William Arnold, aka Billy Boy Arnold, is a blues singer-songwriter and harmonica player who learned to play as a child in Chicago and made recordings with influential R&B artist Bo Diddley in the 1950s. He performed locally and released an album titled 'More Blues On the South Side' in 1966 but gave up on music for a period. He re-emerged in 1973 on the album 'Kings of Chicago Blues Vol. 3' and began performing at blues festivals in America and Europe.
His songs have been covered by artists such as the Yardbirds and David Bowie. He made an album with Tony McPhee and the Groundhogs in 1997, released originally as 'Billy Boy Arnold - Checkin' It Out'. An album titled 'Back Where I Belong' came out in 1993 followed by 'Eldorado Cadillac' (1995), 'Boogie 'n' Shuffle' (2001) and 'Consolidated Mojo' (2005). Other releases include 'Billy Boy Arnold Sings Sonny Boy' (2008), 'Billy Boy Arnold Sings Big Bill Broonzy' (2012) and 'The Blues Soul of Billy Boy Arnold' (2014).
He plays on 'Chicago Blues: A Living History', which was nominated for a Grammy Award as Best Traditional Blues Album in 2009, and on 'Remembering Little Walter', which was nominated for a Grammy Award as Best Blues Album in 2013. He features with blues artists Dave Alvin, Clarence Gatemouth Brown and Joe Louis Walker on the album 'Live in Long Beach 1997', which went to number 12 on Billboard's Blues Albums Chart in 2015.
