Nathan Williams
Williams performing at the Thirsty Ear Festival Santa Fe, New Mexico in 2009
Background information
Birth nameNathan Williams
Born (1963-03-24) March 24, 1963
St. Martinville, Louisiana, U.S.
GenresZydeco, blues
Occupation(s)Musician, singer, songwriter
Instrument(s)Accordion, vocals
Years active1985–present
LabelsRounder, Cha Cha Records
Spouse(s)Nancy Calais Williams (m.1986)
Websitezydecochachas.com

Nathan Williams Sr. (born March 24, 1963)[1] is an American zydeco accordionist, singer and songwriter. He established his band Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas in 1985.

Early life

Williams grew up Catholic[2] in a French Creole-speaking home in St. Martinville, Louisiana, the youngest of seven children. Williams lost his father when he was seven years old.[3]

He developed his musical sensibility in his hometown, a place rich in folk tradition, following in the footsteps of his uncle, the Creole guitarist Harry Hypolite, who was a band member with both Clifton Chenier and later with his son C. J. Chenier.[4] The young Williams eagerly sought out the music of zydeco originators such as Chenier. When he was too young to attend a Chenier dance at a St. Martinville club, he hovered by the window-sized fan at the back of the building to hear his idol, only to have the bill of his baseball cap clipped off by the fan when he leaned too close.[5]

When he was 13,[6] Williams moved to Lafayette, Louisiana to live with his older brother Sid and his wife. He worked in Sid's grocery store. Later, while recovering from a serious illness, Nathan decided to dedicate himself to learning the accordion. He began practicing in the bathroom because he did not want anyone to hear him play. His main mentor was Buckwheat Zydeco, although his biggest influence was Chenier.[7] Sid Williams purchased his brother's first accordion from Buckwheat Zydeco.[8]

Career

Williams in 2022

Williams began playing professionally around the age of 21.[6] Just five years after graduating from high school, Williams was recording 45s on his brother's El Sid independent record label.[3] Sid opened a club in Lafayette, El-Sid-O's, and Nathan became a regular Friday night performer there.[8]

Williams got his lucky break after Buckwheat Zydeco had left Rounder Records for Island Records. Rounder was in need of an accordionist to fill a spot on a project they had lined up. Buckwheat Zydeco suggested Williams for the position; he auditioned and got the recording contract. In 1985, he formed his band, Nathan & the Zydeco Cha-Chas, with which he plays to this day.[3][9] Williams named the band after a Chenier instrumental song.[10] In 1988, Williams and the band performed for the first time at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.[11]

The Cha Chas played at the New Orleans Rock n' Bowl for the first time in November 1992. After their successful performances as well as those by John Delafose and Beau Jocques, the venue began to host zydeco bands every Thursday night beginning in spring 1993.[12] In 1997, Williams released a live album recorded at the club, titled I'm a Zydeco Hog: Live at the Rock 'N' Bowl, New Orleans. Nathan and the Zydeco Cha Chas performed at the 30th anniversary celebration of the venue in November 2018.[12]

Early in his career, The New York Times wrote that the then-25 year old Williams was "poised to become important; already he is being mentioned as one of the people revitalizing the genre".[13] A few months later, the newspaper described him as "rightly considered one of the best young zydeco musicians in Louisiana".[14]

His musical style combines elements of zydeco, jazz, blues and R&B. Williams writes most of the band's original tunes.[15]

For more than three decades, Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas have toured widely, performing at venues as diverse as his brother's convenience store in Lafayette, Louisiana to the Lincoln Center in New York and the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee.[16][17] The Cha Chas performed at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Internationally, he has performed in Austria, Spain, France, Japan, the Netherlands, Turkey and Germany,[18] among others. They were the first zydeco band to perform in Poland.[19]

From its inception, the band has included members of the Williams family, with Nathan on accordion and lead vocals, older brother Dennis Paul Williams on guitar, first cousin Mark Anthony ("Chukka") Williams on rubboard, and brother Sid as manager.[5][16] Other Williams family band members have included his son, accordionist and keyboardist Nathan Williams Jr., cousin Allen Williams on bass, nephew Djuan on rubboard and accordion. Non-family band members have included bassists Paul Newman and Wayne Burns, drummers Herman "Rat" Brown and Gerard St. Julien Jr., Clifford Alexander on rubboard, and Allen "Cat Roy" Broussard on saxophones.[3][5][9]

