KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Jazz violinist Claude “Fiddler” Williams, who was part of Kansas City's thriving music scene during the swing era of the 1930s and enjoyed newfound popularity in his later years, died Sunday. He was 96.
Williams died at Research Medical Center, The Kansas City Star reported. His wife, Blanche, said he'd been hospitalized there since April 5 with pneumonia.
His wife said Williams had continued as an active musician, and until he was taken ill his schedule had included a masters class in California in August and a music camp in New Jersey in August and September.
Williams, who played the guitar, mandolin and bass as well as the violin, first came to Kansas City in 1928, joining the Twelve Clouds of Joy band led first by Terrence Holder and then Andy Kirk. He also played later with a band led by Alphonso Trent, which Williams said was “the first black big band allowed to play at white clubs in Oklahoma.”
After hearing him play in Chicago, Count Basie hired Williams to play both guitar and violin with his band. But when Basie moved his band to New York, Freddie Green replaced Williams as the guitarist, something which Williams was later to say turned out to be a good thing.
Williams played with various Kansas City bands until moving in 1940 to Michigan with George Lee, another well-known Kansas City musician.
“We put together a band of the common laborers there,” Williams said. “It finally broke up when several of the boys had to go into the service.”
Williams worked as a welder by day and musician at night, coming back to Kansas City in 1952.
In 1988 he was featured in the Broadway revue “Black and Blue,” focusing new attention on his skills, and in the early 1990s he was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame. He became a popular attraction at nightclubs and music festivals around the country and overseas.
Williams was among the performers at events during President Clinton's second inauguration in 1997. That same year he performed at the grand opening of Kansas City's American Jazz Museum, a show that was later televised nationally.
Williams died at Research Medical Center, The Kansas City Star reported. His wife, Blanche, said he'd been hospitalized there since April 5 with pneumonia.
His wife said Williams had continued as an active musician, and until he was taken ill his schedule had included a masters class in California in August and a music camp in New Jersey in August and September.
Williams, who played the guitar, mandolin and bass as well as the violin, first came to Kansas City in 1928, joining the Twelve Clouds of Joy band led first by Terrence Holder and then Andy Kirk. He also played later with a band led by Alphonso Trent, which Williams said was “the first black big band allowed to play at white clubs in Oklahoma.”
After hearing him play in Chicago, Count Basie hired Williams to play both guitar and violin with his band. But when Basie moved his band to New York, Freddie Green replaced Williams as the guitarist, something which Williams was later to say turned out to be a good thing.
Williams played with various Kansas City bands until moving in 1940 to Michigan with George Lee, another well-known Kansas City musician.
“We put together a band of the common laborers there,” Williams said. “It finally broke up when several of the boys had to go into the service.”
Williams worked as a welder by day and musician at night, coming back to Kansas City in 1952.
In 1988 he was featured in the Broadway revue “Black and Blue,” focusing new attention on his skills, and in the early 1990s he was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame. He became a popular attraction at nightclubs and music festivals around the country and overseas.
Williams was among the performers at events during President Clinton's second inauguration in 1997. That same year he performed at the grand opening of Kansas City's American Jazz Museum, a show that was later televised nationally.
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