Bill Wyman (born William George Perks on 24 October 1936) was the bass guitarist for the English rock and roll band The Rolling Stones from 1962 until 1992. Since 1997, he has recorded and toured with his own band, Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings.

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Early life

Bill Wyman was born in Lewisham Hospital in Lewisham, South London, the son of William Perks, a bricklayer, and his wife, Molly. One of five children, Bill spent most of his early life living in a terraced house in one of the roughest streets in Sydenham, southeast London. He describes his childhood as "scarred by poverty". ^[1]

He attended Beckenham and Penge Grammar School from 1947 to Easter 1953, leaving before the GCE exams after his father found him a job working for a bookmaker and insisted that he take it.

Music career

Wyman took piano lessons from age 10 to 13. A year after his marriage on 24 October 1959 to Diane Cory, an eighteen-year-old bank clerk, he bought a Burns electric guitar for £52 on hire-purchase, but was not satisfied by his progress. ^[2] After hearing a bass guitar at The Barron Knights' concert, he fell in love with the sound of it and decided this was his instrument. He created the first fretless electric bass ^{[3] [4]} by removing the frets from a bass guitar he was reworking, and played this in a south London band, The Cliftons. He used the stage name Lee (later Bill) Wyman, taking the surname of a friend with whom he had done National Service in the Royal Air Force from 1955 to 1957. ^[5]

On 29 March 1962, Stephen Paul Wyman, the only child of his marriage to Diane, was born.

The Rolling Stones

When drummer Tony Chapman told him that a rhythm and blues band called The Rolling Stones needed a bass player, he auditioned and was hired in December 1962 as a successor to Dick Taylor. The band were impressed by his instrument and amplifier and by his ability to provide cigarettes, but because he was married, employed and older, Wyman remained an outsider.

In addition to playing bass, Wyman frequently sang harmony on early records, and through 1967 in concert as well. He sang lead on the track In Another Land, on the Their Satanic Majesties Request album and a single. The song is one of two Wyman compositions recorded by the Rolling Stones; the second is "Downtown Suzie" (sung by Mick Jagger), on Metamorphosis , a collection of Rolling Stones outtakes. The title of "Downtown Suzie" was chosen by the Rolling Stones' erstwhile manager Allen Klein without consulting Wyman or the band. The original title was Sweet Lyle Lucy, named after Lyle Street, a street in the red light district in Soho, London.

Wyman kept a journal and used it in writing his 1990 autobiography Stone Alone and his 2002 book Rolling with the Stones . In Stone Alone , Wyman claims to have composed the riff of "Jumpin' Jack Flash" with Brian Jones and drummer Charlie Watts. Wyman mentions that "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" was released as a single only after a 3-2 vote within the band: Wyman, Watts and Jones voted for, Jagger and Richards against, feeling it not sufficiently commercial. By the 1970s, Wyman tired of the monopolization of songwriting and production by Jagger and Richards, and began solo projects. In the 1970s and early 80s he made three solo albums, none successful but all well received by critics. In July 1981 his "(Si, Si) Je Suis Un Rock Star" became a top-20 hit in many countries. ^[6]

In the mid-1960s, Wyman composed the score of the Ryan O'Neal-Omar Sharif film Green Ice . In the mid-80s, he composed music for films by Italian director Dario Argento: 1985's Phenomena and 1987's Terror At The Opera . Wyman made a cameo appearance in the 1987 British film "Eat the Rich." He produced and managed groups such as Tucky Buzzard.

Wyman was close to Brian Jones; he and Watts were the only members at Jones' funeral in July 1969. Wyman was also friends with guitarist Mick Taylor. Like the Rolling Stones he has worked with Taylor after Taylor's departure from the band.

After the Rolling Stones' 1989-1990 Steel Wheels/Urban Jungle tours, Wyman called it a day; his decision was announced in December 1992. ^[7] The Rolling Stones have continued to record and tour with Darryl Jones on bass. Wyman says that from the late 1980s Rolling Stones records had become creatively stagnant, that he lost interest in recording and touring, and that it was time to retire. Jagger said Wyman was scared of flying and found touring stressful. In a 1994 Rolling Stone magazine article, Richards said of Wyman's retirement, "I wanted to kill Bill Wyman. Nobody quits the Rolling Stones."

Recent activity

Wyman continues to tour with The Rhythm Kings , which has featured such musicians as Martin Taylor ^[8], Albert Lee, Gary Brooker, Terry Taylor (formerly with Tucky Buzzard), Mike Sanchez and Georgie Fame.

Following his 70th birthday in October 2006, he undertook another British tour.

On the 10 December 2007, Wyman and his band appeared alongside a reunited Led Zeppelin at the Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert at The O2 in London.

