Talk:Bill Withers

message: Since when did Lockheed assemble Boeing 747s? The cited source simply state he assembled toilets for jumbo jets. Nothing about Boeing or Lockheeds...  --mristroph 5 December 2007
: The stringent requirements imposed by an aircraft's function of flying and the relative irrelevance of what's inside mean that the fates of airliner-sized planes will inevitably be as polymorphic as those of A4 or 8½×11 sheets of paper, which come from very few companies but become pictures or letters or adds, in many scripts, and in black and white or red and white or full color. In addition to building (exclusively?) military aircraft that it designed, Lockheed was probably, for instance, the prime contractor for most or all of the AWACS aircraft, most or all of which are packed into airframes developed for sale primarily to the passenger airline and air-freight industries. (See that article for pictures of AWACS with either "737" or "767" in their names.) It would be surprising if, in filling "jumbo jet" tin cans with electronics likely to dwarf the cost of a commercial airliner, Lockheed would not meet the need for toilet facilities by (possibly) hiring people, or (more likely) subcontracting companies, to "assemble" them (the heads, not the planes) "for Lockheed".  --Jerzy•t 17:49, 23 April 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: Lockheed/Boeing

message: I have added POV and Cite-Sources banners to this article for the following reasons:
-This article displays not only biographical facts but also motivations (he refused to give up his job at Ford because of his belief) without citing sources.  This is to be avoided in all articles as per Wikipedia guidelines but especially in biographical articles where it may be construed as libel.
-This article uses very charged words and phrases to describe Mr. Withers (one of the best live albums to be released during the 1970s; one of the most significant and respected singer/songwriters of the 20th Century).  These type of statements are merely the opinion of the writer and are not verifiable.
Âme Errante 15:07, 29 November 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: POV / Sources

message: I personally have enjoyed his songs.  "Lovely Day" is striking for his being able to hold that note so long, but I digress.  The statement about his popularity increasing as a result of the use of his songs in commercials seems subjective.  His songs may be more "visible," but to say that his popularity has increased seems more "opinional" in nature.65.82.105.98 17:53, 30 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Popularity

message: Strongly disagree with the section on covers and sampling being labeled "trivial at best". It's fair that the list of covers of "Ain't No Sunshine" and "Use Me" be moved to the song articles (they are actually already well-covered there), but removing the section entirely slights Withers's legacy as a songwriter and an influence on later generations. Likewise, his music has been used as a substrate for hip-hop songs so often and so prominently that it is entirely germane to document the profound sampling legacy of his music. An at least partial restore of this section is in order. Chubbles (talk) 17:54, 26 November 2009 (UTC)
replies: text: If you agree that the list of cover songs/samples can easily be included in the respective song articles, what else is left to include from that section? All it seems to be is a list of people who covered or sampled his songs, there's no mention of his legacy, influence on later generations or anything of that nature in that section. There's also no slight to Withers because his many accomplishments and honors are all discussed in the article. The article also includes mentions of notable cover versions/samples of his songs that either charted well or won an award. The only thing that I can see that should be restored from that section is the mention of Al Jarreau's tribute album. Pinkadelica♣ 19:13, 26 November 2009 (UTC)
replies: text: A few of the songs have articles which have lists of covers; not all, by far. The lists are demonstrations of his legacy, and the fact that the article may have a brief prose overview of his awards and honors doesn't replace the significant amount of information lost in that mass cut. I don't have a problem with moving to song articles what makes sense to move there, but not all of this makes sense to move, and cutting it all out vastly impoverishes the article and robs it of a great deal of encyclopedic information. Chubbles (talk) 01:13, 30 November 2009 (UTC)
thread_title: Legacy section

