William Allen Mays (born February 5, 1944), known professionally as Bill Mays, is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

pianist from Sacramento, California.

Biography

Mays came from a musical family and at the age of 15 became interested in jazz at an Earl Hines concert. From 1969 to the early 1980s Mays worked as a studio session musician in Los Angeles. He has been an accompanist to singers

Al Jarreau Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and musician. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and R ...

Peggy Lee Norma Deloris Egstrom (May 26, 1920 – January 21, 2002), known professionally as Peggy Lee, was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress, over a career spanning seven decades. From her beginning as a vocalis ...

Anita O'Day Anita Belle Colton (October 18, 1919 – November 23, 2006), known professionally as Anita O'Day, was an American jazz singer and self proclaimed “song stylist” widely admired for her sense of rhythm and dynamics, and her early big band a ...

, Frank Sinatra, Sarah Vaughan and

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick (; born December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. Warwick ranks among the 40 biggest U.S. hit makers between 1955 and 1999, based on her chart history on ''Billboards Hot 100 pop singles ch ...

, and also worked with artists such as

Don Ellis Donald Johnson Ellis (July 25, 1934 – December 17, 1978) was an American jazz trumpeter, drummer, composer, and bandleader. He is best known for his extensive musical experimentation, particularly in the area of time signatures. Later in his li ...

Mel Lewis Melvin Sokoloff (May 10, 1929 – February 2, 1990), known professionally as Mel Lewis, was an American jazz drummer, session musician, professor, and author. He received fourteen Grammy Award nominations. Biography Early years Lewis was ...

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

Shelly Manne Sheldon "Shelly" Manne (June 11, 1920 – September 26, 1984) was an American jazz drummer. Most frequently associated with West Coast jazz, he was known for his versatility and also played in a number of other styles, including Dixieland, ...

Bob Mintzer Robert Alan Mintzer (born January 27, 1953) is an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band leader. Early life Mintzer was born and raised in a Jewish family in New Rochelle, New York, on January 27, 1953. He attended the Inter ...

Red Mitchell Keith Moore "Red" Mitchell (September 20, 1927 – November 8, 1992) was an American jazz double-bassist, composer, lyricist, and poet. Biography Mitchell was born in New York City. His younger brother, Whitey Mitchell, also became a jazz ...

Gerry Mulligan Gerald Joseph Mulligan (April 6, 1927 – January 20, 1996), also known as Jeru, was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer and arranger. Though primarily known as one of the leading jazz baritone saxophonists—playing the instrum ...

Art Pepper Arthur Edward Pepper Jr. (September 1, 1925 – June 15, 1982) was an American alto saxophonist and very occasional tenor saxophonist and clarinetist. Active in West Coast jazz, Pepper came to prominence in Stan Kenton's big band. He was known ...

Bud Shank Clifford Everett "Bud" Shank Jr. (May 27, 1926 – April 2, 2009) was an American alto saxophonist and flautist. He rose to prominence in the early 1950s playing lead alto and flute in Stan Kenton's Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra and thr ...

Bobby Shew Bobby Shew (born March 4, 1941) is an American jazz trumpet and flugelhorn player. Biography He was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. After leaving college in 1960, Shew was drafted into the U.S. Army and played trumpet and toured ...

Sonny Stitt Edward Hammond Boatner Jr. (February 2, 1924 – July 22, 1982), known professionally as Sonny Stitt, was an American jazz saxophonist of the bebop/ hard bop idiom. Known for his warm tone, he was one of the best-documented saxophonists of hi ...

Paul Winter Paul Winter (born August 31, 1939) is an American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. He is a pioneer of world music and earth music, which interweaves the voices of the wild with instrumental voices from classical, jazz and world music. The ...

Phil Woods Philip Wells Woods (November 2, 1931 – September 29, 2015) was an American jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, bandleader, and composer. Biography Woods was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. After inheriting a saxophone at age 12, he began ...

and

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by nonconformity, free-form improvisation, sound experiments, musical virtuosity and satire of A ...

. In 1984, he moved to New York City and began to do more work as a bandleader, composer, and arranger. He has recorded over three dozen albums under his own name, and has been heard on hundreds more by others.

Discography

As leader

* ''A Musical Cocktail: The Music of Cole Porter'' (MCR, 1976) * ''Two of a Mind'' with

(ITI, 1983) * ''Tha's Delights'' with Shelly Manne, Andy Simpkins, Ralph Moore, Tom Harrell (Trend, 1985) * ''One to One'' with

Ray Drummond Ray Drummond (born November 23, 1946 in Brookline, Massachusetts) is an American jazz bassist and teacher. He also has an MBA from Stanford University, hence his linkage to the Stanford Jazz Workshop. He can be heard on hundreds of albums and ...

