Bill Hay

About Bill Hay

Bill Hay studied classical (string) bass at Dalhousie University under the direction of the "world's leading virtuoso solo bassist", Gary Karr. Bill moved to Toronto in 1978 and studied jazz and classical music at Humber College. He then performed in an R & B/ funk show band, called “White Ginger”, with shows across Canada and the U.S. In Toronto during the 1980's-1990's, Bill performed with Liberty Silver, George Oliver, Grant Smith and The Power, and Chris Smith and The Graduates. He performed as a bass player and vocalist backing up legendary artists such as The Temptations, The Shirelles, Solomon Burke, Ben E. King, Jerry Lee Lewis and many more Canadian and American R & B artists at Club Bluenote on Pears Ave. That house gig led to another on at Club Xanadu on Mt. Pleasant Rd, backing up Roy Young, Kathi McDonald, and Long John Baldry, and many more blues artists. During the late 1980's, Bill began freelancing around the GTA and southern Ontario and worked with many different musicians at various venues while also doing studio work. In the mid 80’s he began performing with a corporate band called Al Shiner and Nova Sounds for many years. Bill attended York University and University of Toronto, where he studied music education. Upon graduation with his Bachelor’s of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Education he was employed as a full time music teacher. He provided instructions in instrumental music, vocals, and guitar from 1991-2016. He continued to be active in the music business during this time period, performing 3 to 4 nights a week at a variety of venues. Currently, Bill freelances, playing bass guitar, acoustic guitar and sings for private functions, fundraisers, indoor and outdoor events and festivals all across the GTA, Ontario, and internationally.

Fun Facts

• Name: Bill Hay
• Band Member Since: 2024
• Instrument(s): -