Andy Williams

Andy Williams was born Howard Andrew Williams in Iowa on the 3rd December 1927. Like a number of vocalists he got his first taste of performing in choir at his church.

Subsequently he sang with his brothers; Bob, Don and Dick as The Williams Brothers quartet. The group appeared on radio and even on Bing Crosby’s Swinging on a Star in 1944.

Williams began his solo career in 1953 and after making little impact initially became a regular feature on Steve Allen’s Tonight Show the following year. Signed to Cadence Records a string of hits soon followed including US number one Butterfly.Williams signed to Columbia having bought the masters tapes to his Cadence recordings which he would release on his own label Barnaby Records.

The 1960s saw him flourish as one of America’s biggest recording artists known as much for his albums as songs (in a decade when albums were fast becoming the measure of an artist).

In 1962 he performed Moon River at the 1962 Oscar ceremony, it became his signature song. In 1966, Williams established another tradition when he performed at the opening night of Las Vegas’ now famed Caesar’s Palace casino, he would return as headliner for the next twenty years.

Far from losing himself to a rock audience as a number of crooners did, Williams found new fans with tracks such as Happy Heart and Can’t Get Used to Losing You. He has repeated such a feat in recent years with tracks such as Music to Watch Girls Go By which charted in 1999 having been used in a car advert.

In 1992 he opened the popular Moon River Theatre in Missouri Last year he performed Moon River on Strictly Come Dancing.