(DMP, 1990) * ''One to One 2'' with Ray Drummond (DMP, 1991) * ''Kaleidoscope'' with Peter Sprague, Dick Oatts, Harvie Swartz, Jeff Hirshfield (The Jazz Alliance, 1992) * ''Live At Maybeck - Concord Duo Series Volume Seven'' with

Ed Bickert Edward Isaac Bickert, (November 29, 1932 – February 28, 2019) was a Canadian guitarist who played mainstream jazz and swing music. Bickert worked professionally from the mid-1950s to 2000, mainly in the Toronto area. His international reputati ...

(Concord Jazz, 1994) * ''Live At Maybeck'' (Concord Jazz, 1995) * ''An Ellington Affair'' with Lewis Nash, John Goldsby(Concord Jazz, 1995) * ''Mays in Manhattan'' with Marvin Stamm, Ed Neumeister, Jon Gordon, Sean Smith, Tim Horner (Concord Jazz, 1996) * ''Out in Pa.'' with Matt Wilson, Martin Wind(No Blooze Music, 1999) * ''By Ourselves'' with

Marvin Stamm Marvin Louis Stamm (born May 23, 1939) is an American jazz trumpeter. Career Stamm was born in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Stamm began on trumpet at age twelve. He attended North Texas State University, where he was a member of the O ...

(Marstam, 2000) * ''Summer Sketches'' (Palmetto, 2001) * ''Going Home'' (Palmetto, 2003) * ''Bick's Bag'' with

Neil Swainson Neil James Sinclair Swainson (born November 15, 1955) is a Canadian jazz bassist. Swainson started his career in Victoria, British Columbia, when he supported visiting American musicians such as Herb Ellis, Barney Kessell, and Sonny Stitt. I ...

, Terry Clarke (Triplet, 2004) * ''Live at Jazz Standard'' (Palmetto, 2005) * ''Live at Birdland NYC'', Stamm/Soph Project (Jazzed Media, 2005) * ''Beyond the Red Door'' with Bud Shank (Jazzed Media, 2007) * ''Stuffy Turkey'' with Joe La Barbera, Mattias Svensson (Five Stars Records, 2009) * ''Blue Rondo a la Turk '' with Keisuke Ohta (Five Stars Records, 2009) * ''The Best Is Yet To Come '' with Joe La Barbera, Rwu Kawamura (Five Stars Records, 2010) * ''Mays at the Movies'' (SteepleChase, 2010) * ''Phil & Bill'' with Phil Woods (Palmetto, 2011) * ''Front Row Seat'' Solo (©Bill Mays, 2015) * ''Live at COTA'' (No Blooze Music, 2019) * ''Mays Plays Mays'' (No Blooze Music, 2019) With Inventions Trio * ''Fantasy'' (Palmetto, 2007) * ''Delaware River Suite'' (No Blooze Music, 2008) * ''Life's a Movie'' (Chiaroscuro, 2013) With Road Work Ahead * ''Night And Day'' (Trend, 1983) * ''On The Road Again'' (SBE, 1998) * ''Intersection'' (SBE, 2012)

As sideman

With

Carter Burwell Carter Benedict Burwell (born November 18, 1954) is an American film composer. He has consistently collaborated with the Coen brothers, having scored most of their films. Burwell has also scored three of Todd Haynes's films, three of Spike Jonz ...

* ''Gods and Monsters'' (RCA Victor/BMG, 1998) * ''The Man Who Wasn't There'' (Decca, 2001) * ''The Alamo'' (Hollywood, 2004) * ''Hail Caesar!'' (Back Lot/Universal 2016) With

Elliot Goldenthal Elliot Goldenthal (born May 2, 1954) is an American composer of contemporary classical music and film and theatrical scores. A student of Aaron Copland and John Corigliano, he is best known for his distinctive style and ability to blend variou ...

* ''Cobb'' (Sony Classical, 1994) * ''Interview with the Vampire'' (Geffen, 1994) * ''Sphere'' (Varese Sarabande, 1998) With

Benny Golson Benny Golson (born January 25, 1929) is an American bebop/ hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and arranger. He came to prominence with the big bands of Lionel Hampton and Dizzy Gillespie, more as a writer than a performer, before launc ...

