I guess Music has always been part of my life. When I was big enough to reach the pedals, I would try to play the old pump organ that we had at home. I played some of the old church songs that my Mom could play. We also had an old Guitar, and somehow I would learn to play, whatever anyone else could play.
I didn't progress much until I Joined the Air Force, and was sent to the Azores, out in the Atlantic Ocean. The Service Club had a lot of musical instruments, so in my spare time I would check out an instrument and try to learn to play it. I guess I 'played' at everything they had, but piano and guitar was what I played most. With the help of the PX, I was able to order a guitar from the States. A brand new Gibson ES 335T with case for a little over three hundred dollars. It wasn't very long until we had a little 5 piece band together, playing Rock & Roll to the Portuguese in their theaters and to the GI's at the Base.
When I got back to the states in Ohio, I continued playing lead guitar with a band in the night clubs in Columbus, and I also started playing Sax.
After a couple years, I went back to Detroit, where my family had moved before I joined the Air Force. I ‘sat’ in at many of the local clubs, and then someone called me. They were starting a new band called the 'Flaming Embers'. It didn't take us long to start playing at the local clubs, then I started doubling on guitar, sax, piano, organ and harmonica. They called me the utility man. After a couple of years, we started recording with RIC-TIC records, a company owned by Ed Wingate. Mr. Wingate helped one of our songs go to the top in Detroit, "Hey Momma, What'cha Got Good For Daddy". Wingate helped us sign with Motown's Holland-Dozier-Holland team, who has written many songs for the Supremes, Four Tops,etc, and are a legend themselves. Anyway, our first song, "Mind, Body, and Soul", on Hot Wax label, was a million seller and made it to the top ten in Billboard.
In 1969 we were with Solomon Burke at the 'Sands' in Las Vegas and, July 1970 we were on Dick Clark's 'American Bandstand'. The Flaming Ember had two more Gold records, Westbound Number Nine and Sunshine.
In 1975, God made a change in my heart and my life. I left the nightclub scene and started helping out in Churches. I got a job in Tool and Die, and later as a Tool Engineer, and then I retired a couple years ago in 2005.
Back in 1984, I started a recording studio using a Tascam 8 track on a half inch tape. I kept the Tascam until 2004, when The Flaming Embers got together, I gave it to a friend of mine. Since CD’s came out, almost all Recording Studios have gone ‘digital’ if they want a clear clean sound. ProTools was what most of the Major Studios were going with, so in 04, I set up shop with ProTools LE. The Recording Studio that I have now, 100 times better.
Bill Ellis