Billy Vera

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Billy Vera (born William Patrick McCord; May 28, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, author and music historian.

He has been a singer and songwriter since the 1960s, his most successful record being "At This Moment", a US number 1 hit in 1987.

He continues to perform with his group Billy Vera & The Beaters, and won a Grammy Award in 2013.

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Life and career

Vera was born in Riverside, California, and is the niece of radio and television announcer Bill McCord. He grew up in Hartsdale, NY, and attended Our Lady of Mt. The stepsinac High School in Carmel is a Catholic High School. Ann Ryan, a singer, appeared on Perry Como's television show and hit songs.

In 1962, Vera began his recording career as a member of the Resolutions, followed by the regional hit "My Heart Cries"/"All My Love" as Billy Vera & the Contrasts. He began writing for Barbara Lewis, Fats Domino, The Shirelles, and Ricky Nelson in the 1960s. He wrote "Don't Look Back," a garage band classic that was later released by the Remains and later covered by Robert Plant.

"Storybook Children" was written by Vera dea for 1967 and it was taken to Atlantic Records by Chip Taylor. Judy Clay's controversial decision to record the album in a white-black duet was a commercial and artistic triumph. "Storybook Children" is the first interracial love song to debut in the United States. Rosetta Tharpe and Red Foley, a B-side, had recorded "Have a Little Talk with Jesus" in 1952, which was a B-side.

The twosome became a favorite at Harlem's Apollo Theater and their sequel, "Country Girl-City Man," also charted. Later this year, he had a solo hit single with the Bobby Goldsboro penned "With Pen in Hand," which was also the name of his forthcoming album.

Vera's 1970s were a difficult time. He released Out of the Shadow in the United States and Private Clown in the United Kingdom in 1977. In neither world, it had no effect. "I Really Got the Feeling," a number one hit for Dolly Parton, began 1979. He appeared on many oldies shows, including the Shirelles and Ronnie Spector, as well as fronting the band at the 1972 Reunion concert of Dion & the Belmonts. Ben Beckley played in many New York clubs with his band, which included Ben Beckley on drums, Micheal Montecalvo on drums, Tommy Wolk on drums, John Levanthal on guitar, and Joe Renda on keyboards, before heading to Los Angeles in 1979.

Vera and his old buddy, bass player Chuck Fiore, decided to form a band to compete in Los Angeles after living in Los Angeles and writing songs for Warner Bros. The Beaters were born, based on Ray Charles' 1950s band. They featured a horn section as well as a pedal steel guitar, fiore's bass, and Vera on guitar and vocals. The band was given a recording deal by Alfa Records, a major Japanese record company that had recently opened an American office in Los Angeles, as a result of the excitement generated by their now-legendary Monday midnight shows at the Troubadour. Billy & The Beaters was recorded live at the Roxy (video was shot by Paul Flattery and directed by Bruce Gowers). The 1981 album featured minor hits "I Can Take Care of Myself," which reached number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States, and "At This Moment," which (initially) charted at number 79. Billy & The Beaters were credited with both songs.

Vera released a self-titled solo album in 2004, with instrumentation by the Muscle Shoals Sound Rhythm Section and production by Jerry Wexler. However, Vera's record contract was reversibly defunct shortly after the album's debut, when Alfa Records closed its U.S. offices in July 1982. Billy Vera's album had no hits and fell off the charts, and was unable to reach the top. The Mystic Sound of Billy Vera, a small-label album that came out in 1983, has had no commercial success.

Vera returned to playing in Southern California and renamed his support band "The Beaters" after an ever-changing lineup of players. In 1985, a producer from Family Ties was in the audience and heard the band perform "At This Moment." In 1985, the song was released as a backdrop for romantic interludes between lead actor Alex P. Keaton (Michael J. ). Ellen Pollan (Tracy Pollan) and Fox (Tracy Pollan). The two people met in real life and are now married. Viewers clamouring for the album, and Rhino Records unveiled By Request: Billy Vera & the Beaters, which was basically a reissue of most of Billy & The Beaters' albums, as well as Billy Vera's two tracks. On its re-release, the single "At This Moment" became a top-one hit, peaking in January 1987, and remaining on the charts for 21 weeks.