* ''

California Message ''California Message'' is an album by saxophonist/composer Benny Golson that was recorded in 1980 and released on the Japanese Baystate label the following year. The album features trombonist Curtis Fuller, Golsons colleague from The Jazztet who al ...

'' (Baystate, 1981) * ''

One More Mem'ry ''One More Mem'ry'' is an album by saxophonist/composer Benny Golson that was recorded in 1981 and released on the Japanese Baystate label the following year. The album features trombonist Curtis Fuller and was reissued on the Dutch Timeless labe ...

'' (Baystate, 1982) * ''

One Day, Forever ''One Day, Forever'' is an album by saxophonist/composer Benny Golson that was recorded between 1996 and 2000 and released by the Arkadia Jazz label in 2001. Reception The AllMusic review by Ken Dryden said "Benny Golson has made many excellen ...

'' (Arkadia, 2001) With

Bob Magnusson Bob Magnusson (born February 24, 1947 in New York) is an American jazz bassist. Career Magnusson studied French horn for 12 years before switching to bass in 1967. He toured with Buddy Rich's Orchestra in 1968 and played with the San Diego Sympho ...

* ''Revelation'' (Discovery, 1979) * ''Two Generations of Music'' (Trend, 1982) With

* ''Even Now'' (Arista, 1978) * ''One Voice'' (Arista, 1979) * ''Barry'' (Arista, 1980) * ''If I Should Love Again'' (Arista, 1981) * ''I Wanna Do It with You'' (Arista, 1982) * ''2:00 AM Paradise Cafe'' (Arista, 1984) With

* ''Heritage'' (Concord Jazz, 1978) * ''Crystal Comments'' with

and

Alan Broadbent Alan Leonard Broadbent (born 23 April 1947) is a New Zealand jazz pianist, arranger, and composer known for his work with artists such as Sue Raney, Charlie Haden, Woody Herman, Chet Baker, Irene Kral, Sheila Jordan, Natalie Cole, Warne Marsh ...

(

Concord Jazz Concord Jazz is a record company and label founded in 1973 by Carl Jefferson, the former owner of Jefferson Motors Lincoln Mercury dealership in Concord, California. The label was named after the city in the East San Francisco Bay area, and the ...

, 1980) * ''Explorations: 1980'' with Bud Shank (Concord Concerto, 1980) * ''Silver Storm'' (Raw, 2000) * ''On the Trail'' (Raw, 2002) * ''Fascinating Rhythms'' (Jazzed Media, 2009) With

* ''Class Reunion'' (Sutra, 1980) * ''Outstanding in His Field'' (Inner City, 1980) * ''Play Song'' (Jazz Hounds, 1981) * ''Telepathy'' with

(Jazz Hounds, 1982) * ''Shewhorn'' (Pausa, 1986) With

* ''Bognor Regis'' (Dragonfly, 2006) * ''One Shot Deal'' (Zappa, 2008) * ''Orchestral Favorites 40th Anniversary'' (Zappa, 2019) With others * Sarah Vaughan, ''A Time in My Life'' (Mainstream, 1971) *

Percy Faith Percy Faith (April 7, 1908 – February 9, 1976) was a Canadian-American bandleader, orchestrator, composer and conductor, known for his lush arrangements of pop and Christmas standards. He is often credited with popularizing the "easy listeni ...

, ''Corazon'' (CBS, 1973) *

Jose Feliciano Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods. * Jose ben Abin *Jose ben Akabya * Jose the Galil ...

, ''Just Wanna Rock 'n' Roll'' (RCA Victor, 1975) *

Marlena Shaw Marlena Shaw (born Marlina Burgess, September 22, 1942) is an American jazz, blues and soul singer. Shaw began her singing career in the 1960s and is still singing today. Her music has often been sampled in hip hop music, and used in televisio ...

, ''Who Is This Bitch, Anyway?'' (Blue Note, 1975) * Maxine Weldon, ''Alone On My Own'' (Monument, 1975) *

Jaye P. Morgan Jaye P. Morgan (born Mary Margaret Morgan) is a retired American popular music singer, actress, and game show panelist. Early life Morgan was born in Mancos in Montezuma County in far southwestern Colorado. Her family moved to California by ...

, ''Jaye P. Morgan'' (Candor, 1976) *

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

, ''Andy'' (Columbia, 1976) *

Joe Harnell Joseph Harnell (August 2, 1924 – July 14, 2005) was an American composer, musician, and music arranger. Early life His father was a vaudeville performer who also played in jazz and klezmer ensembles. Harnell began playing piano at age six and ...

, ''Harnell'' (Capitol, 1977) *

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...

