Billy Williams

William Holt Williams (born Richard Isaac Banks; 3 March 1878 – 13 March 1915) was an Australian-born British vaudeville and music hall singer and entertainer. His best known song was "When Father Papered the Parlour".
Born in Melbourne, the son of Richard Banks, an Irish-born draper, Williams worked in a racing stable and as a golf instructor before joining a small touring variety company in 1895. Back in Melbourne he was heard by the entertainer Tom Woottwell, and met Harry Rickards, who gave him a letter of introduction to contacts in England.
He arrived in England in late 1899, and made his London debut the following March, as Will Williams. He started appearing in a velvet suit, usually blue in colour, which distinguished him from other performers and led to his description as "The Man in the Velvet Suit". He became a popular entertainer in the music halls singing what were known as chorus-songs. His best-known songs included "Let's All Go Mad", "John, John, Go and Put Your Trousers On", and "When Father Papered the Parlour". Encouraged by his Melbourne-born contemporary Florrie Forde, he made his first recordings in 1906, and over the next eight years recorded prolifically on cylinder and disc. He was one of the first recording stars whose records sold in their thousands. His version of "When Father Papered the Parlour", written by R. P. Weston and Fred J. Barnes, was issued by at least thirty different record labels. He also appeared in pantomime.
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==Link to Peel==
On his 06 May 1985 (BBC World Service) show, Peel played a track from the Very Things covering Billy Williams' When Father Papered The Parlour, but the first known track from Billy Williams himself played by Peel was on his 30 September 1995 show, when members of Pulp were visiting Peel Acres and he asked them to choose a record from a bunch of 78's that was lying in a room, to play. The record played turned out to be Billy Williams' 'Let's All Go Mad. It was only until the early 00's, that Peel started to play quite regularly his songs, especially during the Pig's Big 78.
==Shows Played==
;thumb|220x220px1995
*30 September 1995: 'Let's All Go Mad (78 rpm)' (Cinch)
;2000
*15 November 2000: 'Let's Have A Song Upon The Graphophone (78)' (Pig's Big 78)
;2001
*25 January 2001: Come Into The Garden John (Pig's Big 78) 
;2003
*11 December 2003: Where Does Daddy Go When He Goes Out? (78) Zonophone (Pig's Big 78)
;2004
*10 February 2004: 'Why Can't We Have The Sea in London' (Pig's Big 78)
== See Also ==
* The Collection (Peel Acres - Jarvis Cocker): Let's All Go Mad (Cinch) {snippet}
==External Links==
*Wikipedia
*Discogs
Category:Artists