Vera continued with his musical career, debuting another Billy Vera & the Beaters album on Capitol Records in 1988, aiming to cash in on the group's revival of interest. Although the album's single, "Between Like and Love" peaked at number 9 on the Adult Contemporary chart, Vera said it fell short of the Hot 100, where Vera hasn't charted since "At This Moment."

Vera had a brief career in film and television, including appearances in The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai, Late for Dinner, The Doors, and soap opera Days of Our Lives before "At This Moment." As he and the Beaters were prominently in Bruce Willis' "At This Moment," "At This Moment" propelled his film career. He appeared in one episode of a television show called Wise Wells World and a recurring role as Duke on Beverly Hills, 90210, as well as nine appearances on The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson. He will soon be seen singing theme songs from TV shows like Empty Nest and The King of Queens, as well as voice acting on Cartoon Network cartoons. In 1990, Rick Dees appeared as the band leader on his short-lived late-night talk show Into the Night on ABC. In 1995, he appeared in a Double Rush episode.

Vera co-produced three Lou Rawls albums for Blue Note Records, including At Last, which debuted at number one on the Billboard jazz chart, during this time. Rawls Sings Sinatra, Vera's last record, remained on the jazz chart for more than six months, but it was also listed on the jazz chart for more than six months. Rawls performed seven of Vera's songs, including "If I Were A Magician" (1989), "Room With a View" and "You Can't Go Home" (1989). Vera's song "Papa Come Quick (Jody & Chico)" was included on Bonnie Raitt's album, Luck of the Draw in 1990. On the 1992 album You Must Cry Some Time, Vera Hendryx appears as a pair with Nona Hendryx.

The Beaters are currently playing in Southern California, and Vera continues his work as a music historian. Among others, he has worked on over 200 reissue albums and sets, including artists such as Little Richard, Sam Cooke, Louis Jordan, Ray Charles, and Louis Prima's.

Vera has been a spokesperson for AM/PM Mini Mart advertisements since 1999 and has been known as one of Los Angeles' top voice-over artists. "At This Moment" was included on Michael Bublé's number one album, Crazy Love. Billy Vera & The Beaters' CD Hopeless Romantic: The Best Of Billy Vera & The Beaters was released on Shout Factory Records, and The Billy Vera Story was released on Rock Beat Records. Billy sang "Queen of Diamonds/Jack of Hearts," a CD with songs by their early mentor Chip Taylor.

Vera also released Billy Vera: Big Band Jazz in 2015, a tribute to the black songwriters of the 1920s, 30s, and 40s. It was released on Varese-Sarabande Records, and Vera has appeared with a major 18-piece band in New York City, Hollywood, and at various jazz festivals.

Vera returned to the studio in 2019 to record the album Timeless with three of the Beaters, as well as several of LA's top sidemen.

Vera also stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at the corner of Vine Street and Yucca Street, right in front of the Capitol Records Building in Hollywood. He received the Best Album Notes award for the Ray Charles box set "Singular Genius: The Complete ABC Singles" in 2013.

Vintage Neon: Los Angeles, 1979, Vera's nocturnal hunts for old neon signs was published in book publishing, and he began to publish in 2016. In 2017, Harlem to Hollywood, his second book, a memoir, was published. Reviews praised it as "an amazing tale...the purest treatise on the subject ever produced." Alan Swyer, an award-winning documentarian, has produced a documentary on Billy Vera, as well as Harlem to Hollywood, which is also available on Amazon. Billy also wrote "Rip It Up: The Complete Recording Story," which was published in November 2019. A Dollop of Toothpaste, Vera's first book, was released in 2020. It's a dystopian story and political satire in which the Mafia returns to their rightful position in society.

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