Rudy Williams (saxophonist)

Rudy Williams (September 21, 1909[1] – August 30, 1954)[2] was an American jazz alto saxophonist.[3]

He was born in Newark, New Jersey, United States.[1] His birth year has been cited as 1917[2] and 1919, among others. Nicknamed 'Looney',[4] Williams started on saxophone at age twelve, and concentrated on alto, though he was also capable on baritone and tenor sax. He became a member of the Savoy Sultans in 1937 and recorded frequently with the group.[1] In the 1940s, he played with Hot Lips Page, Luis Russell, Chris Columbus, and John Kirby, and led his own bands in Boston and New York City later in the decade.[1] He played with Tadd Dameron in 1948, and after more time as a bandleader in Boston in the early 1950s, he played with Illinois Jacquet and Gene Ammons in California.[1] As a member of Oscar Pettiford's band, he toured East Asia in the 1950s.[1]

Williams also recorded with Howard McGhee, Dud Bascomb, Don Byas, Babs Gonzales, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Eddie Vinson, Bennie Green, and Johnny Hodges.[1] He never recorded as a bandleader. After his death, Charles Mingus wrote a memorial piece, "Eulogy for Rudy Williams", then recorded it for Savoy. The liner notes of the Savoy album state Williams died by drowning in 1954, in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.[2]

Discography

As sideman

References

  1. Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 2698. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
  2. "Rudy Williams Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  3. Feather, Leonard; Gitler, Ira (2007). The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz. Oxford University Press. p. 699. ISBN 978-0-19-507418-5.
  4. Rye, Howard (2001). "Williams, Rudy". In Sadie, Stanley; Tyrrell, John (eds.). The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2nd ed.). London: Macmillan Publishers. ISBN 978-1-56159-239-5.

References

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