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Joe Williams (born Joseph Goreed; December 12, 1918 – March 29, 1999) was an American jazz singer. He sang with big bands, such as the Count Basie Orchestra and the Lionel Hampton Orchestra, and with small combos. He sang in two films with the Basie orchestra and sometimes worked as an actor.
He was a favourite of Johnny Carson and acted on Moonshine War, The Cosby Show and Lou Grant. Williams sang with the Basie orchestra in two films, Jamboree in 1957 and Cinderfella in 1960.
He also acted in the movie The Moonshine War (1970) and on such television series as The Cosby Show (1985–92) and Lou Grant (1982). He won the 1984 Grammy Award for best jazz vocal performance with the album Nothin’ but the Blues .
Joe’s fame grew when Billy Cosby cast him as Heathcliff Huxtable’s father-in-law “Grandpa Al” Hanks in a recurring role on The Cosby Show in the 1980s. In 1975 Joe’s brother Nat Adderley composed the music for Big Man , a nearly hour long theatre piece about John Henry, the mythical black hero.
29 maj 2018 · Williams has also dabbled in acting, playing the role of Claire Huxtable ’ s father, Grandpa AI, on The Cosby Show. Williams was born Joseph Goreed in the small farming town of Cordele, deep in the heart of Georgia , on December 12, 1918.
9 maj 2003 · One night in 1954, during an intermission in his own show with Dr. Jo Jo Adams, Williams stole a few minutes to hear Count Basie’s band at the Trianon Ballroom. He had sat in with the Basie band years earlier, but now Basie was looking for a full-time singer.
Joe Williams, the baritone jazz singer famous for his collaborations with Count Basie, died on Monday at the age of 80. Williams collapsed on a Las Vegas street after leaving the hospital where...
