Louie Bellson and Tony Williams - Mutual Admiration

© Copyright ® Steven Cerra, copyright protected; all rights reserved.

This feature is from Veryl Oakland’s annotated series of his photographs in his book Jazz in Available Light and you can locate order information and more features from this compilation by visiting him on his website.

Sadly the story about the friendship between Louie and Tony and the high regard they had for one another despite their different approaches to drums is one that Ken Burns missed in his documentary about Jazz.

Instead, Burns preferred to -in the parlance of the times -  play the race card.

Here’s the accompanying text from Veryl’s piece about Louie and Tony - “Seemingly about as mismatched as two percussionists can be.”

“Berkeley, California

From a distance, it appeared to be a chance encounter: there, just off-stage at the 1978 Berkeley Jazz Festival, stood the wise sage and the young buck sharing a warm embrace.

Of course, both were drummers, so it wasn't exactly a revelation. After all, battery mates of every stripe have lots in common. But for any casual observer looking on, Louie Bellson and Tony Williams — born practically a generation apart — were seemingly about as mismatched as two percussionists could be.

It was only natural that their influences, tastes, and actual performance artistry would be dissimilar. Bellson made his bones solidly backing some of the most popular big bands of the swing era, particularly the Duke Ellington Orchestra, which adhered to the written scores. Williams, who represented the changing free/fusion period of jazz music styles, was the powerhouse teenage upstart hand-picked by Miles Davis for his second great quintet from the mid-1960s.

The longer I stood there watching, I realized there was nothing accidental about this meeting. The two continued to carry on a purposeful dialogue, thoughtfully engaging one another. Here were a couple of really close friends getting together once again to talk shop and share meaningful times.

Instead of concentrating on their differences, I began to think of the many attributes that made these artists such close musical soulmates: the pair, uniquely blessed with astonishing technique, shared the commonality of perfect time; both were astute listeners who always complemented their respective band members; and perhaps most importantly, the duo took special pride in being complete musicians, highly regarded for their considerable skills as serious composers and arrangers. Their respective leaders paid them the highest compliment by frequently playing, and recording, their works.

It was some time later, after reading his book, Louie Bellson Honors 12 Super Drummers: Their Time Was The Greatest, that I discovered just how strong of a bond existed between these two craftsmen. Bellson, who had helped revitalize the Ellington band in 1951, by prominently being featured center stage as the first percussionist to use two bass drums in his setup, talked about one of his initial encounters with the youngster.

Because Tony recognized that many other drummers — both in jazz, as well as in rock bands — were suddenly following in Bellson's footsteps, he remarked, "I'm getting two bass drums."

Louie, who considered Williams a natural player and a true original, told Tony, "Don't do it. You don't need it."

The elder time-keeper, who was a keen observer of new talent arriving on the scene, assured Tony that his playing style was unique and didn't require any equipment tampering. He was quick to rave about Williams being one of his personal favorites of all time. "Tony Williams gave us all a new approach to the drum set — a stylist who can swing hard and solo with great imagination."”

Top: Drummer Tony Williams unleashes a torrent of sound.

Bottom: Louie Bellson, leading his own big band, with guitarist Joe Pass looking on.

LOUIE PAUL BELLSON (Luigi Paulino Alfredo Francesco Antonio Balassoni)

drums, composer, leader, educator Born:July 6, 1924 Died: February 14, 2009

T1LLMON ANTHONY (Tony) WILLIAMS

drums, composer

Born: December 12, 1945

Died: February 23,1997