Chocolate Williams '' was an American jazz bassist and vocalist based in New York City. He was a prolific performer of jazz, and, notably, performed and recorded with Art Tatum in 1941 and Herbie Nichols in 1952.
Selected career highlights
Williams performed with the Cotton Club Tramp Band, Rex Stewart Combo, Herbie Nichols, Art Tatum, his own trio, the Three Chocolates, and his own jazz combo, Chocolate Williams and His Chocolateers. Williams was the founding leader of The Three Chocolates. The other two original members were guitarist Jerome Darr :de:Jerome Darr|, who went on to perform with Jonah Jones, and pianist Bill Spotswood. Throughout the 1940s and mid-fifties, The Three Chocolates played at clubs along the Eastern Seaboard and the Midwest and were favorites in many swank Harlemafter-hour spots. In late 1943, The Three Chocolates performed at the Onyx Club on 52nd Street for seven months, the Famous Door for five months, and, before that, Kelly's Stables. Bassist Earl May :de:Earl May|, who substituted for Williams at Minton's, succeeded him when he stopped playing there. ; Semi-retirement After his semi-retirement in 1955, Chocolate Williams worked as a messenger for CBS and retired in 1974. ; Residences He was born in Augusta, Georgia in 1916, and lived there until at least 1930. Williams lived at 60 West 142nd Street in the Sugar Hill area of Harlem when he died in 1984.
"Knockin' Myself Out", with Tatum on piano and Williams singing, refers to reefer and its local supplier:
"There'll Be Some Changes Made", was recorded in 1941 on acetate discs by an amateur, a Columbia Student, Jerry Newman , and released in the 1973. Newman's collection was the initial sole material used to launch the jazz label, Onyx Recording, Inc. , a New York entity co-founded in 1972 by Don Schlitten and Joe Fields.
Selected lyrics
Collaborators
Percy Brice '' :de:Percy Brice|, drummer, performed with Chocolate Williams after-hours at Minton's from 1953 to 1954.
Family
Among his survivors are: his son, Tony Davis; a sister, Alberta Bloomer, a niece, Jennifer Riley; a nephew and 15 grandnieces and nephews. ; Parents
Mother: Jennie '', who was married to Robert Williams, Sr., and, later, Edward Bolden
The Chocolate Steppers, dancers from the early-1930s
The Three Chocolate Drops, dancers from the early-1930s
Three Chocolateers, acrobatic danceers and vocalists, who, among other things, performed "Peckin'" in the 1937 film, New Faces of 1937; originally from the West Coast, but performed famously in Harlem, notably at the Apollo Theater and Cotton Club; possible original members: Al Bert "Gip" Gipson, Paul Black, known for his Chinese splits, and Eddie West, with James Buster Brown replacing West for a short period of time
Garrott Chocolateers a radio orchestra out of Pittsburgh, formerly Garrott's Chocolate Soldiers
Nestle Chocolateers, singers sponsored by the company, initially broadcast from Pittsburgh beginning September 5, 1930, running through 1934, and hosted by Helen Morgan
George Dawson's Chocolateers, guitarist Dawson formed this Detroit group in 1935 as the house band at the Chocolate Bar in Detroit; They made a few recordings for Paradise Records in late 1947
