Ramblin’ Bill’s happenings are simple exercises. Without fanfare, he begins to play for his audiences. For the next 1-3 hours, usually non-stop, he sings and plays the music Hits that changed the world, Classic Rock, Country, and Blues. He was a part of that revolution, either as a listener or a participant since the early 50's.
His music in now called AMERICANA. "Labels don't really matter, although they do simplify images of what people can expect if they decide to listen to music. Americana started in California, but when my wife heard it the first time, she informed me that it was the same music I've been playing since she met me".
My audiences range in age from infants to people in my age group, Older Than Dirt. My job is to get people's hearts, minds, and bodies moving. When I see the tapping their feet or singing along to an old song they grew up with, I know I'm on the right page". He recalls a conversation he had with Sam "Lightning" Hopkins about people talking during a performance. "Lightning looked at me and summed up his thoughts very succinctly, 'Boy, if people's talking while you're singing, you're singing the wrong songs'. It's been a significant lesson to me for over 40 years".
"My audiences come to hear the music which hit the world right between the eyes. They come to listen to music, not to hear me talk. I don't waste a lot of time in what I call Rhetorical Abundance mode. I want my audiences to wrap their memories around my music."
When Bill's performances begin, the listener is going to hear one of two things:
- The Top Billboard Magazine Hits for the last 50 years.
- The Copyrighted songs that he’s written and are sold on his Gentle Beast Records label (sold on cd either during his performances or as downloads on this website).
With over 500 songs in his repertoire, when he opens up his song book, "I have to use a music binder because or the huge number of songs I sing. But when I sit down to play, I am prepared to sing for 33 hours!" However, his performances usually only last for 1–3 hours, virtually without interruption, "I then I have to take a nap!"
When Ramblin’ Bill chooses to play in front of an audience, his music will take you back in time, to those thrilling days of yesteryear, as he covers the songs of:
B. B. King ● Bo Diddley ● Bob Dylan ● Cat Stevens ● Creedance Clearwater Revival ● Crosby, Stills, & Nash ● Delbert McClinton ● Fleetwood Mac ● J.J. Cale ● John Lee Hooker ● Johnny Cash ● Kris Kristofferson ● Lynyrd Skynyrd ● Lightning Hopkins ● Muddy Waters ● Neil Diamond ● Neil Young ● Otis Redding ● The Band ● The Bee Gees ● The Doors ● The Moody Blues ● The Rolling Stones ● Van Morrison ● Waylon Jennings ● Willie Nelson ● etc.
Whether he is playing a typical music venue or simply busking in a park, "Tips" are encouraged. "I always enjoyed the concept of juke boxes, put a quarter in and out comes a song. And I love to sell my cd's. It's my way of saying, you can take me home with you after I quit playing. I was a big fan of the marketing of Jerry Garcia and The Grateful Dead. They were known to sometimes play For Free, but made their money from merchandise sales. I liked the concept and if I decide to busk in the spring or summer, I can assure you, I'll have a stack of cd's nearby. When I'm busking, I'll play my music for free, but I'm going to try to sell my products at list price, preferably in CASH, and I'm all for a generous tip if my audience enjoys my music and can afford it. I've been known to give away a cd if my tip jar suddenly has a $20 bill added to it!"
"I've got a simple philosophy about my music. I'm going to be practicing two hours a day somewhere. That's a given everyday I'm able to get out of bed. If it's in front of an audience that throws me a few bucks, I'll be delighted. I make it very easy for a venue to hire me. I look at venues as places to practice my songs. All I ask is for the venue management to encourage my audiences to buy my product if they like it!"