1. Billie Keith Hughes was an American singer, recording artist, songwriter, musician, and record producer.
27 Facts About Billie Hughes
1. 2.
Billie Hughes is best known for his successful artist career in Japan, lead vocalist of his band Lazarus and his collaboration with Roxanne Seeman writing songs for Philip Bailey, Phil Collins, Bette Midler, The Jacksons, The Sisters Of Mercy, Wink, and for his songs in film and television.
3.
Billie Hughes was awarded the Japan Gold Disc Award for International Single of the Year in 1992 at the NHK Grand Prix Japan Gold Disc Awards.
4.
Billie Hughes Keith was raised in a religious family moving from city to city.
5.
Billie Hughes's father, Billie Wayne, was a minister, elder and education director of the Church of Christ in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Denver, Colorado, and Marble Falls, Texas.
6.
Billie Wayne Hughes wrote "Studying Angels" and taught three classes on angels at the Abilene Christian University.
7.
Billie Hughes was offered a scholarship to Boston University as a violinist, but turned it down.
8.
Billie Hughes was the first chair violinist in the Abilene Christian College Orchestra and a member of the Abilene Christian College Acapella Choir.
9.
Billie Hughes co-founded another popular campus singing group called the Blue Sky Investment.
10.
Billie Hughes composed original arrangements of songs from the Beatles repertoire for Blue Sky Investment performances opening a series of shows by ACC talent on April 4,1968.
11.
Billie Hughes began his recording career as leader of the group Lazarus.
12.
In 1976, as lead singer along with Lazarus, Bill Billie Hughes won the Clio Award for "Life Savers" Best Commercial of the Year which ran nine years nationwide.
13.
Billie Hughes was the first recording artist signed by the Canadian affiliate of CBS to receive a guaranteed American release and full tour support.
14.
Billie Hughes shared his intention of setting up his residence in Canada and applying for Canadian citizenship and spoke of his plans to record in Los Angeles in the following months.
15.
In Toronto, Billie Hughes met and recorded background vocals for Anne Murray on the title track of her Let's Keep It That Way album in 1978.
16.
Billie Hughes performed "Now And Forever" with Anne Murray at the American Music Awards in 1986.
17.
Dream Master was released in 1979 and re-released in Osaka, Japan in 1982 when Billie Hughes was performing in Osaka.
18.
In 1982 Billie Hughes met Roxanne Seeman and began a collaborative relationship writing songs together.
19.
Later that year, Billie Hughes took an offer to perform live as a solo artist in a club in Osaka, Japan where he met Jiroh Gotoh of Kamifusen and began plans for recording a Kamifusen album in Santa Monica, California.
20.
Billie Hughes continued in partnership with Roxanne Seeman recording, producing, and writing songs for film, television, and records including songs produced by Phil Collins, Arif Mardin, Michael Omartian, George Duke and Reggie Lucas and recorded by Philip Bailey, The Jacksons, Bette Midler, The Sisters Of Mercy, Randy Crawford, Al Jarreau, Melissa Manchester, and the No 1 charting Japanese duo Wink, among others.
21.
In 1990, Billie Hughes wrote "Welcome to the Edge" with Roxanne Seeman and Dominic Messinger, for the daytime TV drama Santa Barbara.
22.
Billie Hughes wrote the song "Martin Eden" with Italian composers Ruggero Cini and Dario Farina.
23.
Billie Hughes performed the songs "Stay Gold" written by Stevie Wonder with Carmine Coppola and "The Outside In" written by Carmine Coppola, Italia Pennino and Roxanne Seeman on The Outsiders.
24.
Billie Hughes performed the song "I Wanna Yell" written and produced by Billie Hughes and Seeman for the montage scene of Little Monsters.
25.
Billie Hughes performed the song "Magic Of The Night", written and produced by Mike Piccarillo, for the movie.
26.
Billie Hughes died on July 3,1998, of a heart attack in Los Angeles.
27.
Billie Hughes was survived by his parents, two daughters and his partner, Roxanne Seeman.