The Royal Flush band continued to play at the Savoy while he was in Chicago. Williams was also the uncle of modern jazz great Charles Mingus. Mingus invited his uncle to perform a set in his 1962 Town Hall concert in New York. Williams assembled a seven piece band that included some of Williams’ old band mates as well as members of Mingus’ band including Eric Dolphy. Williams’ demonstration of his “circular breathing” alto saxophone technique which allowed him to hold notes indefinitely was a real crowd pleaser. This concert is available on the Blue Note CD The Complete Town Hall Concert unfortunately it doesn’t include Williams’ portion of the show.
Thanks to Rene Greblo, Bob Palmer and Robert English for his help with the recordings on this page.
| Title | Recording Date | Recording Location | Company |
| A Few Riffs (Fess Williams) |
4-17-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38064-A |
| Ain’t Misbehavin’ (From “Connie’s Hot Chocolates”) (Andy Razaf / Fats Waller / Harry Brooks) |
9-20-1929 | Camden, New Jersey | Victor 55929-3 |
| All For Grits And Gravy (Sidney Easton) |
7-10-1930 | New York, New York | Victor 23025-A |
| Alligator Crawl (Andy Razaf / Fats Waller) |
6-15-1927 | New York, New York | Vocalion 1117 Brunswick 3589-B |
| Atlanta Black Bottom (Dickerson / Robinson) |
11-18-1926 | New York, New York | Vocalion A 1058 Vocalion 15492 |
| Betsy Brown (George Temple) |
5-16-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38062-B |
| Big Shot (Fess Williams / Hank Duncan) |
5-15-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38128 |
| Buttons (Stanley Bennett) |
9-20-1929 | Camden, New Jersey | Victor V-38095-B |
| Caroline Vocal Chorus, “Fess” Williams (Yellman / Squires) |
12-3-1925 | New York, New York | Gennett 3210-A |
| Caroline (Yellman / Squires) |
5-6-1926 | New York, New York | Okeh 8322 |
| Dinah (Sam M. Lewis / Joe Young / Harry Akst) |
7-31-1930 | Camden, New Jersey | Victor 23005-B |
| Do Shuffle (1) (Kenneth A. Roane) |
4-22-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38064-B |
| Do Shuffle (3) (Kenneth A. Roane) |
4-22-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38064-B |
| Everything’s O.K. With Me (Davis / Coots) |
7-23-1930 | New York, New York | Victor 23003-B |
| Everything’s O.K. With Me (Davis / Coots) |
7-31-1930 | Camden, New Jersey | Victor 23003-B |
| Friction (Fess Williams) |
4-22-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38056-A Bluebird B-6546-B |
| Gambler’s Blues (Moore / Baxter) |
2-25-1927 | New York, New York | Vocalion 1087 |
| Goin’ To Getcha (Fess Williams) |
12-6-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38106-B |
| Green River Blues (Arthur Schutt) |
10-2-1925 | New York, New York | Gennett 3182-B |
| Heebie Jeebies (Atkins / Jones) |
10-1-1926 | New York, New York | Brunswick 3351-B |
| Heebie Jeebies (Atkins / Jones) |
10-1-1926 | New York, New York | Vocalion 1054 |
| Here ‘Tis (Fess Williams) |
4-17-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38056-B |
| Her Smiling Face | 12-6-1929 | New York, New York | Victor unissued |
| High Fever (Joe Sanders) |
11-18-1926 | New York, New York | Vocalion B 1058 |
| Hot Mama (Jelly James) |
4-18-1930 | New York, New York | Victor 22864-B |
| Hot Town (Fess Williams) |
4-17-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38077-A Bluebird B-6431-B |
| Ida, Sweet As Apple Cider (Eddie Leonard) |
7-23-1930 | New York, New York | Victor 23005-A |
| I’m Feeling Devilish (Maceo Pinkhard) |
4-18-1930 | New York, New York | Victor V-38131-B |
| It’s Breaking My Heart To Keep Away From You (Romm / Squires) |
6-8-1926 | New York, New York | Gennett 3336-B Champion 15120-B |
| I Wasn’t Scared, But I Just Thought That I Had Better Go | 2-25-1927 | New York, New York | Vocalion 1087 |
| Just To Be With You Tonight (Fusman / Samuels / Sandry) |
7-31-1930 | Camden, New Jersey | Victor 23003-A |
| Kentucky Blues (Walter Brown) |
4-22-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38077 |
| ‘Leven-Thirty Saturday Night (Jess Kirkpatrick / Earl Burtnett / Bill Grantham) |
4-18-1930 | New York, New York | Victor V-38131-A |
| Make Me Know It (Williams / Squires) |
