That's The Way God Planned It - Billy Preston

Vinyl L.P • Apple Records • ST-3359.

1969 • U.S.A.

Produced by George Harrison

Back cover

Labels.

Billy Preston

Liner notes:

SIDE ONE

Do what you want (Preston)

I want to thank you * (Preston)

Everything’s all right (Preston/Troy)

She belongs to me (Dylan) **

It doesn’t matter (Preston)

Morning Star (W C Handy/David) ***

SIDE TWO

Hey brother  ✝* (Preston-Kirkland)

What about you? (Preston)

Let us all get together now (Preston; Troy)

This is it (Preston/Troy)

Keep it to yourself * (Preston)

That’s the way God planned it (parts 1 & 2) (Preston)

“Morning Star” strings by John Barham

All numbers published by Apple Publishing Ltd. (ASCAP)

except: ✝* Beechwood Music Corp. (BMI).

** Warner Brothers-Seven Arts a (ASCAP)

*** Comet Music Corp. (ASCAP)

Remix Engineer: Glyn Johns

Recording first published 1969

Produced by George Harrison

* Produced by Wayne Shuler

Billy Preston is the best thing to happen to Apple this year. He’s young and beautiful and kind and he sings and plays like the son of God.

Born in Houston, Texas and raised in Los Angéles, Billy discovered the piano at three and started playing organ at six. His mother played in the church choir, and this gospel background influenced him until much later in life. At ten, Billy made his film debut. ’’I played in a movie with Nat ‘King’ Cole, Ella Fitzgerald and Pearl Bailey. Nat was playing W. C. Handy the New Orleans Musician and I played him as a little boy. The movie was called ‘St. Louis Blues’.’’

“When I did a tour in 1962 with Little Richard — we kicked off in England doing shows with Sam Cooke that was the first time I’d played rock ‘n’ roll. Up to then, I'd been playing only gospel music, and Richard thought it was to be a gospel tour. But everyone wanted the old rock ‘n’ roll bit and so we played it,’’ he says. “‘I joined James Cleveland who works with choirs and groups. He’s sort of the Ray Charles of gospel.’’

“Later I formed my own group and we did mostly Ray Charles numbers. Then I met him at the ‘Shindig’ T.V. Show in California where I was standing in for him during rehearsals. After the actual performance, I sang ‘Georgia’ for him and a couple of days, later he called me and we joined up.”’ Preston played on many Ray Charles singles including ‘Let’s Go Get Stoned’, ‘In the Heat of the Night’ and the LP ‘Cryin’ Time’ adding a new lead to his recording career that produced three solo. Billy Preston albums”’ ‘Sixteen Year Old Soul’. ‘The Most Electrifying Organ Ever’.

Touring with the Ray Charles band, Billy had his owns ‘The Wildest Organ Ever’ and solo spot and Ray Charles would introduce him as ‘The Young man that anytime I leave this business I want him to take over what I started’. 

With Charles Billy toured America, Europe, and Australia and he finally brought him to England for a Televisión show with the band.

It was then he decided to telephone Apple.

And that was the beginning of some mammoth recording sessions with the Beatles which included his playing on their new album, as well as on ‘Get Back’. “One day the Beatles said they'd like me on Apple’

Doodling on a typewriter, Billy wrote:

“Music is my life and everyday I live it, and it’s a Good life to everything I want to say through music it gets to you. I may not be the best around but I’m surely not the worst. I learned to play and sing singg, the age of three, you don’t know how glad I am God laid his hands on me. Apple is the Company for all people that know where it s at and love peace love joy and all mankind. I am very grateful to be a part of it. It won’t be long before we change the whole system that holds and keeps the artist’s mind messed up. All thanks must be given to the fab Beatles. People should realize that what they have gone through has not been in vain and they are using it to the best of their ability.”’

That’s all. Just fill your heads with sounds.

Derek Taylor