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thread_title:  External links modified 

message: Multiple articles are saying that he died on March 30.
https://www.wsoctv.com/news/trending/bill-withers-lean-me-aint-no-sunshine-singer-dies-81/7WXSYRTPARB5PBAMHOYAJYKEOI/
https://apnews.com/e19138ee60f29a319e45bcfba3e39331?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_medium=AP&utm_source=Twitter MikaelaArsenault (talk) 14:41, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Quite so.  I've pointed this out to the editor who keeps changing it to April 3 - which was the date it was announced.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 14:44, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Death date 

message: This honor should be added under the Honors section: Bill Withers received an honorary doctorate in music from West Virginia University at the 2017 College of Creative Arts commencement ceremony. 2601:545:C700:8C30:694A:C36F:8AF6:D964 (talk) 14:41, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Now added.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 16:19, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Semi-protected edit request on 3 April 2020 

message: His date of death says April 3,2020 which is wrong. He died March 30. The copy in the content does say March 30 which is right. 2001:569:BC50:7400:39D8:4075:4E5:4472 (talk) 14:44, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Now corrected.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 14:51, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Semi-protected edit request on 3 April 2020 

message: Change "William Harrison Withers Jr. (born July 4, 1938)[1] is an American former singer-songwriter and musician who performed and recorded from 1970 until 1985" to ""William Harrison Withers Jr. (born July 4, 1938)[1] was an American former singer-songwriter and musician who performed and recorded from 1970 until 1985"" 2A00:23C4:BB8F:2A00:14A3:7E3:2527:21F9 (talk) 15:05, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: That change was made some time ago.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 15:20, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Semi-protected edit request on 3 April 2020 

message: July 4, 1938 - April 3, 2020 was an American...... 50.29.237.203 (talk) 15:19, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: No, he died on March 30 - check your sources.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 15:23, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Semi-protected edit request on 3 April 2020 

message: sadly someone need to edit the beginning of this article 2A01:CB08:8BE:AA00:55A3:2C0D:E85C:FAA9 (talk) 15:22, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Done.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 16:07, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  death 

message: Died  March 30 2020  2601:845:8100:3A0:150A:FE4F:CF0:C25A (talk) 15:21, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Done.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 15:23, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Semi-protected edit request on 3 April 2020 

message: Bill Withers is reported to have died.   Jporgan (talk) 17:56, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Yes, we know.  Try refreshing your browser.  Ghmyrtle (talk) 18:00, 3 April 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Semi-protected edit request on 3 April 2020 

message: Why isn't there a page about the last album ???  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.238.226.27 (talk) 17:57, 4 April 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  last album 

message: Prefer to change "Withers is interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills)." to "Withers is interred in Los Angeles." GWMBm1997 (talk) 00:32, 16 May 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Not done: please provide reliable sources that support the change you want to be made. GoingBatty (talk) 01:16, 16 May 2020 (UTC)

text: I know we can't use findagrave.com, but this seems quite convincing? It's supported by Daily Mail, but of course we can't use that either. GWMBm1997, do you have evidence that he's buried elsewhere in Los Angeles? Thanks. Martinevans123 (talk) 08:04, 16 May 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Semi-protected edit request on 16 May 2020 

message: Was going to fix it but the article is protected for some reason. But his first release was 1967, in fact one could argue that his career began in 1965.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.72.207.36 (talk) 23:22, 29 December 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Years active should begin 1967 

message: i read online that he was inspired to write "aint no sunshine" in part due to the movie "the days of wine and roses" 
At the time of the song’s recording, Withers was working at a factory making toilet seats for Boeing 747 planes and he was inspired to write the song after watching the film Days of Wine and Roses.
    "Sometimes you miss things that weren’t particularly good for you. It’s just something that crossed my mind from watching that movie, and probably something else that happened in my life that I’m not aware of."
    Bill Withers
finding a source for this, and this quote, would add to article. i know, why dont i do it myself. im sort of done with editing for now. sorry, just not in that space anymore. 50.193.19.66 (talk) 18:00, 20 September 2022 (UTC)
thread_title: source?