Yesterday was a bad day for people who worked with Stan Freberg. Not only did we lose Ann Miller, who starred in his most famous commercial, but death also claimed Stan's long-time friend and musical arranger, The Great Billy May. That's what everyone called him. In fact, when Stan introduced me to him, he said, "Mark, I'd like you to meet The Great Billy May." And later at the party where that occurred, I heard other people saying to him, "I always wanted to meet The Great Billy May." There was not an ounce of sarcasm in that title…only honesty and love.
Billy was one of the great bandleaders and arrangers of American popular music. To please both Freberg and Sinatra, you had to be. He arranged most of Stan's records, including both volumes (thirty-some-odd years apart) of Stan Freberg Presents the United States of America. It represented only a small part of his credits, some of which are recounted in this obit. Many of his albums are still in print, and probably always will be. Listen to any of 'em and you'll know why they called him what they called him.