He was a singer-songwriter born William Borsay in New
York City.When he was still a
teenager he decided to go and search for members for a band in London,
England.Not finding success he
travelled back to the United States and settled in San Francisco to carry
on his quest.He
eventually teamed up with Tom
"Manfred" Allen and Ruben
Siguenza and after several name-changes and a move to New York
City, Mink
DeVille
were born. They saw success with songs
such as "Spanish
Stroll
" and "Cadillac Walk" which were his own
compositions, and released seven albums between 1976 and 1983. His work as
a songwriter became known and before long his music was appearing in many
movie soundtracks culminating in an Academy Award nomination for "Storybook
Love" for The Princess Bride.Often working in collaboration with the songwriter Doc Pomus, their
music includes songs such as "Just To Walk The Little Girl Home".Although having a problem with an
addiction to drugs for many years he was highly respected amongst other
artists and Doc Pomus is quoted as saying "He knows the truth of a city
street and the courage in a ghetto love song."
As a solo artist he has released eight albums that include the Mark
Knopfler
produced Miracle, and with the Acoustic Willy
DeVille Trio he has released the album and DVD In Berlin.After relocating to New Orleans
at the very end of the 1980s he returned to the R&B sound which
he would incorporate in his music with Mink
DeVille and ended up recording with artists such as Allen
Toussaint and Dr.
John
.In 2002 he took to the road with the recently formed
Acoustic Willy DeVille Trio and after releasing their successful album he
returned to recording his next solo album Crow Jane Alley. Suffering from
pancreatic cancer he passed away in Manhattan, New York on August
2009 at the age of 58.
