Adam Williams, born in Eldorado, Illinois on July 9th 1974, grew up in Rosiclare, Illinois in a musical family. Mother played flute and piano, father played saxophone and guitar. Brother played saxophone, French horn, trombone, and piano. Most of his aunts and uncles played some type of instrument. Adam started paying attention to music at a very early age. Listening to all types of music from rock and country to jazz and classical.
He started drumming at an equally early age, 7, when his parents bought him a child's drum kit. He started playing trumpet at 10 years old, and at the same age, his parents got him the first real drum kit which he would spend 3 hours a day playing in their basement to every tape, record and cd he could get his hands on. Playing to the likes of drummers like Marvin “Smitty“ Smith, Omar Hakim, Dave Weckl, while never neglecting the influence of those like Max Roach, Ed Shaughnessy, Gene Krupa, Steve Gadd, and Buddy Rich, he would spend most of his childhood in that basement trying to perfect his technique. He took a particular fondness to jazz like Chic Corea, Michele Camilo, Joshua Redman, and Branford Marsalis for their complexity and New Orleans brass bands for their pure instinctual grooves. His taste in music widened throughout his adolescence into his teen years as he split duties playing trumpet for his high school marching and concert band and drumming for it’s jazz ensemble.
He went on to college, but in pursuit of a science degree, which he would obtain, always still drumming for jazz trios and quartets. It wasn’t until he moved into an apartment that would forbid drums that he started playing the guitar in ‘97. Using the guitar as an outlet for his pent up percussive tendencies led to his unique, somewhat aggressive style of play. Learning entirely by ear, he played along to everything he could get his hands on including everything from Blind Melon, Dave Matthews Band, Indigo Girls and other bands of the time, to James Taylor, Richie Havens, Crosby Stills and Nash while listening and observing techniques of legends like Paco de Lucia, and John McLaughlin.
He is relentless in his pursuit of different genres of music. His diverse taste in musical influences shows through whether it’s the Latin tinged grooves of “Never†and “On a Tuesday†or the jazz influence and "odd" time signatures of grooves like those found in “Fiveâ€, "Jenn'll Tell Ya" and “Waiting†to straight ahead rock grooves of “Frog Hair†and “2 Tentsâ€. The heartfelt softness heard in ballads such as “About†and “Please†and "Lose" have a strange familiarity to the more gritty passion of the heavily “funkified" New Orleans influenced sound held in “The Longing†and "Nolin's Funeral". Even being able to squeeze in Reggae influences with "FWB" and the Reggae/Funk fusion of "Float Away".
His voice has been compared to that of Peter Gabriel and Dave Matthews, with an earthy whiskey rasp and a somewhat surprising range that is strong, yet never overpowering. Playing live either by himself, or with bass/conga player Jeremy Irvin, he strives to play each song differently than previous shows keeping things both interesting for him and those performing with him. This makes a palpable excitement tangible by spectators. Audiences ranging from 20-somethings in college bars, to those in their 50's and 60's spending their afternoon at an intimate winery show have all praised the live sets. Not only for the quality of the original music and the musicianship displayed in it, but also having an equally good taste in covers not usually heard by most and inventive new takes on more well known material . It's a performance that musicians and those who have a limited knowledge of music can both enjoy.
It's definitely not a performance that should be missed.
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