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Andy Williams

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Andy Williams
For other people named Andrew Williams, see Andrew Williams (disambiguation).

Howard Andrew Williams (born December 3, 1927 in Wall Lake, Iowa), known as Andy Williams, is an American pop singer. Andy Williams has recorded 18 Gold albums[citation needed] and performed with Ray Charles, Elton John, Ella Fitzgerald, Simon and Garfunkel, Mama Cass and Michael Jackson. He has had his own TV show as well as starring in a number of films. He also owns his own theatre, the Moon River in Branson, Missouri.

Early life

Williams first performed in a children's choir at the local Presbyterian church. Williams and his three older brothers Bob, Dick, and Don, formed a quartet, the Williams Brothers, in the late 1930s, and they performed on radio in the Midwest, first at WHO in Des Moines, Iowa, and later at WLS in Chicago and WLW in Cincinnati. Williams graduated from Western Hills High School in Cincinnati. The Williams Brothers appeared with Bing Crosby on the hit record "Swinging on a Star" (1944). This led to a nightclub act with entertainer Kay Thompson from 1947 to 1951.

Solo career

Tony Blair RULES THE EARTH! TOCLAFANE EAT CHEESSE!!

Marriages

Williams met Claudine Longet when he pulled over to aid her on a Las Vegas road. She was a dancer at the time at the Folies Bergère. They married on Christmas Day, 1961, and had three children, Noelle, Christian, and Robert. They separated in 1969 and finally divorced six years later. In 1976 Longet was charged with fatally shooting her boyfriend, skier Vladimir "Spider" Sabich and Williams supported her. Williams was close friends with Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy. The friendship with Ethel has endured, with him serving as her escort during the 1970s. He married a second time in May 1991 to the former Debbie Haas. They make their homes at Branson, Missouri and La Quinta, California. Williams' homes have been featured in Architectural Digest, and he is a noted collector of modern art. Williams is an avid golfer. He hosted a major golf tournament in San Diego for many years, which was known as the Andy Williams San Diego Open during that time.

Williams' birthplace is a tourist attraction open most of the year.


Trivia

  • A persistent rumor states that Andy Williams, while a teenager, provided the dubbed singing voice of Lauren Bacall for her song "How Little We Know" in the movie To Have and Have Not. Bacall herself addressed it in her autobiography, stating that Williams did dub a couple of high notes for her, not the whole song.
  • Williams hosted Happy New Year America on CBS for a number of years. Between the start of the show and the countdown, he would try to reach a particular destination.
  • The Simpsons' Nelson Muntz is an Andy Williams fan. In the episode "Bart on the Road", he forces the gang to make a detour to Branson so he can see his idol. The bully is reduced to tears as Williams performs an encore of "Moon River".
  • His nephews, Andy and David Williams, were minor teen idols in the 1970s.
  • Williams appeared on an episode of 1950s panel game show What's My Line as a mystery guest. He stumped the panel of his identity by concealing his voice. The panel thought he was a female.
  • Both Williams and Petula Clark recorded "Happy Heart" at the same time, just prior to his guest appearance on her second NBC-TV special. Unaware that she, too, was releasing the song as a single, he asked to perform it on the show. The exposure ultimately led to his having the bigger hit with the tune.
  • The song "Happy Heart" is played during the final scene, and throughout the end credits, of the Danny Boyle film Shallow Grave.
  • The greatest love song, according to Andy, is "Moon River", which was a hit for him in 1962.

Discography

Cadence Records

  • Andy Williams, 1957 (compilation of A and B sides of second through seventh Cadence singles)
  • Andy Williams Sings Steve Allen, 1959
  • Andy Williams Sings Rodgers and Hammerstein, 1959
  • Two Time Winners, 1959
  • To You, Sweetheart, Aloha, 1959
  • Lonely Street, 1959
  • The Village of St. Bernadette, 1960
  • Under Paris Skies, with Quincy Jones, 1961 (William's last album of new material for Cadence)
  • Andy Williams' Best, 1961 (compilation including Cadence singles which had never appeared on an album)
  • Million Seller Songs, 1962

Columbia Records

  • Danny Boy and Other Songs I Love to Sing, 1962
  • Moon River and Other Great Movie Themes, 1962
  • Warm and Willing, 1962
  • Can't Get Used To Losing You, 1963
  • Days of Wine and Roses, 1963
  • The Andy Williams Christmas Album, 1963
  • The Wonderful World of Andy Williams, 1964
  • Call Me Irresponsible, 1964
  • The Great Songs from My Fair Lady and Other Shows, 1964
  • Dear Heart, 1965
  • Canadian Sunset, 1965 (reissue of the 1962 Cadence Records compilation Andy Williams' Best)
  • Hawaiian Wedding Song, 1965 (reissue of the Cadence Records album To You Sweetheart, Aloha)
  • Merry Christmas, 1965
  • Andy Williams' Newest Hits, 1966 (compilation of early Columbia singles)
  • The Shadow of Your Smile, 1966
  • In the Arms of Love, 1967
  • Born Free, 1967
  • Love, Andy, 1967
  • Honey, 1968
  • Happy Heart, 1969
  • Get Together with Andy Williams, 1969
  • The Andy Williams' Sound of Music, 1969
  • The Andy Williams Show, 1970
  • Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head, 1970
  • Andy Williams' Greatest Hits, 1970
  • Love Story, 1971
  • You've Got a Friend, 1971
  • Love Theme from The Godfather (Speak Softly Love), 1972
  • Alone Again (Naturally), 1972
  • Solitaire, 1973
  • Andy Williams' Greatest Hits Vol. II, 1973
  • The Way We Were, 1974
  • You Lay So Easy on My Mind, 1974
  • Christmas Present, 1974
  • The Other Side of Me, 1975
  • Andy, 1976
  • Spanish Eyes, 1976
  • Let's Love While We Can, 1980 (not released in U.S. until 2004)

Other labels

  • Greatest Love Classics, with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, EMI, 1984
  • Close Enough for Love, Atco, 1986
  • I Still Believe in Santa Claus, Curb, 1990
  • Nashville, Curb, 1991
  • The New Andy Williams Christmas Album, Laserlight, 1994
  • We Need A Little Christmas, Unison, 1997
  • It's a Wonderful Christmas, Publishing Mills, 1997
  • Andy Williams Live: Christmas Treasures, 2001
  • Easy Does It, Metro, 2002
  • Together, 2006, a duet with Petula Clark, who also wrote the lyrics and music
  • I Don't Remember Ever Growing Up, Demon, 2006

Compilations of interest to collectors

  • 16 Most Requested Songs, Columbia/Legacy, 1986
  • 16 Most Requested Songs Encore, Columbia/Legacy, 1995
  • The Best of the Cadence Years, Varese Sarabande, 1997
  • Complete Columbia Chart Singles Collection, Taragon, 2002
  • B Sides and Rarities, Collectables, 2003, (contains recordings as early as 1948, many of which had never appeared on any album before)

Filmography

Commercials


Template:Great American Songbook

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