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"Big Bill"
Brief Biography
"Big Bill" Ganaye ( William Patrick Ganaye)
Born : Nov.16,1952
Started playing Bass and Trumpet at age 11
First gig age 12
Played the Filmore Auditorium( S.F.)with Life long friend Ron Thompson at age 16
Left home and moved to Sausalito Summer 1968, had a rehearsal space next to the heliport. Anyone who remembers being or jamming there please e-mail me. Some famous cats we're coming through all the time but I can't remember all of them. I really was in the 60's folks. mailto:blues@thepostmaster.net Thank god for Terry Henry back then. He was the night minister for the Presbyterian Church on the hill on Excelsior Lane across from the park down town. I spoke with Terry on the phone after tracking him down through the church around 1995/96 and he is still ministering but now is back east in Martha's Vineyard, If my memory serves me. I would love to hear from any of the friends that I had then, Mo ? and Kathy McGreevy the two girls who I went to the peace march with in Marin County, standing with long sad looks on our faces as we listened to a speaker read all the names of the soldiers who had died in a senseless war (the vietnam war). That was Nov.15th 1969 and I will always remember it. My birthday was the very next day and to our surprise we woke to a friend holding up the Independent Journal (a popular local newspaper). The reporter snapped a shot of the three of us and used it on the front page and it was huge, not a small picture but a full page shot. That was a hell of a birthday surprise, and I turned 17 , I was living on my own but wanted to finish high school and the Haight Asbury thing was just about finished and the drugs were really starting to mess people up. So I went back home.
Graduated from Newark High School 1971 (after dropping out and leaving home for a year and 2 Summers) the Beatles we're a bad influence on me but I wouldn't trade a minute of it.
Honorable discharge U.S.Navy 1973 short stay but got all my benifits.Went through boot camp and then helped paint a ship right in the Bay Area at Hunters Point Shipyard. Then got out with the help of some very cool and hip doctors.
Moved to South Lake Tahoe 1976 played in a few different bands through the years while supporting a family.The Sierra Foxfire Band was the most popular one from the Tahoe area. Anyone who remembers seeing us please e-mail me and let me know. mailto:blues@thepostmaster.net
Son (Trevor Ganaye) born 10-22-77. Trevor is very musical and plays blues guitar, bass,
and harmonica. With the later being his chosen instrument. His first time in front of a
crowd was at a friend of mines birthday party we had Ron Thompson on guitar and piano, me
on guitar, David ( Big Brother & the Holding Company) Getz on drums, and Trevor played
bass, We did a swing shuffle called "Every Day I Have The blues" and he made me
so very proud, he was (and is) great!
Daughter (Chelsea Ganaye) born 2-3-82 Chelsea is the actress in the family and loves to sing and is very good at memorizing anything, she also won the Miss Placerville Beauty Contest this year, That's my Girl !
Divorced 9-?-90
Moved back to the Sanfrancisco Bay Area and began playing music again. You can read about players page
Big Bill's career ever since his return from 14 years in the Sierra's.
Career Notes
Played with The Luther Tucker Band for 3 years in the early 90's before Luther passed away. See the photo's page for pictures of Big Bill playing at the Water Front Blues Festival in Portland Oregon.Was always a Bass player until I met Luther. He inspired me to play the guitar and gave me many valuable and cherished guitar lessons. He then started hiring me as his rhythm guitarist.But he would always let me play a few bars of lead during any given set. He was truly a wonderful and kind soul, and the nicest person I think I have ever met.
Also played in the Sam (Big Brother & the Holding Company) Andrew Band for 3 years . And has played with Big Brother & the Holding Company while in concert several times. Pictures to be added soon.
Another band Big Bill was hired to play in for about a year was the Raymond Victor Band out of Vallejo Ca.
Also worked with Rich Kirch from John Lee Hooker's Band.
And J.J.Malone considered by many to be a west coast blues Legend.
I have to keep going here--- Freddie Roulette and Big Bill have worked together in different bands for the entire 9 1/2 years off and on and in the Summer of 2002 played at the famed Shoreline Amphitheatre again with Harvey Mandel sitting in on guitar and Snooky (Janis Joplin's Kosmic Blues Band sax player) Flowers. Also on the stage Even Palmerston (ex-Elvin Bishop bassist for many years and Bruce Brymer on drums (Clover w/Huey Lewis)..
Much more on the players page.