Charles Wayne "Chuck" Day (August 5, 1942 – March 10, 2008), also known as Bing Day, was an American

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

and

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...

man from the South Side of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Biography

His musical talents began to develop at age 3, and at age 15, he recorded the single "Pony Tail Partner" under the name Bing Day at

Federal Records Federal Records was an American record label founded in 1950 as a subsidiary of Syd Nathan's King Records and based in Cincinnati, Ohio. It was run by famed record producer Ralph Bass and was mainly devoted to Rhythm & Blues releases. The comp ...

(1957). Day recorded several singles over the next ten years as 'Bing Day' and, also, 'Ford Hopkins'. He moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, in 1965 and began a career as one of the most listened to "unknown" artists in

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

. He became bassist with

Johnny Rivers Johnny Rivers (born John Henry Ramistella; November 7, 1942) is an American musician. His repertoire includes pop, folk, blues, and old-time rock 'n' roll. Rivers charted during the 1960s and 1970s but remains best known for a string of hit sing ...

' Band. Day invented the signature lead guitar

riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompani ...

afterward used by Rivers in " Secret Agent Man". Day worked with

the Mamas and the Papas The Mamas & the Papas were a folk rock vocal group formed in Los Angeles, California, which recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968. The group was a defining force in the music scene of the counterculture of the 1960s. The group consisted of A ...

in 1967, again as bassist, also playing as second guitarist on "

Monday, Monday "Monday, Monday" is a 1966 song written by John Phillips and recorded by the Mamas & the Papas, using background instruments played by members of the Wrecking Crew for their 1966 album ''If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears''. It was the group ...

" and "

California Dreamin' "California Dreamin'" is a song written by John Phillips and Michelle Phillips and first recorded by Barry McGuire. The best-known version is by the Mamas & the Papas, who sang backup on the original version and released it as a single in 196 ...

". During the 1970s and 1980s, Day played on numerous recordings including

Shel Silverstein Sheldon Allan Silverstein (; September 25, 1930 – May 10, 1999) was an American writer, poet, cartoonist, singer / songwriter, musician, and playwright. Born and raised in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, Silverstein briefly attended universit ...

's ''Freaker's Ball''. He also wrote for the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

of ''

Fritz the Cat ''Fritz the Cat'' is a comic strip created by Robert Crumb. Set in a "supercity" of anthropomorphic animals, it focused on Fritz, a feline con artist who frequently went on wild adventures that sometimes involved sexual escapades. Crumb began d ...

'' and performed with musicians

Luther Tucker Luther Tucker (January 20, 1936 – June 18, 1993) was an American blues guitarist. While soft-spoken and shy, Tucker made his presence known through his unique and clearly recognizable guitar style. Tucker helped to define the music known as ...

and

Merl Saunders Merl Saunders (February 14, 1934 – October 24, 2008) was an American multi-genre musician who played piano and keyboards, favoring the Hammond B-3 console organ. Biography Born in San Mateo, California, United States, Saunders attended Polyte ...

. Day formed his own band in 1986. Day resided in

Fairfax, California Fairfax is an incorporated town in Marin County, California, United States. Fairfax is located west-northwest of San Rafael, at an elevation of . The population was 7,605 at the 2020 census. History The Coast Miwok Native Americans occupied ...

from 1969, and continued to play locally in the San Rafael area of California until he was taken ill in January 2007. After three months of care at

Marin General Hospital Marin (French) or Marín (Spanish "sailor") may refer to: People * Marin (name), including a list of persons with the given name or surname * MaRin, in-game name of professional South Korean ''League of Legends'' player Jang Gyeong-hwan (born 19 ...

, he was admitted to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital before being relocated to

District Hospital A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

Healdsburg Healdsburg is a city located in Sonoma County, in California's Wine Country. At the 2010 census, the city had a population of 11,254. Owing to its three most important wine-producing regions (the Russian River, Dry Creek, and Alexander Valle ...

, where he remained until his death on March 10, 2008. A memorial and parade was held in Fairfax for Day on March 22, 2008. After his death, it was revealed he was the biological father of Owen Vanessa Elliot, the daughter of singer

Cass Elliot Ellen Naomi Cohen (September 19, 1941 – July 29, 1974), known professionally as Mama Cass and later on as Cass Elliot, was an American singer and voice actress. She was a member of the singing group the Mamas & the Papas. After the group brok ...

the Mamas and The Papas The Mamas & the Papas were a folk rock vocal group formed in Los Angeles, California, which recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968. The group was a defining force in the music scene of the counterculture of the 1960s. The group consisted of A ...