Wyman was also a judge for the 5th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers. ^[9]

Musical instruments

Wyman taught himself several instruments, including autoharp, guitar, vibraphone, glockenspiel, piano, organ, synthesiser, percussion and cello. His bass sound came not only from his home-made fretless bass, but the "walking bass" style he adopted, inspired by Willie Dixon and Ricky Fenson and his tight work with Charlie Watts. Their sound not only anchored the group, but exemplified the "heartbeat and pulse" idea behind ideal rhythm sections. Wyman has played a number of basses including a Framus Star bass, a Vox Teardrop bass (issued as a Bill Wyman signature model), a Fender Mustang Bass, two Ampeg Dan Armstrong basses, a Gibson SG Bass, a Rickenbacker 4005 copy and a Travis Bean bass. He currently favours Steinberger basses.

Personal life

Wyman, although moderate in his use of alcohol and drugs, has stated that he became "girl mad" as a psychological crutch. ^[10] Maxim magazine ranked Wyman at number 10 on its "Living Sex Legends" list, as he is reputed to have had sex with over 1000 women. ^[11] It is believed and stated by many sources^[who?] that Wyman's conquest tally passed 2000 women throughout his 31-year tenure as bassist of the Rolling Stones. In 1989 Wyman married the eighteen-year-old Mandy Smith, whom he had been dating since she was thirteen; their relationship was the subject of considerable media attention. The marriage ended in spring 1991, and in April 1993 he married Suzanne Accosta. They are still married and have three daughters, Katherine Noelle (born September 1994), Jessica Rose (born November 1995), and Matilda May (born May 1998). ^[12]

Non-musical activities

Wyman lives in a country house in Suffolk and in the south of France. Former manager Andrew Loog Oldham says that of all the Stones, Wyman is the most at peace with himself.

Wyman opened the Sticky Fingers Café in 1989, a rock & roll-themed bistro serving American cuisine in Kensington, London.

He is an amateur archaeologist and enjoys relic hunting; The Times published a letter about his hobby (Friday 2 March 2007). He markets a "Bill Wyman signature metal detector".

He is also a cricket supporter. His played in a celebrity match at The Oval against a former England XI, taking a hat-trick. ^[13]

Solo albums

• Monkey Grip (June 1974) UK #39 [1 wk], US #99 [11 wks]
• Stone Alone (March 1976) US #166 [5 wks]
• Bill Wyman (April 1982) UK #55 [6 wks]
• Willie & The Poor Boys (May 1985) US #96 [12 wks]
• Stuff (October 1992 in Japan and Argentina only, 2000 UK)
• A Stone Alone: The Solo Anthology 1974-2002 (2002, UK)

Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings

• Struttin' Our Stuff (October 1997)
• Anyway The Wind Blows (February 1999)
• Groovin (May 2000) UK #52 [3 wks]
• Double Bill (May 2001) UK #88 [2 wks]
• Just For A Thrill (May 2004) UK #149 [1 wk]

Solo singles

• "(Si, Si) Je Suis Un Rock Star" (July 1981) UK #14 [9 wks]
• "A New Fashion" (March 1982) UK #37 [4 wks]
• "Baby Please Don't Go" (June 1985) US Mainstream Rock #35 [7 wks]

Bibliography

Bill Wyman has authored or co-authored the following titles

Archaeology

• Bill Wyman's Treasure Islands ISBN 0-7509-3967-2

Rolling Stones

• Stone Alone ISBN 0-306-80783-1
• Rolling with the Stones ISBN 0-7513-4646-2.
• Bill Wyman's Blues Odyssey ISBN 0-7513-3442-1
• The Stones - A History in Cartoons ISBN 0-7509-4248-7

The latter three books and Bill Wyman's Treasure Islands all written in collaboration with Richard Havers

References

1. Stone Alone
2. Wyman 1990. pp. 82-84.
3. Roberts, Jim (2001). 'How The Fender Bass Changed the World' or Jon Sievert interview with Bill Wyman, guitar player magazine December (1978)
4. This fretless bass can be heard on The Rolling Stones songs such as "Paint It Black".
5. Wyman 1990. p. 141.
6. Rolling With the Stones
7. The Rolling Stones Chronicle 1992
8. [1] Martin Taylor interview (2008) in which he speaks of working with Wyman
9. Independent Music Awards - Past Judges
10. Portrait of Bill
11. Sheen Only No. 2 on 'Living Sex Legends' List - The 'Two and a Half Men' star allegedly has 5,000 notches on his rapidly dwindling bedpost - Zap2it
12. Wyman 2002. p. 487, pp. 496-497.
13. Sky Sports interview, August 2008, featuring celebrities discussing their love for cricket