Ivory Williams

Ivory "Pops" Williams (born July 28, 1885; died May 2, 1987 was a bandleader and union organizer.

Williams performed mostly on string instruments, including the violin, cello, string bass, banjo, and mandolin; but was also proficient on trumpet, trombone and drums. He led the house band at the Hippodrome Theater during the heyday of cinema music, and co-founded the city's black musicians union.

Williams was a mentor to Fess Whatley, encouraging him to come to Birmingham from Tuscaloosa. He sat in on bass for the Sonny Blount Orchestra in the 1930s and 1940s, and was a regular in Frank Adams' bands of the 1950s and 1960s.

Williams was inducted into the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame in 1981. He died in 1987.

References

• Adams, Frank 'Doc' & Burgin Mathews (2012) Doc: The Story of a Birmingham Jazz Man. Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press ISBN 9780817317805