June is Pride Month.
Billy Preston was an in-demand session musician. He contributed to songs by Ray Charles, Little Richard, the Everly Brothers, the Rolling Stones and, famously, the Beatles. Billy was often referred to as “the Fifth Beatle” and was the only musician ever credited on a Beatles recording.
In the 70s, Billy enjoyed a successful solo career with several Top Ten hits and two Number Ones.
In the early 1970s, Billy struck a friendship, both personal and collaborative, with legendary singer-songwriter Sly Stone. At the time, Billy was was engaged to actress and model Kathy Silva. One afternoon, Billy came home to find Sly in bed with Kathy. According to Billy’s friend and manager Joyce Moore, this affected Billy deeply. It triggered long-suppressed homosexual feelings and Billy never had a relationship with a woman again. Brought up in a very conservative Christian home, Billy fought his homosexuality nearly his entire life. At this time, he also sank deep into drug culture, specifically cocaine. He was arrested on several occasions for drug possession, as well as charges of child molestation and exhibiting pornographic material to a minor. He was sentenced to house arrest and ordered to enter a drug rehabilitation program.
Billy’s troubles continued with more arrests, jail time and and indictment for insurance fraud. Eventually, Billy turned himself around and was drug-free. Sadly, Billy dealt with kidney disease. Despite receiving a kidney transplant in 2002, his health deteriorated. In 2005, Billy suffered respiratory failure and slipped into a coma. He never regained consciousness and died in June 2006. He was 59 years old.