Andre Williams

by Andrew Hamilton Multi-talented Zeffrey Andre Williams has worn many musical hats during his long career: recording artist, songwriter, producer, road manager, and so on. The Father of Rap was born November 1, 1936, in Chicago, IL, and was raised in a housing project by his mother, who died when Williams was six years old. Thereafter, Williams aunties raised the precocious lad who had already become quite the character. The R&B legend is best known for co-writing and producing Twine Time for Alvin Cash & the Crawlers, Shake a Tailfeather by the Five Dutones, and a greasy solo recording Bacon Fat, where Williams talked over a funky, crude rhythm. A slick, street-smart, dapper Dan, music was one of Williams hustles. He ventured to Detroit in his late teens and befriended Jack and Devora Brown, the owners of Fortune Records. He started singing with the Don Juans, a group in which the Browns titled their 45s according to whom the lead singer of the side was, something Gwen Gordy and Billy Davis later did with the Voicemasters. At Fortune, Williams became adept at putting songs together. To date he has more than 230 compositions registered with Broadcast Music Incorporated. In 1956, Fortune issued seven singles by Williams, all but two with co-billing with the Don Juans: Going Down to Tia Juana, Its All Over, Bacon Fat, Mean Jean, Jail Bait, The Greasy Chicken, and Country Girl. Bacon Fat, and Jail Bait were solo shots, the former got a boost from Epic Records, who took over the distribution when the demand got too great for Fortune to handle. Fortune also released Ooh Ooh Those Eyes by Don Lake & the Don Juans and two by pianist Joe Weaver & the Don Juans, Baby I Love You and Baby Child, in 1956. Little Eddie & the Don Juans recorded the first Don Juans record on Fortune, This Is a Miracle b/w Calypso Beat, in 1955. Williams later sang with the Five Dollars, who released records on Fortune from 1956 to 1957, and were billed as Andre Williams & the Five Dollars on a 1960 release. Doing his Fortune stint, Williams kept busying playing the popular clubs in Detroit and other locales, including the Flamingo Club in Memphis, TN. His biggest solo hit, Bacon Fat, occurred during a drive to Memphis Flamingo Club. When he got back to Detroit he persuaded Devora Brown to book a session. Fortunes recording studio was in the back room of a record shop the Browns owned. Bacon Fat was Williams third single for Fortune; he didnt even have the lyrics written, but hurried and did so on a napkin while Ms. Brown busied herself setting up the studio mics. Thank God for DJ Frantic Eddie Durham, who observed the session. He was the only one down with what was going on. Everyone else, including Joe Weaver, thought Williams was wasting time and money with this talk-singing. Williams and Durham proved them wrong when Bacon Fat took off, becoming, with The Wind by Nolan Strong & the Diablos, Fortunes most popular record. Williams starting talking instead of singing because he knew he couldnt compete vocally with the Nolan Strong, Clyde McPhatter, Little Willie John, Jackie Wilson, and others. He created a new style that was later adapted by Harvey Fuqua (Any Way You Wanna), Jerry-O, Shorty Long, Bootsy Collins, and others. After Fortune, Williams languished with Berry Gordy and Motown from 1961 to 1965. He signed as an artist, producer, and writer. His only 45, Rosa Lee b/w Shoo Ooo, was scheduled for release on Gordys short-lived Miracle label but never was. Gina Parks, a friend from the Don Juans, enjoyed a couple more solo releases on Motowns labels but none scored. Williams co-wrote Little Stevie Wonders first record, Thank You for Loving Me; Oh Little Boy What You Do to Me, the flip of Mary Wells My Guy; an early Eddie Holland single, It Cleopatra Took a Chance; and Mo Jo Hanah, recorded first by Henry Lumpkin, then Marvin Gaye (outside of Motown its been remade by Tami Lynn, the Ideals, the Neville Brothers, and others). His relationship with Berry Gordy was one of mutual respect but stormy. He never conformed to Gordys way of doing things, and the four years he spent at Motown werent consecutive months. When Williams got under Gordys skin, the Gordy fired him; Williams would leave for a few months and produce a hit on someone for another label, and Gordywould invite him back. Williams was still associating with Motown when he masterminded Shake a Tail Feather on the Five Dutones, and Twine Time, for Alvin Cash & the Crawlers for George Leaners Onederful Records in Chicago. Williams cut a lot of tracks on the Contours, by his estimate he supervised at least two albums worth of material on the wild, raucous, dancing group, but few were released. During this time Williams co-wrote Girls Are Getting Prettier, a non-hit for Edwin Starr on Ric Tic Records. At one point, Williams was Starrs road manager. By 1965 Williams left Motown for good to sign with Chicagos Chess Records and had a string of R&B releases including The Stroke, Girdle Up, Humpin Bumpin & Thumpin, and Cadillac Jack. His legend grew. A nefarious character but a good entertainer, Williams wore lavender suits, and continued to entertain crowds at bucket-of-blood type establishments. He produced and wrote for more acts then he remembers, including The Funky Judge by Bull & the Matadors on Toddlin Town Records. A 18-month stint with Ike Turner led to Williams hitting rock bottom; after the experience he returned to Chicago a full-blown street junkie and was on the verge of self-destruction for years. His biggest period as an artist was around 1960 when Fortune released the LP Jail Bait. He contributed to many sessions including Parliament, Jesse James, Funkadelic, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Spinners, Trey Lewd (George Clintons son), and Amos Milburn. He produced tracks on Mary Wells when she left Motown for 20th Century Fox Records. Williams now lives in Queens, NY and is back active in the business of music. He performs at much better venues then he did during his Jail Bait years, and still dazzles audiences with his swagger and loud pimp-ish wardrobe. Hes released more albums in the last few years than he did the first 40 years of his career, including Silky in the Red, Fat Back & Corn Liquor on St. George, and Directly From the Streets on SDE Records. The Black Godfather followed in the spring of 2000.