Discography

Solo releases

* "Pony Tail Partner" / "Since You Left Me" - Federal Records (1957) as Bing Day * "Rain Silver Dollar" / "Dancing Puppets" - Fraternity Records (1958) as Bing Day With Danny Bell And The Bell Hops * "Poor Stagger Lee" -

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

(1958) * "Mama's Place" / "I Can't Help It" -

(1959) as Bing Day * "Mary's Place" / "How Do I Do It" - Mercury Records (1959) as Bing Day * "Ya Fine, Fine, Fine" -

Apex Records Apex Records was a Canadian record label owned by the Compo Company which lasted as late as 1980. Compo established the Apex label in July 1921 in Toronto. It released American recordings from Okeh Records and Gennett Records, among others. It al ...

(1959) as Ford Hopkins * "How Do I Do It" - Mercury Records (1960) * "She Was Not My Kind" - Apex Records (1961) * "Memphis Tennessee" - Cameo/Parkway Records (1966) * "We Gotta Get Outta this Place" - Fraternity Records (1967)

With
Johnny Rivers Johnny Rivers (born John Henry Ramistella; November 7, 1942) is an American musician. His repertoire includes pop, folk, blues, and old-time rock 'n' roll. Rivers charted during the 1960s and 1970s but remains best known for a string of hit sing ...
(1965)

* "Here We GoGo Again" * "Rivers Rocks the Folk"

With
The Mamas & the Papas The Mamas & the Papas were a folk rock vocal group formed in Los Angeles, California, which recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968. The group was a defining force in the music scene of the counterculture of the 1960s. The group consisted of Am ...
(1965-1966)

* "

" - Second Guitar * "

" - Second Guitar

With The Young Gyants (1968)

* "Tom Dooley" / "We Gotta Get Out Of This Place" - Parkway * "Memphis" / "It Hurts So Bad" - Cameo-Parkway (1964)

With
Shel Silverstein Sheldon Allan Silverstein (; September 25, 1930 – May 10, 1999) was an American writer, poet, cartoonist, singer / songwriter, musician, and playwright. Born and raised in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, Silverstein briefly attended universit ...
(1971)

* '' Freakin' At The Freaker's Ball''

The Chuck Day Band (1997)

* ''Desperate Measures''

With Steven Wolf (2006)

* ''20th Century Wolf, Volume I'' **Day co-wrote "You Don't Love Me Anymore" with Steven Wolf and Annie McIntyre; played lead guitar on the 2006 recording of the song.

Soundtracks

''
Fritz the Cat ''Fritz the Cat'' is a comic strip created by Robert Crumb. Set in a "supercity" of anthropomorphic animals, it focused on Fritz, a feline con artist who frequently went on wild adventures that sometimes involved sexual escapades. Crumb began d ...
''

* "House Rock" * "Winston"

''
Switchblade Sisters ''Switchblade Sisters'' is a 1975 American exploitation action film detailing the lives of high school-aged female gang members. It was directed by Jack Hill and stars Joanne Nail, Robbie Lee and Monica Gayle. The film is also known as ''The Jeze ...
''

* "Full Track"

''
Blacula ''Blacula'' is a 1972 American blaxploitation horror film directed by William Crain. It stars William Marshall in the title role about an 18th-century African prince named Mamuwalde, who is turned into a vampire (and later locked in a coffin) b ...
''

* "Black Girl"

'' One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest''

* played the

waterphone A waterphone (also ocean harp) is a type of inharmonic acoustic tuned idiophone consisting of a stainless steel resonator ''bowl'' or ''pan'' with a cylindrical ''neck'' and bronze rods of different lengths and diameters around the rim of the bowl ...

Television and video

* Sleazy Arms Hotel with

Jim Gabbert James Gabbert (born 1936 in Chico, California) is a radio and television engineer and entrepreneur, California Broadcasters Association 1994 Broadcaster of the Year, and past president of the National Radio Broadcasters Association. He has owned ...

(1998) * Pacifica Public Access (1998) * Zone Music Local Showcase (1998) * Boney Maroni Promotional - Lifesigns Photo (2000) * various Lifesigns Photo video (2000 to present) * numerous commercial voice-overs including "Fall into the Gap" and "Member FDIC"

Other projects

* Chuck Day and the Burning Sensations * Fairfax Tavernacle Choir * The Dori Green/Dave Bergman Show * The 19 Broadway Swing Band * The Chuck and Sam Duet

References

External links

Chuck Day and the Burning Sensations website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Day, Chuck 1942 births 2008 deaths American blues guitarists American rhythm and blues guitarists American male guitarists American blues singers American blues singer-songwriters Singers from Chicago Soul-blues musicians 20th-century American singers 20th-century American guitarists People from Fairfax, California Guitarists from Chicago 20th-century American male musicians American male singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Illinois Singer-songwriters from California