Bill Coday
b. 10 May 1942, Coldwater, Mississippi, USA. Coday is one of those revered soulmen about whom little is known but whose limited number of recordings are of an extremely high standard. Although born in Mississippi, he was raised near Blytheville, Arkansas and, while still in high school, sang with a band that included future blues-man Son Seals. In 1963, Coday moved to Chicago, and in 1969 was ‘discovered’ by blues/soul singer, and then Crajon label-owner, Denise LaSalle, while performing at the Black Orchid club under the name of Chicago Willie. At that time, LaSalle was recording for the Westbound label at the Royal Recording Studios in Memphis, under Willie Mitchell's production, with the same musicians and arrangers who regularly worked there for the Hi label, and it was there that Coday cut most of the material for his four Crajon singles. Sixty Minute Teaser, a fine bluesy number, was followed by the ballad You're Gonna Want Me; but Get Your Lie Straight was a superb mid-pacer, with Coday's potent delivery backed by the formidable Hi rhythm section. The latter track was later picked up by Galaxy, and led to two more good Coday singles for that label notably When You Find A Fool, Bump His Head (1971). In 1972, Coday's final release for Crajon, I'm Back To Collect, was coupled with a fine re-working of O.V. Wright's deep Jury Of Love (8 Men, 4 Women), which was also cut at the Royal Studios. Four other previously unissued Coday sides appeared in the '80s on a now very rare Japanese Vivid Sound album, which also included the best of his released material. After Galaxy, Coday recorded a good single, I Don't Want To Play This Game, for Epic in 1975, which later featured on that label's LOST SOUL compilation album. Bill Coday still performs occasionally and appeared with Denise LaSalle at an Utrecht Blues Festival in late 1992. As Coday's recorded work has traditionally been very hard to come by, collectors might like to note that You're Gonna Want Me appeared on the 1992 UK Ace CD compilation of Galaxy masters ALL NIGHT LONG THEY PLAYED THE BLUES, four other of his Crajon/Galaxy tracks are on the 1993 UK Ace compilation BAD, BAD WHISKEY and his 1975 Epic LOST SOUL set is repeated on a 1994 part reissue of that collection under the same title from US Sony/Legacy.