Clarence Williams (musician)
A jazz architect who built the bridge between New Orleans piano and the Harlem stride style as a player and publisher.
1893–1965 (age 72)·American jazz pianist, composer, producer, and publisher (1898 or 1893–1965)·Birthday: October 8·The Lost Generation
Biography
Clarence Williams was less a spotlight soloist and more a central switchboard in the early jazz ecosystem. A capable pianist with a rolling, blues-drenched style, his greater impact came from his entrepreneurial hustle. He was a publisher, record producer, talent scout, and bandleader who seemed to be everywhere at once in the 1920s and '30s. His publishing house, often run with his wife, singer Eva Taylor, aggressively copyrighted and promoted the work of countless musicians, including a young Fats Waller. As a session leader for Okeh Records, he presided over historic early recordings by Louis Armstrong, Sidney Bechet, and Bessie Smith, his name appearing on countless labels as a facilitator. His own groups, like the Blue Five, were incubators for new ideas, blending New Orleans polyphony with a tighter, more arranged feel that pointed toward swing. Williams operated in the vital space where art met commerce, ensuring the music of the era was documented, disseminated, and financially sustained.
The Lost Generation
1883–1900
Came of age during World War I. Disillusioned by the carnage, they rejected the certainties of the Victorian era and built modernism from the wreckage — in art, literature, and politics.
Clarence was born in 1893, placing them squarely in The Lost Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Clarence Was Born
The biggest hits of 1893
Clarence's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1893Born
World's Columbian Exposition dazzles Chicago
President: Grover Cleveland
1898Started school
Spanish-American War; US emerges as a world power
President: William McKinley
1906Became a teenager
San Francisco earthquake devastates the city
President: Theodore Roosevelt
1909Could drive
Robert Peary claims to reach the North Pole
President: William Howard Taft
1911Could vote
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire kills 146 in New York
President: William Howard Taft
1914Turned 21
World War I begins
President: Woodrow Wilson
1923Turned 30
The Great Kanto earthquake devastates Tokyo
President: Calvin Coolidge"Yes! We Have No Bananas" — Billy Jones
1933Turned 40
FDR's New Deal launches; Prohibition ends
Gas: $0.18/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Stormy Weather" — Ethel WatersBest Picture: Cavalcade
1943Turned 50
Allies invade Sicily; Battle of Stalingrad ends
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,290Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"I've Heard That Song Before" — Harry JamesBest Picture: Casablanca
1953Turned 60
DNA structure discovered by Watson and Crick
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,750Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Song from Moulin Rouge" — Percy FaithBest Picture: From Here to Eternity
1963Turned 70
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1965Died at 72
US sends combat troops to Vietnam
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,600Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" — The Rolling StonesBest Picture: The Sound of Music
Key Achievements
- Founded a successful music publishing company that held the copyrights to early jazz standards like 'Baby, Won't You Please Come Home.'
- Organized and led recording sessions for Okeh's 'race records' series, featuring legends like Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith.
- Composed or published numerous songs that became jazz standards, including 'Royal Garden Blues' and 'Sugar Blues.'
- Led influential early jazz groups like the Blue Five, which featured sidemen such as Sidney Bechet and Thomas Morris.
Did You Know?
He claimed to have sold the rights to his song 'Baby, Won't You Please Come Home' to a publisher for a mere $50.
He was married to blues and jazz singer Eva Taylor, who frequently performed and recorded with his groups.
Before music, he worked as a 'hotel patter'—a singer and entertainer who performed in hotel lobbies.
He is sometimes credited with 'discovering' Fats Waller, purchasing his first composition when Waller was a teenager.
“My talent was finding talent and putting the right musicians together to make a hit.”
