Biography
Charles Anthony “Buster” Williams was born to Charles Anthony Williams Sr. and Gladys Williams on April 17, 1942 in Camden, New Jersey. His mother worked as a seamstress in Camden while his father worked various jobs during the day and would play jazz gigs with a number of different groups to fulfill his passion for playing jazz. Charles Anthony Williams Sr.’s passion for jazz bass metamorphosed into a teacher-student relationship between him and his son, Buster. As a adolescent, Buster recalls after school he “was suppose to practice, and then [his father] would listen while eating his dinner.” Buster’s admiration for his father motivated him to practice while Charles Anthony Williams Sr. lovingly pushed his son to become a talented jazz bassist, “It was an unwritten law that I had to play it right or hear about it [from his father]. I was going to be the best”.

In 1959, at the age of 17, Williams began to play with Jimmy Heath’s quartet which included a talented rhythm section including Samuel “Sure-Footed Sam” Dockery on piano and Charles “Specs” Wright on drums. After graduating high school in 1960, Buster Williams hit the road for a year, traveling with a new group including Gene Ammons and Sonny Sitt throughout the country. However, Williams found himself stranded in Kansas City in 1961 after Ammons off with the group’s earnings. Upon returning home, the young bassist decided to take courses in Composition, Harmony and Theory at Combs College of Music in Philadelphia. Williams joined up with a the group the Gerald Price Trio and quickly hired by Dakota Staton. This led to Williams making his first European tour in 1962 when the group joined Betty Carter and Sarah Vaughan. During his European tour, Williams met jazz icons such as Miles Davis, Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, George Coleman and Tony Williams who have influenced his playing style ever since.

In 1964, Williams joined the vocalist Nancy Wilson, and moved to Los Angeles where he met and married his wife, Veronica Williams. During his time working with Wilson, Williams produced six albums while simultaneously producing several albums with Miles Davis. In 1968, Williams returned to New York. Upon his return he joined up with Art Blakey, Herbie Mann, Herbie Hancock and Mary Lou Williams, together forming the Herbie Hancock Sextet.