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TL;DR:

  • The Fifth Beatle, Billy Preston, had No. 1 songs after he left the Fab Four’s record label.
  • One was inspired by a joke he made about a song without a melody.
  • The other was inspired by a phrase he had heard.
The Fifth Beatle, Billy Preston, dressed like a cowboy
The Fifth Beatle, Billy Preston | Harry Langdon / Contributor

Due to his work with The Beatles, Billy Preston is sometimes called the Fifth Beatle. After leaving The Beatles’ record label, Preston had a pair of No. 1 hits. He expected one of those two songs to be successful because he felt it was a good sing-a-long song.

Why the 5th Beatle, Billy Preston, left The Beatles’ record label

Preston famously collaborated with The Beatles on some of their later songs, including “Get Back” (1969) and “Don’t Let Me Down” (1969). Because of this, he is sometimes known as the Fifth Beatle. However, he had an impressive career on his own.

According to The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits, he was signed to The Beatles’ Apple Records, but the label fell on hard times. Preston left Apple Records on good terms with the Fab Four and got signed to A&M records. His first solo No. 1 single was 1972’s “Will It Go Round in Circles.” The song was born out of a time when Preston joked he had a song without a melody. He completed the song with songwriter Bruce Fisher.

The 5th Beatle started writing another No. 1 song in his dressing room

Later, Preston started playing the piano in his dressing room after one of his shows. He had previously heard the term “nothing from nothing” and crafted a song around it. He felt the piano from his dressing room gave the song extra character.

Preston expected the tune to become a hit because it worked as a “sing-a-long.” The tune became his second and final solo No. 1 hit, 1974’s “Nothing from Nothing.” 

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How Billy Preston’s ‘Will It Go Round in Circles’ and ‘Nothing from Nothing’ performed on the pop charts in the United States

“Will It Go Round in Circles” reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks. It appeared on Preston’s album Music Is My Life. The album peaked at No. 32 on the Billboard 200 and stayed on the chart for 35 weeks.

Meanwhile, “Nothing from Nothing” hit No. 1 in the United States for one week and remained on the chart for a total of 18 weeks. Preston included the tune on the album The Kids & Me, which reached No. 17 on the Billboard 200. The album lasted on the chart for 14 weeks.

“Will It Go Round in Circles” and “Nothing from Nothing” were both big hits and they proved Preston didn’t need The Beatles to top the charts.

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