Billy Ritchie (musician)

William Edward Ritchie (born 20 April 1944) is a Scottish keyboard player and composer. Formerly a member of The Satellites, The Premiers, 1-2-3, and Clouds, he is generally acknowledged as being the first keyboard player in rock music to stand and take a leading role, thereby providing a model for others such as Keith Emerson and Rick Wakeman. He is also credited as being responsible for rewriting standard songs and arranging music in a style that later became fashionable as progressive rock. During a Saville Theatre concert in 1967, he introduced a then-unknown David Bowie to Jimi Hendrix.