On his 1995 album Creole Crossroads, Williams teamed up with Cajun fiddler Michael Doucet from the band BeauSoleil. At the time, collaborations between zydeco and Cajun musicians were rare.[6]

In 2008, Williams played accordion on Buddy Guy's album Skin Deep.[20]

In 2013, he founded his own record label, Cha Cha Records,[19] which releases albums by both Williams Sr. and Williams Jr.[21]

In 2022, Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas toured with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, playing 30 dates across the United States, promoted as the Mardi Gras Mambo Tour.[22]

Nathan & the Zydeco Cha-Chas were nominated for a 2023 Grammy Award in the Best Regional Roots Music Album category, for Lucky Man.[23]

Personal life

When he is not touring, Williams runs a trucking company named Cha Cha Hot Shot Service that hauls equipment for the Louisiana oil and gas industry.[19]

Williams met his future wife Nancy when he was 16 years old. They were high school sweethearts. He said "Once I met her, that was it. I have a nice wife, a nice family. I make a decent living. I enjoy what I'm doing."[24] The couple have three children.[18]

Nathan Williams Jr. began performing with the Cha Chas at age 3, playing the rubboard.[25] He released his debut album Zydeco Ballin' in 2002, at age 14. Since then, he has led his own band, Lil' Nathan and the Zydeco Big Timers, playing accordion and keyboards.[26]

Williams' youngest son Naylan is also a musician and record producer. He played most of the instruments on his father's 2022 album Lucky Man.[27]

His older brother Dennis Paul Williams, in addition to being a jazz and zydeco guitarist, is a well-known visual artist, whose mixed media works have been exhibited in multiple U.S. cities and in Europe. His paintings were featured in a 2013 book titled Soul Exchange[28] and appear on the covers of two books by poet John Warner Smith.[29]

Discography

Studio and live albums

Album title Record label Stock number Release year
Zydeco Live!: Direct From Richard's Club, Lawtell, Louisiana (with Boozoo Chavis) Rounder CD 2069 1989
Steady Rock Rounder CD 2092 1989
Your Mama Don't Know Rounder CD 2107 1991
Follow Me Chicken Rounder CD 2122 1993
Creole Crossroads (featuring Michael Doucet) Rounder CD 2137 1995
I'm A Zydeco Hog: Live at the Rock 'N' Bowl, New Orleans Rounder CD 2143 1997
Let's Go Rounder 11661-2159-2 2000
Hang It High, Hang It Low Rounder 11661-2164-2 2006
Live at the 2011 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival MunckMix <unknown> 2011
Live at the 2012 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival MunckMix <unknown> 2012
Live at the 2013 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival MunckMix <unknown> 2013
A New Road Cha Cha Records CCR-0005 2013
Lucky Man Cha Cha Records 2022
Like Father, Like Son (Live at Rock 'N' Bowl de Lafayette) Cha Cha Records 2022

Singles

Song title(s) Album title Record label Stock number Release year Note(s)
"If You Got A Problem" / "Tonight's The Night" (performed by Sara Dow) Steady Rock / <unknown> Maison de Soul 45-1054 1989? 7", 45 RPM
"I Got The Zydeco Blues (Down in My Shoes)" / "Everybody Calls Me Crazy (But My Name Is Nathan Williams)" <unknown> El Sid O's Records ES-100 <unknown> 7", 45 RPM
"Bye Bye My Little Moma" / "Louisiana Waltz" <unknown> El Sid O's Records ES-101 <unknown> 7", 45 RPM