5-6-1926 | New York, New York | Okeh 3210 |
| Make Me Know It (1) (singing by Fess Williams) (Williams / Squires) |
5-24-1926 | New York, New York | Harmony 189-H |
| Make Me Know It (2) (singing by Fess Williams) (Williams / Squires) |
5-24-1926 | New York, New York | Harmony 189-H |
| Messin’ Around (Johnny St Cyr / Doc Cooke) |
10-1-1926 | New York, New York | Vocalion 1054 |
| Messin’ Around (Johnny St Cyr / Doc Cooke) |
10-1-1926 | New York, New York | Brunswick 3351-A |
| Musical Campmeeting (Fess Williams) |
9-20-1929 | Camden, New Jersey | Victor V-38095-A |
| My Pretty Girl | 2-12-1927 | New York, New York | Vocalion 1085 |
| My Mamas In Town (2) (Panico / Hirsch / Nuzio) |
5-24-1926 | New York, New York | Harmony 189-H |
| My Mamas In Town (3) (Panico / Hirsch / Nuzio) |
5-24-1926 | New York, New York | Harmony 189-H |
| Nobody But My Baby Is Getting My Love | 11-30-1926 | New York, New York | Victor unissued |
| Number Ten | 6-24-1927 | New York, New York | Brunswick 3596-B |
| Ozark Blues (In Yale Blues Time) | 6-15-1927 | New York, New York | Vocalion 1117 Brunswick 3589-A |
| Playing My Saxophone (Fess Williams) |
7-10-1930 | New York, New York | Victor 24153-A |
| Phantom Blues | 3-28-1927 | New York, New York | Brunswick 3532-B Vocalion 15550 |
| Razor Edge | 6-24-1927 | New York, New York | Brunswick 3596-A |
| Sell It (Fess Williams) |
5-16-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38062-A |
| She’s Still Dizzy (George Temple) |
4-18-1930 | New York, New York | Victor 23025-B |
| Slide, Mr. Jelly Slide (Fess Williams) |
12-6-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38106-A |
| Snag Nasty | 5-15-1929 | New York, New York | Victor V-38128 |
| Some Other Time Vocal Chorus, “Fess” Williams (Davis / Squires) |
12-3-1925 | New York, New York | Gennett 3210-B |
| Sweet Savannah Sue (From “Connie’s Hot Chocolates”) (Andy Razaf / Fats Waller / Harry Brooks) |
9-20-1929 | Camden, New Jersey | Victor V-38085 |
| Variety Stomp (Henderson / Green / Trent) |
3-28-1927 | New York, New York | Brunswick 3532-A |
| What Did Romie-O-Juliet | 11-30-1926 | New York, New York | Victor unissued |
| White Ghost Shivers | 2-12-1927 | New York, New York | Vocalion 1085 |
| Wimmin – Aaah! (Bud Green / Harry Warren / Dan Dougherty) |
2-19-1925 | New York, New York | Gennett 3259-B |
| You Can’t Go Wrong (Fess Williams) |
7-10-1930 | New York, New York | Victor 24153-B |
| Ya Got To Know How To Love (Warren / Green) |
6-8-1926 | New York, New York | Gennett 3336-A Champion 15118-A |
| Artist | Instrument |
| Ralph Bedell | Drums |
| Ollie Blackwell | Banjo |
| Ralph Brown | Alto Saxophone |
| Emanuel Casamore | Tuba |
| Emanuel Clark | Trumpet |
| Henry Duncan | Piano |
| Felix Gregory | Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone |
| Bobby Holmes | Clarinet, Alto Saxophone |
| David “Jelly” James | Trombone |
| Lockwood Lewis | Clarinet, Alto Saxophone |
| Frank Marvin | Vocals |
| Otto Mikell | Clarinet, Alto Saxophone |
| Andy Pendleton | Banjo |
| Walter “Fats” Pichon | Piano |
| Kenneth Roane | Trumpet |
| Perry Smith | Clarinet, Tenor Saxophone, Vocals |
| George Temple | Trumpet |
| Clinton Walker | Tuba |
| Professor Stanley Williams | Alto Saxophone, Clarinet, Vocals, Leader |
Redhotjazz.com was a pioneering website during the "Information wants to be Free" era of the 1990s. In that spirit we are recovering the lost data from the now defunct site and sharing it with you.
Most of the music in the archive is in the form of MP3s hosted on Archive.org or the French servers of Jazz-on-line.com where this music is all in the public domain.
Files unavailable from those sources we host ourselves. They were made from original 78 RPM records in the hands of private collectors in the 1990s who contributed to the original redhotjazz.com. They were hosted as .ra files originally and we have converted them into the more modern MP3 format. They are of inferior quality to what is available commercially and are intended for reference purposes only. In some cases a Real Audio (.ra) file from Archive.org will download. Don't be scared! Those files will play in many music programs, but not Windows Media Player.
