Al Williams

A blues-based pianist who used trumpeter Henry “Crimson” Allen, trumpeter Buck Clayton, and saxophonist Johnny Hodges, amongst others, Williams lived in Chicago from an early on age. He analyzed piano as a kid and started playing expertly in Chicago around 1935. He created a 12-piece dance music group around 1936, and a trio in 1942. Through the ’40s he used such music artists as Allen, clarinetist Jimmy Noone, and bandleader Erskine Tate. In the past due ’40s Williams performed inside a duo along with his wife, vocalist Aubrey Hobbs; the set was referred to as Alfred and Aubrey. Williams also organized for Chicago-area rings around this period. In the ’50s he performed around NY, including gigs on the Metropole and Savoy Ballroom. He toured European countries with Clayton in 1959 and Hodges in 1961.