Various artist compilation albums

Album title Record label Stock number Release year Song title(s)
101 Proof Zydeco Maison de Soul MDS 1030 1990 "If You Got a Problem"
Mardi Gras Party Rounder CD-11567 1991 "Mardi Gras Zydeco"
Alligator Stomp: Cajun & Zydeco Classics, Vol. 3 Rhino R2 70312 1992 "El Sid O's Zydeco Boogaloo"
Cajun Music and Zydeco Rounder CD 11572 1992 "Slow Horses and Fast Women"
Stomp Down Zydeco Rounder CD 11566 1992 "You're My Mule"
"Everything on the Hog"
Zydeco Party K-Tel International 60592 1992 "Your Mama Don't Know"
The Best of Louisiana Music Rounder CD AN 08 1993 "Your Mama Don't Know"
Alligator Stomp: Cajun & Zydeco, The Next Generation, Vol. 5 Rhino R2 71846 1995 "Zydeco Road"
Louisiana Spice: 25 Years of Louisiana Music on Rounder Records Rounder CD AN 18/19 1995 "Outside People"
More Cajun Music and Zydeco Rounder CD 11573 1995 "Follow Me, Chicken"
The Real Music Box: 25 Years of Rounder Records Rounder CD AN 25 1995 "Outside People"
The Rounder Christmas Album: Must Be Santa! Rounder 3118 1995 "I Don't Want You Just for Christmas"
The Royal Family of Zydeco Rock 'n Bowl (Rounder Records) CD 1001 1995 "Your Mama Don't Know"
"Follow Me Chicken"
"Zydeco Road"
Bayou Dance Party Rounder CD 7014 1996 "Outside People"
The Real Louisiana EasyDisc ED 9002 1996 "Slow Horses and Fast Women"
Zydeco's Greatest Hits EasyDisc ED CD 7025 1996 "Your Mama Don't Know"
"Follow Me Chicken"
Bayou Beat EasyDisc EDCD 7053 1997 "El Sid O's Zydeco Boogaloo"
Hey Mardi Gras! EasyDisc 7015 1997 "Mardi Gras Zydeco"
Mardi Gras Party Time! K-Tel International 3680 1997 "Zydeco Road"
Southern Gumbo: The Best of New Orleans R&B, Soul and Zydeco on Rounder Records Rounder (UK release) BR1 1997 "Hey Yie Yie" (feat. Michael Doucet)
Cajun & Zydeco Festival EasyDisc ED CD 7067 1998 "Zydeco Road"
Rough Guide to Cajun and Zydeco World Music Network (UK) RGNET 1028 CD 1998 "Slow Horses and Fast Women"
Zydeco Barnyard EasyDisc 367070 1998 "Everything on the Hog"
"You're My Mule"
"Zydeco Hog"
Zydeco Fever! Nascente (UK) NSCD 029 1998 "Black Gal"
Zydeco Party EasyDisc ED CD 7045 1998 "Festival Zydeco"
Zydeco Stomp: All Instrumental Rounder ED CD 7065 1998 "El Sid O's Zydeco Boogaloo"
Allons en Louisiane Rounder 11161-60993-2 1999 "Hey Bébé"
Cajun Heat Zydeco Beat EasyDisc 367077 1999 "Zydeco Hog"
Discover the Rhythms of Cajun/Zydeco Drum 8568272 2000 "Alligator"
Louisiana Music Sampler Putumayo World Music PUT932-5 2000 "I'm in Love"
Music from the Zydeco Kingdom Rounder Select 11579 2000 "Everything on the Hog"
Putumayo Presents Zydeco Putumayo World Music PUTU 160-2 2000 "I'm in Love"
Cajun & Zydeco: Alligator Walk ARC Music EUCD 1657 2001 "Everybody Got To Cry"
The Louisiana Party Collection: 30 Cajun & Zydeco Classics Time-Life Music R154-36 2002 "Your Mama Don't Know"
The Rough Guide to the Music of Louisiana World Music Network (UK) RGNET 1094 CD 2002 "Black Snake Blues / I Can't Go Home No More" (feat. Michael Doucet)
Zydeco: The Essential Collection Rounder 1166-11605-2 2002 "Let's Go"
"Outside People"
The Louisiana Party Collection: Cajun & Zydeco Classics Time-Life Music M18851S 2003 "Your Mama Don't Know"
The Rough Guides: American Roots Box World Music Network RGBOX 3 2003 "Slow Horses and Fast Women"
Creole Bred: A Tribute to Creole & Zydeco Vanguard 79741-2 2004 "Zydeco Two-Step"
"I'm Coming Home" (with Keith Frank, Rosie Ledet, and Sean Ardoin)
Rough Guide to Zydeco World Music Network (UK) RGNET 1145 CD 2005 "Hard To Love Someone"
Experience Louisiana Music 2006 OffBeat Magazine OB06-11001 2006 "Old Man's Darling"
Red Hot: Louisiana Barbeque Party Mix Somerset Entertainment 35637 2006 "Let's Go"
"Zydeco Road"
"El Sid O's Party"
"Your Mama Don't Know"
"Slow Horses and Fast Women"
"Outside People"
"Everything Happens For the Best"
"Fa Fa Fa Fa Fa"
"Mardi Gras Zydeco"
"El Sid O's Zydeco Boogaloo"
Songlines: Top of the World 38 Songlines (UK) STWD14 2006 "Zydeco Cha Cha"
TFF Rudolstadt 2007 Heideck (Germany) HD20075 2007 "Tante Rosa"
Rounder Records 40th Anniversary Concert Rounder 11661-3277-2 2010 "Outside People"
"Think About the Good Times"
The Music of Louisiana: The Oxford American Southern Music Issue No. 14 Oxford American <unknown> 2012 "Old Man's Darling"
Blues Christmas Putumayo World Music PUT 379-2 2019 "I Don't Want You Just For Christmas"
The Heart, The Soul, The Spirit Larrikin Entertainment (Australia) <unknown> <unknown> "Follow Me Chicken"

