Preston first came to widespread attention of a U.S. mainstream audience as the organist (and sometimes vocalist) in the house band on the television show 'Shindig,' popular during 1964-66. On tour backing stars Little Richard and Sam Cooke, he met the Beatles (early in their career) in Hamburg, Germany in 1962. He was later invited by George Harrison to join The Beatles in the studio for the filming/recording of 'Let It Be' (1970). Preston's most memorable performance with the Beatles is on the track "Get Back".
The apparent reason for the collaboration was that the project was being done live— without overdubs— and the Beatles wanted a second keyboardist. Preston's soulful style was to compliment the rhythm and blues approach the Beatles had for this album. His was a genre they'd grown up listening to and were reaching back to as well as paying tribute to.
Another apparent reason for Preston's involvement was to buffer the growing tensions between the members of the band (that had started around the time of filming). Everyone set aside their differences to make Preston feel welcome at the sessions. Members of the band have later commented on their joy with working with Preston, whom they respected as a talented musician.
While Preston was never considered for permanent membership in the Beatles (despite stories to the contrary), he did continue working with them through to the end of the 60s: releasing two solo albums on Apple Records (the Beatles' label), collaborating with George Harrison on 'All Things Must Pass', and joining in on the Concert for Bangladesh— one of the first significant benefit concerts of its kind (at Madison Square Garden in 1972). Preston also later made an appearance in the infamous Beatles tribute film 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' (1978), as the title character— Sgt. Pepper. He's sometimes been referred to as a 'Fifth Beatle'.
In addition to work with said group, Preston also played and toured with The Rolling Stones, playing on significant albums such as 'Sticky Fingers' and 'Exile on Main St.' In the 70s, Preston also worked with Bob Dylan, playing as an accompanist on ' Blood on the Tracks', and Aretha Franklin, on her record 'Young, Gifted and Black'. As the years went on, Preston collaborated with numerous other artists including Barbra Streisand and Miles Davis, also notable touring with Sly and the Family Stone for a time. He also played organ with the Ray Charles big band on tour in the late 60s.
In terms of his solo career, Preston's hit tracks "Will It Go 'Round in Circles" and "Nothing From Nothing" both reached all the way to number one in the U.S. and still remain staples of oldies stations. He won a Grammy Award for best pop instrumental performance for "Outa Space" in 1971, and he received an invitation to the White House no less in 1974. Though perhaps overshadowed by his collaborative work, he devolved a strong and devoted fan-base as album after album made it into the Billboard top 200 album chart.
Preston was also the music director and band leader for the Garry Shandling show in the 80s, returning to the TV work that had given him his start. Yet, in the 80s and 90s, Preston sadly suffered substance abuse and financial issues. He spent three years in prison in 1997 for a drugs possession charge handed out earlier that year (cocaine possession and assault).
His last recordings were on the Red Hot Chili Peppers' album 'Stadium Arcadium' and with Neil Diamond for his "12 songs" record, both produced by Rick Rubin.
A U.S. musical legend, Preston passed away at the age of 59 in a hospital in Scottsdale, Arizona, as a result of "malignant hypertension that resulted in kidney failure and other complications".
You Are So Beautiful
Billy Preston Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You are to me
You are so beautiful
You are to me
Can't you see? Can't you see?
You are everything I hoped for
And you are everything I need
And you are so beautiful to me
You are so wonderful
So wonderful to me
You are so wonderful, baby
Can't you see, can't you see, baby
You're everything I hoped for and
You're everything, yeah everything
God knows you're everything to me
You are so wonderful
You are so wonderful
So beautiful, so beautiful
You are so beautiful
To me
Billy Preston's "You Are So Beautiful" is a heartfelt love song that highlights the beauty of a person's soul, and how much they mean to the singer. The lyrics emphasize the singer's appreciation for the person's inner beauty, rather than their physical appearance, emphasizing how their presence in the singer's life has changed everything, and how grateful they are for their existence.
The opening lines, "You are so beautiful, yes, you are to me," immediately convey the tenderness and deep appreciation the singer has for this person. The repetition of "You are so beautiful," throughout the song solidifies the idea that the singer is constantly in awe of this person's beauty. The chorus "You are everything I hoped for, and you are everything I need / and you are so beautiful to me," drives home the fact that this person is the singer's perfect match, and they complete each other.
The second verse expands on this idea, stating that this person is "so wonderful" and again highlighting that they are everything the singer hoped for. The repetition of "can't you see" is a plea for the person to recognize how much they mean to the singer, setting the tone for the rest of the song. When the chorus repeats again, with the added phrase "God knows," it reinforces the idea that this person is meant to be in the singer's life, and they are eternally grateful for their presence.
Line by Line Meaning
You are so beautiful, yes
I find you incredibly gorgeous, and that is a fact.
You are to me
You are specifically beautiful to my eyes and no one else's.
You are so beautiful
I can't help but repeatedly acknowledge your beauty.
You are to me
I am emphasizing that you are personally and exclusively beautiful to me.
Can't you see? Can't you see?
I am asking if you understand how stunning you are.
You are everything I hoped for
You possess all of the qualities that I desired in a partner.
And you are everything I need
You fulfill all of my emotional wants and needs.
And you are so beautiful to me
I am once again stating that your beauty is significant to me.
You are so wonderful
I am expressing how remarkable I think you are overall.
So wonderful to me
I am emphasizing that your wonderfulness is relevant to how I perceive you.
You are so wonderful, baby
I am communicating how exceptional I believe you are in a familiar and affectionate manner.
Can't you see, can't you see, baby
I am continuing to ask if you understand the depth of my positive opinion of you.
You're everything I hoped for and
Once again, you fulfill all of my desires in a partner.
You're everything, yeah everything
I am reiterating that you are everything to me.
God knows you're everything to me
I am religiously emphasizing how valuable you are to me.
So beautiful, so beautiful
I am repeating once more how stunning you are.
You are so beautiful
I can't help but keep telling you how breathtaking you appear.
To me
Once again, I am emphasizing that your beauty is subjective to my opinion.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Bruce Carleton Fisher, Billy Preston
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@davidjewell3227
one of the very best musicians of the 1960 - 2010 period consumate pianist / organist..not recognized nearly enough
@nvermeren2383
He OWNED the B-3. Thanks.
@lindalyte354
Speechless!!!!🎶🎵🎼🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹🎤❤💖 R.I.P. Mr.Preston☝☝🙏🙏
@maxafriyie3288
Billy was a huge talent, despite all his personal demons. RIP Sir.
@quindellholmes7975
nice song, handsome talented man
@nvermeren2383
This is a gift. Thank you!
@edvinlaine
Poor Billy, great artist but troubled man.