Power Pop innovator Bill Lloyd grew up in Bowling Green with parents who were both musically inclined and encouraged his love of music .Inspired by a guitar-playing mother and drummer father, Bill was also influenced, like many his age, by local radio stations of varied formats. He formed bands in high school that played conventional covers but gravitated toward Progressive Rock sounds like those of YES and King Crimson. He and David Surface formed the critically acclaimed band Sgt. Arms which included Marc Owens and Ernest Raymer.
In 1982, Bill moved to Nashville, but he also kept his Bowling Green bandmates close and played with them often. He signed a publishing deal in 1985 with MTM and a solo record in 1986 on the independent label Throbbing Lobster. Writing partnerships with Radney Foster and Beth Nielsen Chapman happened as a result of these developments. In late 1986, Bill and songwriting friend Radney Foster were signed to RCA Records, and the band they put together was composed of his long-time Bowling Green musician friends, including Marc Owens, Byron House, and Kyle Frederick. Foster and Lloyd had several hits over three albums in the next four years.
In addition to his performing work in bands such as Sky Kings, his songwriting credits during the early 1990s included other nationally notable artists such Tanya Tucker, T. Graham Brown, Martina McBride, Sara Evans, Hootie and the Blowfish, and Cheap Trick. Since 2004, Bill has been associated with the Long Riders, a group begun by Tom Peterson of Cheap Trick in which the group performs classic albums, playing the cuts from front to back.
“I think growing up in BG as I did, Nashville has always been one of the music centers of America. I did go to NY first. I think the proximity to Nashville, that being an option, figured into people’s minds. Greg Martin shared they [the Kentucky Headhunters] were doing Southern Rock and they bent it to get into the Country format it worked great. What Radney and I did was very neo-Everly Brother, Buck Owens meets the Beatles, Country and Pop like the Everlys. For the people in BG they know there is a Country Music center that is only 60 miles away that is part of it.”