Filmography

Awards and honors

  • 2002: Best of the Beat Award for Best Zydeco Band or Performer[34]
  • 2005: inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame[35]
  • 2006: Best of the Beat Award for Best Zydeco Band or Performer[34]
  • 2006: Best of the Beat Award, Best Zydeco Album for Hang it High, Hang it Low
  • 2010: Big Easy Music Award for Best Zydeco Band[36]
  • 2012: Big Easy Music Award for Best Zydeco Band[37]
  • 2012: Zydeco Music Association Lifetime Achievement Award[38][39]
  • 2015: Zydeco, Blues and Trailride (ZBT) Clifton Chenier Lifetime Achievement Award[40]
  • 2017: Landry Vineyards in West Monroe, Louisiana unveiled their "Nathan Williams Zydeco Wine" label in honor of the musician who performed at the venue for many years[41]
  • 2023: Grammy Award nomination in the Best Regional Roots Music Album category, for Lucky Man[23]
  • unknown year: voted top festival band in the country[35][40]

References

  1. ↑ "Williams, Nathan, 1963-". LC Name Authority File. Library of Congress. February 27, 2001. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  2. ↑ Kemp, John R. (October 1, 2020). "Prayerful Painting". Acadiana Profile. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Belanger, Larry. "Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved November 30, 2022.
  4. ↑ Wyckoff, Geraldine (June 18, 2018). "Nathan Williams: Accordionist, Vocalist, Composer". The Louisiana Weekly. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  5. 1 2 3 "Nathan and the Zydeco Cha-Chas Biography". zydecochachas.com. Archived from the original on December 19, 2017. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 Credle, Melanie (August 16, 1996). "Creole music keeps 'em dancing in the aisles". The Herald-Sun. Durham, North Carolina. p. Preview section, 3.
  7. ↑ Sandmel, Ben: Steady Rock liner-notes, PDI-Rounder, VLP-437, 1989
  8. 1 2 Pareles, Jon (January 26, 1990). "Dance Bands Whose French Isn't Gallic". The New York Times. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  9. 1 2 "Meet the Cha Chas: A Little History". Zydeco Cha Chas. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
  10. ↑ Tisserand, Michael (1998). The Kingdom of Zydeco (1st ed.). New York: Arcade Publishing. p. 181. ISBN 978-1559704182. LCCN 98-6640. OCLC 38765020.
  11. ↑ McCorkle, Rob (April 21, 1988). "Heritage festival's all-star lineup is jumping with jazz, rhythm and blues". Houston Chronicle. p. Weekend preview section, 4.
  12. 1 2 Mester, Amanda (November 2018). "Anniversary Celebration: 30 Years of Rock 'n' Bowl with John Blancher". OffBeat. New Orleans, Louisiana. p. 14. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  13. ↑ Watrous, Peter (September 22, 1989). "Sounds Around Town". The New York Times. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  14. ↑ Watrous, Peter (January 22, 1990). "Review; Music: Outings of a Newly Ubiquitous Instrument". The New York Times. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  15. ↑ Fuselier, Herman (May 2006). "Fest Focus: Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas". OffBeat. New Orleans, Louisiana. pp. 100, 102. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  16. 1 2 "About: Full artist bios: Nathan Williams". Zydeco Crossroads. WXPN. n.d. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  17. ↑ "Needham Bank Great Hall Concert Series announces 5th season". Needham Times. Needham, Massachusetts. September 15, 2016. p. 2. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
