Nelson "Cadillac" Williams

Nelson "Cadillac" Williams (September 26, 1917, Montgomery, Alabama – 1973, Voorburg, the Netherlands) was an American jazz trumpeter.

Williams began playing piano at age 13 and settled on trumpet soon afterwards; he may have played with blues pianist/singer Cow Cow Davenport while still a teenager. In the 1930s, he played in the territory bands Trianon Crackerjacks and Brown Skin Models, and acted as musical director for the Dixie Rhythm Girls. Around 1940, he left Alabama for Philadelphia, where he played with Tiny Bradshaw's band before joining the U.S. Army during World War II.

After the war, Billy Eckstine hired Williams, and following this he worked with John Kirby and pianist Billy Kyle. In 1949, he began the first of several stints with Duke Ellington, who bestowed upon him the nickname "Cadillac". In 1951, he left Ellington's employ and moved to Paris, where he led his own bands and recorded for French labels. He returned to Ellington in 1956, and played with him again in 1969 on a tour of Europe. He settled in the Netherlands, and died in 1973.

Birth and Death Data: Born September 26, 1917 (Montgomery), Died November 20, 1973 (Netherlands)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1951

Roles Represented in DAHR: trumpet

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Columbia CO45831 10-in. approximately 5/24/1951 Brown Betty Duke Ellington Orchestra ; Duke Ellington Jazz/dance band instrumentalist, trumpet  

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Williams, Nelson "Cadillac"," accessed November 13, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/362538.

Williams, Nelson "Cadillac". (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 13, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/362538.

"Williams, Nelson "Cadillac"." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 13 November 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/362538

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