Billy J. Kramer, born William Howard Ashton, on 19 August 1943 in Bootle, Lancashire, is an English pop and Merseybeat singer. After an apprenticeship with British Railways, he switched to lead vocals, adopting the stage name Billy J. Kramer from a telephone‑directory entry, with the “J” suggested by John Lennon. Managed by Brian Epstein and signed to Parlophone under George Martin. Their breakthrough came with the Lennon–McCartney cover "Do You Want to Know a Secret?" in 1963, which reached number 2 in the UK Singles Chart and was backed by "I'll Be on My Way." The following single, "Bad to Me," hit Number One, sold over a million copies and earned a gold disc, while "I'll Keep You Satisfied" peaked at number 4. In 1964, "Little Children" topped the UK charts again and became a US top‑10 hit. Later releases such as "Trains and Boats and Planes" reached number 12. Kramer released albums including Listen (1963), I'll Keep You Satisfied (1964), Trains and Boats and Planes (1965), and Billy Boy (1966), and later compilations such as The Best of the EMI Years (1991) and I Won the Fight (2014).
