Buster Williams
An enduring jazz bassist, composer, and educator, Buster Williams has flourished through many periods of changing fashions in jazz due to his fat, authoritative, dark tone and his highly refined technique on the acoustic bass. Though he began his recording career in the early 1960s with Gene Ammons and Sonny Stitt, Sarah Vaughan, Jack Wilson, and the Jazz Crusaders, his earliest celebrity was as a member of Herbie Hancock's exploratory Mwandishi Sextet from 1969 to 1973, doubling on acoustic and electric basses -- sometimes attached to electronic effects devices. He began recording as a leader with a trilogy of albums on Muse Records in the mid-'70s. Of these, his leader debut, Pinnacle, is widely considered a modern jazz masterpiece. His notable achievements include appearances as a member of Sphere for 1982's Four in One, and later in the decade as a member of pianist Kenny Barron's trio. In addition to working in Denny Zeitlin's and Lenny White's groups in the early 21st century, Williams released the celebrated Griot Liberte in 2004 with White on drums and Stefon Harris on piano and marimba. After a six-year break from recording, (from 2009- to 2017), he focused on both teaching and touring; he returned to tape as a member of Cyrus Chestnut's studio band on There's a Sweet, Sweet Spirit before resuming his own career as a leader with 2018's Audacity and 2023's Unalome.
Born in 1942 in Camden, New Jersey, Williams learned both the double bass and the drums from his father, but having been enormously impressed by Oscar Pettiford's recordings, he ultimately decided to concentrate on the bass. After studying theory and composition at Philadelphia's Combs College of Music in 1959, Williams joined Jimmy Heath's unit the following year and played with Gene Ammons and Sonny Stitt in 1960 and 1961, as well as behind singers Dakota Staton (1961-1962), Betty Carter (1962-1963), Sarah Vaughan (1963), and Nancy Wilson (1964-1968). The gig with Wilson prompted a move to Los Angeles, where the Jazz Crusaders used him for concert dates and recordings from 1967 to 1969, and he also played briefly with Miles Davis in 1967 and the Bobby Hutcherson/Harold Land quintet.
Moving to New York in 1969, Williams joined Hancock's sextet, appearing on all of his Warner Bros. albums, as well as The Prisoner (Blue Note) and Sextant (Columbia), and with trumpeter Eddie Henderson's spin-off group on Capricorn and Blue Note.
Over a five-year period (1976-1981), Williams led his own groups, releasing albums like Pinnacle, Crystal Reflections, Heartbeat, and Dreams Come True. He was also a member of both the Timeless All-Stars and the Thelonious Monk repertory ensemble Sphere, writing a number of compositions for the latter. In 1980, he picked up a Grammy nomination for Best Instrumental Jazz Album for his bass work on the Great Jazz Trio's Love for Sale with pianist Hank Jones, bassist Ron Carter, and drummer Tony Williams.
In 1989, he reunited with longtime associates Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Al Foster, and Shunzo Ohno for Something More. More albums followed, including 1998's Somewhere Along the Way, 1999's Lost in a Memory, and 2001's Houdini. In 2004, he delivered Griot Liberte, featuring his group with drummer Lenny White and pianist Stefon Harris. There was also 65 Roses, a 2008 trio session with White and pianist Kenny Barron.
From 2009 to 2017, Williams toured while also focusing on his teaching duties at New York's The New School. He eventually joined pianist Cyrus Chestnut, along with drummer White, for 2016's Natural Essence and 2017's There's a Sweet, Sweet Spirit. He resumed his recordings as leader with 2018's Audacity for Smoke Sessions, working with White, pianist George Colligan, and saxophonist Steve Wilson. A similar group was on board for 2023's Unalome, this time featuring the same rhythm section with the addition of vocalist Jean Baylor, saxophonist Bruce Williams, and vibraphonist Stefon Harris.
© Matt Collar & Richard S. Ginell /TiVo
Artistas semelhantes
Discografia
20 álbum(ns) • Ordenado por Mais vendidos
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The Complete Two as One
Jazz - Lançado por Red records em 9 de jun. de 2023
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
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Griot Liberte
Bebop - Lançado por HighNote Records em 15 de mai. de 2004
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Something More
Buster Williams, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Shunzo Ohno, Al Foster
Jazz - Lançado por IN+OUT Records em 1 de jan. de 1989
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Living with Swing (Live in Italy)
Massimo Faraò, Buster Williams, Jimmy Cobb
Bebop - Lançado por iMD-Riversound em 28 de fev. de 2021
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Legacy, Vol. 3: Why Shouldn't You Cry
Chet Baker, Wolfgang Lackerschmid
Jazz - Lançado por ENJA RECORDS Matthias Winckelmann em 28 de jul. de 1998
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Live Volume 1
Jazz - Lançado por Buster Williams em 1 de jan. de 2008
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
On Tour (Live)
Sphere, Charlie Rouse, Buster Williams, Ben Riley, Kenny Barron
Contemporary Jazz - Lançado por Red records em 1 de jan. de 1986
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Havin' Fun with Buster Williams and Ben Riley
Massimo Faraò, Buster Williams, Ben Riley
Jazz - Lançado por RACING JAZZ em 15 de jul. de 2023
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A beautiful friendship
Massimo Faraò, Buster Williams
Jazz - Lançado por Azzurra Music em 17 de jul. de 2023
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Love Light
Sathima Bea Benjamin, Billy Higgins, Buster Williams, Larry Willis, Ricky Ford
Jazz - Lançado por ENJA RECORDS Matthias Winckelmann em 1 de jan. de 1994
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Houdini
Jazz - Lançado por Silva Screen Records Ltd em 26 de jun. de 2001
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
I've Got the World on a String
Jazz - Lançado por Smoke Sessions em 29 de dez. de 2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Dreams Come True
Jazz - Lançado por UNIDISC MUSIC INC. em 1 de jan. de 1980
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dreams Come True (Digitally Remastered)
Jazz - Lançado por Essential Media Group em 20 de mai. de 2008
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Wisdom of Silence
Jazz - Lançado por Smoke Sessions em 12 de jan. de 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Dreams Come True
Jazz - Lançado por Essential Media Group em 20 de mai. de 2008
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Ain't Misbehavin'
Bebop - Lançado por Vanilla OMP em 29 de nov. de 2010
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
After the Rain
Franco Ambrosetti, Terri Lyne Carrington, Greg Osby, Gianluca Ambrosetti, Dado Moroni, Buster Williams
Jazz - Lançado por ENJA RECORDS Matthias Winckelmann em 28 de ago. de 2015
Qualidade de CD de 16 bits 44.1 kHz - Stereo