, ''Death of a Ladies' Man'' (Columbia, 1977) *

Lalo Schifrin Boris Claudio "Lalo" Schifrin (born June 21, 1932) is an Argentine-American pianist, composer, arranger and conductor. He is best known for his large body of film and TV scores since the 1950s, incorporating jazz and Latin American musical eleme ...

, ''

Rollercoaster A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are o ...

'' (MCA, 1977) *

Larry Gatlin Larry Wayne Gatlin (born May 2, 1948) is an American country and Southern gospel singer and songwriter. As part of a trio with his younger brothers Steve and Rudy, he achieved considerable success within the country music genre, performing on 3 ...

, ''Oh! Brother'' (Monument, 1978) *

The Manhattan Transfer The Manhattan Transfer is a Grammy award–winning vocal group founded in 1969 that has explored a cappella, vocalese, swing, standards, Brazilian jazz, rhythm and blues, and pop music. There have been two editions of the Manhattan Transfer, ...

, ''Extensions'' (Atlantic, 1979) *

, ''Dionne'' (Arista, 1979) *

Peter Sprague Peter Tripp Sprague (born October 11, 1955) is an American jazz guitarist, record producer, and audio engineer. He owns SpragueLand Studios and the label SBE Records. He invented a twin-neck guitar with one neck from a classical guitar and one ...

, ''The Path'' (Xanadu, 1980) *

Gordon Brisker Gordon Brisker (November 6, 1937 in Cincinnati, Ohio – September 10, 2004) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Brisker began on piano as a child, and studied reed instruments at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. He played with Ral ...

, ''Collective Consciousness'' (Sutra, 1981) * Mark Murphy, ''Bop for Kerouac'' (Muse, 1981) *

Howard Roberts Howard Mancel Roberts (October 2, 1929 – June 28, 1992) was an American jazz guitarist, educator, and session musician. Early years Roberts was born in Phoenix, Arizona to Damon and Vesta Roberts, and began playing guitar at the age of 8 - a ...

, ''Turning to Spring'' (Discovery, 1981) *

, ''Double Piano Jazz Quartet in Concert at Carmelo's'' (Trend, 1981) * Shelly Manne, ''Double Piano Jazz Quartet in Concert at Carmelo's Vol. 2'' (Trend, 1982) *

Freddie Hubbard Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played bebop, hard bop, and post-bop styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives f ...

, ''Ride Like the Wind'' (Elektra Musician, 1982) *

Beau Williams Beau Williams (born January 6, 1950) is an American gospel singer from Texas. Through Light Records he released an album ''Wonderful'', which reached a number two on the ''Billboard'' Gospel charts. Musical career Early years Williams grew up in ...

, ''Beau Williams'' (Capitol, 1982) *

Billy Preston William Everett Preston (September 2, 1946 – June 6, 2006) was an American keyboardist, singer and songwriter whose work encompassed R&B, rock, soul, funk, and gospel. Preston was a top session keyboardist in the 1960s, during which he b ...

, ''Pressin' On'' (Motown, 1982) * Peter Sprague, ''Bird Raga'' (Xanadu, 1983) *

Wilton Felder Wilton Lewis Felder (August 31, 1940 – September 27, 2015) was an American saxophone and bass player, and is best known as a founding member of the Jazz Crusaders, later known as The Crusaders. Felder played bass on the Jackson 5's hits "I Want ...

, ''Gentle Fire'' (MCA, 1983) *

Lew Tabackin Lewis Barry Tabackin (born March 26, 1940) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist and flutist. He is married to pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi with whom he has co-led large ensembles since the 1970s. Biography Tabackin started learning flute at age 1 ...

, ''My Old Flame'' (Atlas, 1983) * Michael Vlatkovich, ''9113 Michael Vlatkovich'' (Thank You Records, 1984) *

Morgana King Maria Grazia Morgana Messina (June 4, 1930 – March 22, 2018), known as Morgana King, was an American jazz singer and actress.Liner notes by Joel Dorn – Morgana King album ''The Complete Reprise Recordings'' (2000).Liner notes by Ed Osborne � ...

, ''Simply Eloquent'' (Muse, 1986) *

, ''Symphonic Dreams'' (PAR, 1987) * Mark Murphy, ''Beauty And The Beast'' (Muse, 1987) * Dianne Mower, ''A Song For You'' (Jazz City, 1990) *

Angelo Badalamenti Angelo Daniel Badalamenti (March 22, 1937 – December 11, 2022) was an American composer, best known for his work scoring films for director David Lynch, notably '' Blue Velvet'', the '' Twin Peaks'' saga (1990–1992, 2017), '' The Straight St ...