  18. 1 2 Henry, Tom (February 7, 2002). "Alligator Fest Features Music from the Bayou". The Blade. Toledo, Ohio. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  19. 1 2 3 Bock, Scott M. (April 2019). "Nathan Williams: I Got More Soul Than a Shoemaker". Living Blues. No. 260. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  20. ↑ "Skin Deep, Buddy Guy, Credits". AllMusic. n.d. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  21. ↑ "Cha Cha Records: Artists". NathanWilliamsJr.com. 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  22. ↑ Willging, Dan (October 2022). "Zydeco's Luckiest Man: Nathan Williams with his Sons, Lil' Nate and Naylan, Continue a Musical Legacy". OffBeat. New Orleans, Louisiana. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  23. 1 2 Lee, Taila (November 15, 2022). "2023 Grammy Nominations: See The Complete Nominees List". grammy.com. Recording Academy. Retrieved November 24, 2022.
  24. ↑ Caudell, Robin (February 13, 2013). "Nathan and the Zydeco Cha Chas: Zydeco with spice makes everything nice". Press-Republican. Plattsburgh, New York.
  25. ↑ Willging, Dan (June 2018). "Five Questions with Nathan Williams of Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas". OffBeat. New Orleans, Louisiana. p. 8. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  26. ↑ Willging, Dan (May 2014). "Fest Focus 2014: Lil' Nathan & the Zydeco Big Timers". OffBeat. New Orleans, Louisiana. p. 118. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  27. ↑ Willging, Dan (October 2022). "Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas, Lucky Man (Cha Cha Records)". OffBeat. New Orleans, Louisiana. p. 8. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  28. ↑ Bourque, Darrell; Gould, Philip (2013). Soul Exchange: The Paintings of Dennis Paul Williams. Lafayette, Louisiana: University of Louisiana at Lafayette. ISBN 9781935754237. OCLC 833146950.
  29. ↑ Willging, Dan (February 2017). "Zydeco's Chordiologist in Residency". OffBeat. New Orleans, Louisiana. pp. 20–21. Retrieved December 18, 2022.
  30. ↑ Pareles, Jon (July 2, 1994). "Film Review: The Top Contenders to Be King of Zydeco". The New York Times. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  31. ↑ Johnson, Ben (February 19, 2009). "Do the Cha Chas: Zydeco giant Nathan Williams brings Mardi Gras dance music to the North Shore". Staten Island Advance. p. W04.
  32. ↑ "In the Electric Mist: Full cast & crew". IMDb.com. n.d. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  33. ↑ Toby, Mekeisha Madden (April 3, 2010). "Rounder Records Celebrates 40th Anniversary on PBS". The Detroit News. p. A2.
  34. 1 2 "Best of the Beat Award Winners: Complete List". OffBeat.com. 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2022.
  35. 1 2 Burns-Fusaro, Nancy (September 1, 2022). "Nathan and the Zydeco Cha-Chas, Samantha Fish to perform at Rhythm & Roots this weekend". The Westerly Sun. Westerly, Rhode Island. p. D1. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  36. ↑ Coviello, Will (March 14, 2010). "Big Easy Music Award nominees". Gambit. New Orleans, Louisiana. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  37. ↑ Allman, Kevin (April 23, 2012). "Big Easy Music Award winners announced". Gambit. New Orleans, Louisiana. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  38. ↑ "Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas". The Kennedy Center. n.d. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
  39. ↑ "Spotlight". Journal Tribune. Biddeford, Maine. August 13, 2015. p. Entertainment section.
  40. 1 2 Durio, Kate (March 15, 2016). "How zydeco great Nathan Williams found the stage". The Daily Advertiser. Lafayette, Louisiana. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
  41. ↑ Fuselier, Herman (April 4, 2017). "Zydeco Wine, new show in Williams' future". The Daily Advertiser. Lafayette, Louisiana. Retrieved December 19, 2022.
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