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Billy Vaughn

American singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, arranger, conductor, choral and orchestral leader, born 12 April 1919, Glasgow, Kentucky, USA, died 26 September 1991, Escondido, California, USA. Known as "Billy" from a very early age and began his musical career as a pianist in the Western Kentucky student group [url=http://www.discogs.com/artist/Hilltoppers,+The] The Hilltoppers[/url], who took their name from the local college basketball team. Vaughn was the songwriter of the foursome, performing along with lead singer [a=Jimmy Sacca] and harmonizers [a=Donald McGuire] and [a=Seymour Spiegelman]. After recording a song, "Trying", that had some regional airplay success it got to the attention of [a=Randy Wood] who signed the quartet to [l=Dot Records] and re-recorded the song in 1952 (Dot 15018). This single was a slow mover but, after an appearance on US TV's Ed Sullivan Show, it eventually peaked at #7 on the national pop charts. The group had a subsequent success with [url=http://www.discogs.com/release/1331473]"P.S. I Love You"[/url] that climbed to #4 in the charts in 1953. Vaughn left the group in 1954 to pursue a career in orchestral arrangement, working as the musical director for Dot Records in Tennessee and as the leader of an orchestra which provided backing for a host of vocal acts over the years, such as the [url=http://www.discogs.com/artist/Fontane+Sisters,+The]Fontane Sisters[/url], [a=Gale Storm], [a=Nick Todd] and [a=Pat Boone]. [a=Billy Vaughn And His Orchestra] also released a number of recordings in their own right, mostly covering popular chart hits. In 1965 Vaughn['s orchestra did a number of successful sell-out tours, encompassing Brazil, Korea and Japan. Vaughn died aged 72 of mesothelioma in 1991 at Palomar Hospital, Escondido, California.