William Everett "Billy" Preston (September 2, 1946 – June 6, 2006) was an American musician whose work included
R&B,
rock,
soul,
funk and
gospel. A virtuoso keyboardist, particularly on
Hammond organ, Preston was recognized as a top session musician in the 1960s, during which he backed artists such as
Little Richard,
Sam Cooke,
Ray Charles and
the Beatles. He then went on to achieve fame as a solo artist, with hit pop singles including "
That's the Way God Planned It", "
Outa-Space", "
Will It Go Round in Circles", "
Space Race", and "
Nothing from Nothing". In addition, Preston co-wrote "
You Are So Beautiful", which became a number 5 hit for
Joe Cocker, and
Stephen Stills asked Preston if he could use his phrase "if you can't be with the one you love,
love the one you're with" and created the hit song.