DJ Chrisbe’s Song of the Week #59: Four Or Five Times

Another all-time favourite song of mine is Four Or Five Times and there are many versions out there to dig for. Here is a nice version by the great jazz vocalist Joe Williams.

Joe Williams (12.12.1918-29.03.1999) was born as Joseph Goreed and came as a child to Chicago where he got in contact with  the thriving music scene of the 1920s. During his mid-teens he started performing as a vocalist.

In 1938 he was invited by Jimmie Noone to sing with his band. Shortly later, he started touring with different bands. In 1942, he was hired by Lionel Hampton. They toured together for several years.

Joe Williams made his big breakthrough when he was hired as the male vocalist in 1954 by Count Basie. He remained with Basie until 1961 and had some major hits as jazz and blues singer.

After leaving the Count Basie Orchestra, Williams continued to have a successful career with his own band. He and Basie remained on good terms and he would regularly appear with the orchestra.

Joe Williams worked until his death in 1999 in Las Vegas.

Sources: Wikipedia

You can find the songs of the series also on my Spotify playlist. Official hashtag of the series: #djcsotw

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