Buster Williams
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| Buster Williams | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Charles Anthony Williams |
| Born | April 17, 1942 Camden, New Jersey, United States |
| Genre(s) | Mainstream jazz, hard bop, post bop, jazz fusion |
| Occupation(s) | Bassist, composer, bandleader |
| Instrument(s) | Double bass |
| Website | www.busterwilliams.com |
Charles Anthony Williams (born April 17, 1942 in Camden, New Jersey) is an American jazz bassist.
Williams has gained prestige among jazz musicians as a solid supportive player. Since the early 1960s, he has made subtle swing, a precise rhythm and superb technique the landmark of his playing. He started his professional career in Philadelphia with Jimmy Heath, then played and recorded with the Gene Ammons/Sonny Stitt quintet (1960-61). After that, he played in Los Angeles for the vocalists Betty Carter, Sarah Vaughan and Nancy Wilson (until late '60's), recording with Vaughn and Wilson, and also with The Jazz Crusaders and the Bobby Hutcherson/Harold Land quintet while working with Miles Davis.
In 1969, Williams moved to New York City and joined the Herbie Hancock Mwandishi Sextet for the next three years, doubling in acoustic and electric basses, and also worked with Mary Lou Williams (1973-75) and Ron Carter's quartet (1977-78). Since the 1980s, Williams has appeared as a sideman in a significative number of session records with notable jazz instrumentalists and vocalists, although opportunities to lead his own sessions are rare.
Williams also has collaborated with Chet Baker, Kenny Barron, Sathima Bea Benjamin, Larry Coryell, Stanley Cowell, Gil Evans, Frank Foster, Dexter Gordon, Joe Farrell, Shirley Horn, Illinois Jacquet, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Harold Mabern, Branford Marsalis, Carmen McRae, Frank Morgan, Hilton Ruiz, Woody Shaw, Steve Turre, McCoy Tyner, and the Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra.
In 2008, Williams began releasing a series of live albums exclusively for download through his company, Buster Williams Productions. Live Volume 1 was released June 2008.
Contents |
[edit] Selected discography
[edit] As leader
- Pinnacle (1975)
- Crystal Reflections (1976)
- Tokudo (1978)
- Heartbeat (1978)
- Dreams Come True (1978)
- Something More (1989)
- Lost in a Memory (1999)
- Houdini (2001)
- Griot Liberte (2004)
- Live Volume 1 (2008)
[edit] As sideman
- Compact Jazz: Sarah Vaughan (1957)
- Boss Tenors: Gene Ammons with Sonny Stitt (1961)
- Way Back Home - The Crusaders (1961)
- Miles Davis Quintet (1965)
- Jazz Profile - McCoy Tyner (1967)
- Sorcerer - Miles Davis (1967)
- Lush Life - Nancy Wilson (1968)
- Art of the Ballad - Dexter Gordon (1969)
- Fat Albert Rotunda - Herbie Hancock (1969)
- Frank Foster - Frank Foster (1969)
- Mwandishi - Herbie Hancock (1969)
- Prisoner - Herbie Hancock (1969)
- Asante - McCoy Tyner (1970)
- Betty Carter, Vols. 1 & 2 - Betty Carter (1971)
- Ms. Magic - Carmen McRae (1971)
- Outback - Joe Farrell (1971)
- "Sextant" - Herbie Hancock (1973) [also credited as MCHEZAJI]
- Herbie Hancock [Blue Note] - Herbie Hancock (1975)
- Piano Man - Hilton Ruiz (1975)
- Return of the 5000 Lb. Man - Rahsaan Roland Kirk (1975)
- V.S.O.P. - Herbie Hancock Quintet (1977)
- Innocence - Kenny Barron (1978)
- Lazy Afternoon - Shirley Horn (1978)
- Woody Shaw III - Woody Shaw (1978)
- Ballads for Two - Chet Baker with W. Lackerschmid (1979)
- Renaissance - Brandord Marsalis (1986)
- Toku Do - Larry Coryell (1987)
- Right There - Steve Turre (1991)
- Lunar Eclypse - Gil Evans (2000)
- Pick 'Em/Super Strings - Ron Carter (2001)
- SongSpirit - Sathima Bea Benjamin (2006)
