YOU might not know his name, but in his day Billy Reid was as big a celebrity as Craig David.

The Southampton-born songwriter and bandleader, who was the first British musician to write an American number one hit, was commemorated yesterday with the unveiling of a plaque on the BT building in Ogle Road - site of the Southampton Hippodrome, where Reid was a top turn.

Born in Coronation Terrace, Southampton on September 19, 1902, Reid worked as a riveter at Southampton Docks before forming his own jazz band, the Ariste Dance Orchestra.

His most famous partnership was with singer Dorothy Squires, who put her voice to several of his songs. Together they topped variety bills all over Britain and had a long personal relationship.

Several family members were among the large crowd that gathered to attend the unveiling of the Southampton City Council plaque, performed by Southampton-based female impersonator Danny La Rue.

"I was only 11 when I first heard the music of Billy Reid. I'd just come from Ireland with my widowed mother and we used to listen to his music on the radio," said Mr La Rue, a close friend of Dorothy Squires.

Also present at the ceremony was the Mayor of Southampton, Cllr Brian Parnell. He said: "By the 1930s, he (Reid) was one of the best-known and most popular band leaders in the country. The city of Southampton is proud of his achievements."

Yvonne London, 73, one of Reid's daughters, commented: "This is an honour for my father. Whenever you turned the radio on in the 1940s, you would hear one of his tunes - it almost became embarrassing!"

Carry On actor Jack Douglas, who came from his home in Shanklin on the Isle of Wight to witness the ceremony, said: "When he wrote a song, it wasn't to impress other musicians, it was to make us tap our feet."

Reid topped the American charts three times - first with The Gypsy, recorded by The Ink Spots, in 1946, and later with A Tree in the Meadow and I'm Walking Behind You.

Reid was proposed for the plaque by author Michael Thornton, who is currently writing Dorothy Squires' biography.

Night that Billy dazzled us - see Heritage in the Daily Echo on Wednesday.