Joe williams singer count basie biography
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In the 1960s Joe worked mostly as a solo artist. In 1954, at the age of 35, he got his big break when he was hired as the male vocalist for the Count Basie Orchestra. Within a year, Wiliams was touring the Midwest with saxophonist Les Hite, who accompanied the likes of Louis Armstrong and Fats Waller.
In 1942, Joe Williams was hired by Lionel Hampton to fill in for his regular vocalist.
And his success and artistic stature in American music are without question.
In 1971, Joe Williams and pianist George Shearing recorded The Heart and Soul of Joe Williams.
In 1983 Joe Williams was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and in 1985 he received a Grammy Award for Best of Jazz Vocalist for the album I Just Want to Sing. Late in life, he had a recurring role on the Cosby Show television program as the star's father-in-law.
Selected Discography
Count Basie, Count Basie Swings/, Joe Williams Sings, Verve, 1955-56
Every Day -- The Best of the Verve Years, Verve, 1955-90
Count Basie, Count on the Coast, Vol.
1 & 2, Phontastic, 1958
Me and the Blues, RCA, 1963
Here's to Life, Telarc, 1993
Joe Williams Collection
Joseph Goreed, later to be known as Joe Williams, was born in Cordele, Georgia on December 12, 1918. By 1938, Williams was invited to sing for musician Jimmie Noone and his band.
Bio
Joe Williams' versatile baritone voice made him one of the signature male vocalists in jazz annals, responsible for some of the Count Basie band's main hits in the 1950s.
Though born in Georgia, Williams was raised in that great haven of the blues, Chicago, Illinois. With the legendary tour-ending set in spring 1955 at New York City’s Birdland, Williams gained national recognition as a top-tier jazz vocalist.
He was also invited to perform in the White House by Presidents Nixon and Clinton.
In 1983, a pavement star was laid for him in Hollywood's `Walk Of The Stars' -- next to that of Count Basie. Williams' sound was smoother, strong on ballads and blues, while Rushing was a more aggressive singer, best on the up-tempo numbers.
Williams' hits with the Basie band included "Alright, Okay, You Win," "The Comeback," and what would become one of his most requested tunes, "Every Day." Starting in the 1960s, he was a vocal soloist, fronting trios led by such pianists as Norman Simmons and Junior Mance.
His first professional job came with clarinetist Jimmie Noone in 1937. Over the next thirty years he performed steadily and made more than forty albums, continuing to receive critical acclaim from reviewers like John S. Wilson of the New York Times, who in 1974 said Williams “could bring life to any bit of musical dross.” Down Beat gave him many awards throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and he dabbled in acting, appearing in television’s The Cosby Show many times as the father of Claire Huxtable.
Even though his work with Lionel Hampton was brief, he became well known and was in great demand, particularly back in Chicago. He had sat in with the Basie band years earlier, but now Basie was looking for a full-time singer. Basie recognized Williams and asked him to sing a number before returning to his own gig. He continued to expand his range, becoming a superior crooner and exhibiting a real depth of feeling on ballads.
Among his many awards and citations were a number of jazz poll commendations and honors.
One night in 1954, during an intermission in his own show with Dr. Jo Jo Adams, Williams stole a few minutes to hear Count Basie’s band at the Trianon Ballroom. He began singing professionally in clubs at age sixteen and soon became a regular performer in the bands of Chicago musicians Johnny Long and Jimmie Noone.
Often referred to jokingly as "Count Basie's #1 son," he stepped right into the band upon the departure of Jimmy Rushing.