, ''Twin Peaks Fire Walk with Me'' (Warner Bros., 1992) *

Sherrie Maricle Sharon Lee "Sherrie" Maricle (born September 2, 1963, Buffalo, New York) is an American jazz drummer. Maricle's musical education began in the fourth grade when she started with the clarinet after being told that the trumpet was off-limits to gi ...

, ''Live Concert'' (LRC, 1993) *

Jill O'Hara Jill O'Hara (born August 23, 1947) is an American actress and singer. She was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Lead Actress in a Musical in 1969 for creating the role of Fran Kubelik in '' Promises, Promises'', a role made famous by Shirley ...

, ''Jill O'Hara'' (Sterling, 1993) *

Allen Mezquida Allen Mezquida is an illustrator, animator, jazz saxophonist and the founder oThe Jazz Dive an independent art studio at the intersection of jazz and mid-century modern design. The Jazz Dive sells original Jazz Art including fine art prints and canv ...

, ''A Good Thing'' (Trouser Down, 1993) * Martin Wind, ''Gone With The Wind'' (September, 1993) * Gerry Mulligan, ''Dream a Little Dream'' (Telarc, 1994) * Charles Cochran, ''Charles Cochran Meets Bill Mays'' (Audiophile, 2000) * Bruce Eskovitz, ''Conversations'' (Azica, 2001) *

David Arnold David Arnold (born 23 January 1962) is a British film composer whose credits include scoring five James Bond films, as well as '' Stargate'' (1994), ''Independence Day'' (1996), ''Godzilla'' (1998) and the television series '' Little Britain'' ...

, ''Changing Lanes'' (Varese Sarabande, 2002) *

Jack Walrath Jack Arthur Walrath (born May 5, 1946) is an American post-bop jazz trumpeter and musical arranger known for his work with Ray Charles, Gary Peacock, Charles Mingus, and Glenn Ferris, among others. Biography Walrath was born in Stuart, Florida ...

, ''Ballroom'' (SteepleChase, 2008) * Yoshiaki Masuo, ''I'm Glad There Is You'' (Sunshine, 2009) * Adam Unsworth, ''Balance'' (Acoustical Concepts Records, 2014) *

, ''Live at the Deer Head Inn'' (Deer Head, 2015) *

John Cacavas John Harry Cacavas (August 13, 1930 – January 28, 2014) was an American composer and conductor probably best known for his television scores, such as ''Kojak'', and ''The Time Machine,'' for which he was the chief composer. He also composed '' ...

, Lalo Schifrin, ''Airport '77/The Concorde... Airport '79'' (La-La Land, 2018) *

Dave Grusin Robert David "Dave" Grusin (born June 26, 1934) is an American composer, arranger, producer, jazz pianist, and band leader. He has composed many scores for feature films and television, and has won numerous awards for his soundtrack and record w ...

, ''And Justice for All'' (Varese Sarabande, 2018) *

Warne Marsh Warne Marion Marsh (October 26, 1927 – December 18, 1987) was an American tenor saxophonist. Born in Los Angeles, his playing first came to prominence in the 1950s as a protégé of pianist Lennie Tristano and earned attention in the 1970s as ...

, ''Unreleased Art Volume 9 at Donte's, April 26, 1974'' (Widow's Taste, 2016) *

P.J. Perry Paul John Guloien (born December 2, 1941) is a Canadian jazz saxophonist. He has won one Juno award as a solo artist, and one for his work with the Rob McConnell Tentet. Early life Perry was born to saxophonist Paul Guloien, who performed under ...

, ''This Quiet Room'' (Cellar Music, 2018) *

Philippe Sarde Philippe Sarde (born 21 June 1948) is a French film composer. Considered among the most versatile and talented French film composers of his generation, Sarde has scored over two hundred films, film shorts, and television mini-series. He received a ...

, ''Ghost Story'' (Quartet, 2019) * Tommy Cecil, ''Side By Side-Sondheim'' (©Tommy Cecil, 2012) * Tommy Cecil, ''Our Time-Sondheim Duos 2'' (©Tommy Cecil, 2013)

External links

Official websiteBarnes and Noble artist bio
* ttps://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/bill-mays NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) Oral History Program InterviewJune 8, 2005 {{DEFAULTSORT:Mays, Bill American jazz pianists American male pianists 1944 births Living people Musicians from Sacramento, California Palmetto Records artists 20th-century American pianists Jazz musicians from California 21st-century American pianists 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians