Emmylou Harris, Bryan Adams, Pink Floyd, Bob Seger, Toto, Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, Bonnie Raitt, Helen Watson, Stevie Nicks, Shocking Edison, Robert Palmer and Stephen Bruton. He was a guest performer on Bonnie Raitt's album Sweet Forgiveness in 1977, and wrote its track, "Takin' My Time."

Paul Barrere and Bill Payne played several live concerts with Phil Lesh and Friends, from October 1999 through July 2000.

Following the death of Little Feat drummer Richie Hayward on August 12, 2010, Payne is the only member of the group from the original four-piece line-up currently playing in the band.

In August 2015, Payne was selected to play keyboards for The Doobie Brothers after their keyboardist Guy Allison was called to work on an album project in Japan. In the few weeks of touring with the Doobies, he was featured with the band and Michael McDonald on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Payne's temporary term ended in early September after the Doobies' concert at the BB&T Pavilion in Camden, New Jersey.

Payne rejoined the Doobies as a touring member in December 2015, officially taking the position previously held by Allison.

Other work

Payne was a pioneer in the development of online music communities. In the early 1990s, he contacted his fan base and enlisted the help of friend Jay Herbst to develop the Little Feat Grass-roots Movement. This model went on to be a template for many bands in the creation of their Street Teams, which enlist the help of fans for purposes of music and concert promotion. This method has proven to be an effective vehicle for bringing bands and fans closer together, and forging friendships between them.

Payne now also works as a commercial photographer.

Songwriting (selected)

Payne wrote or co-wrote many of the songs in Little Feat's catalogue, including the following:

• "Snakes on Everything"
• "Strawberry Flats"
• "Truck-Stop Girl"
• "Brides of Jesus"
• "Tripe Face Boogie"
• "Got No Shadow"
• "Oh, Atlanta"
• "Time Loves a Hero"
• "Gringo"
• "Takin' My Time"
• "Red Streamliner"

Discography

Solo

• Cielo Norte (2005)

References

reference #2 expired link

External links

• Bill Payne Discography
• Little Feat website
• Something Wild (1966)
• Certain Fury O.S.T. (1985)
• Shocking Edison Website