He was born Joseph Goreed in Cordele, Georgia and moved to Chicago as a child. He was raised by his mother and grandmother. He grew on the south side of Chicago, surrounded by jazz, blues, and gospel music. In the 1930s, as a teenager, he was a member of "The Jubilee Boys" and performed in Chicago churches.
He worked as a singer and bouncer in Chicago in the late 1930s and early 1940s. In 1943, he was hired by the Lionel Hampton Orchestra. He toured with Hampton for several years but never achieved breakthrough success.
He rose to national prominence as the singer for Count Basie's Orchestra in 1954. He remained with Basie for several years. "Everyday I have the Blues" is his biggest hit.
After leaving the Basie band, Williams continued to have a successful career working with his own jazz combo. He and Basie remained on good terms and he would regularly appear with the band.
Bill Cosby cast Williams as his father-in-law "Grandpa Al" Hanks in a recurring role on the 1980s sit-com The Cosby Show.
Williams enjoyed a successful career and worked regularly until his death. He died at age 80, in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Joe Williams shares a birthday with Frank Sinatra who was also born Dec. 12, three years before Williams
Lush Life
Joe Williams Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Those come-what-may places
Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life
To get the feel of life
From jazz and cocktails
The girls I knew had sad and sullen gray faces
With distant gay traces that used to be there
By too many through the day
Twelve o'clock tales
Then you came along with your siren of song
To tempt me to madness
I thought for a while that your poignant smile was tinged with the sadness
Of a great love for me
Ah yes, I was wrong
Again
I was wrong
Life is lonely again
And only last year everything seemed so sure
Now life is awful again
A trough-ful of hearts could only be a bore
A week in Paris will ease the bite of it
All I care is to smile in spite of it
I'll forget you, I will
While yet you are still burning inside my brain
Romance is mush
Stifling those who strive
I'll live a lush life in some small dive
And there I'll be while I rot
With the rest of those whose lives are lonely too
The song "Lush Life" by Joe Williams is a melancholic tale of a man who's been disillusioned by love and the empty, superficial world of jazz bars and cocktail lounges. The lyrics describe his former life of going to all the trendy places, trying to "get the feel of life" through jazz and liquor. He knew girls at these places who had happy, lively faces, but now they just seem dull and washed out from too much of the same.
However, the singer's life takes a new turn when a woman tempts him to madness with her singing. He mistakes her poignant smile for a great love for him but soon realizes he was wrong, and life is lonely again. He chooses to retreat to a small dive bar and live a lush life, despite romance being mush and stifling. The song's poignant ending shows how the man has accepted his loneliness as an inevitable part of life.
Overall, "Lush Life" is a timeless piece of music that captures the bittersweet emotions of a man struggling with love, disillusionment, and loneliness. It's a song that speaks directly to the heart and mind of any listener who's experienced disappointment in love or life.
Line by Line Meaning
I used to visit all the very gay places
I used to go to the places that were lively and full of enjoyment
Those come-what-may places
These were the places where anything could happen, a laid-back atmosphere prevailed
Where one relaxes on the axis of the wheel of life
These places are where one goes for a respite from life's demands
To get the feel of life
To experience the vibes, to feel alive
From jazz and cocktails
Through the medium of jazz and cocktails, both of which have a soothing and calming effect
The girls I knew had sad and sullen gray faces
The women I associated with were unhappy or depressed and had somber facial expressions
With distant gay traces that used to be there
Once there was a time when they were carefree and living life to the fullest, but now they have lost that spirit
You could see where they'd been washed away
It is evident that over time, their spirit and enthusiasm have been eroded
By too many through the day
Their daily struggles have taken a heavy toll on them and left them exhausted
Twelve o'clock tales
Talking about their problems and issues until the wee hours of the morning
Then you came along with your siren of song
You appeared on the scene with your intoxicating music and mesmerizing voice
To tempt me to madness
Your music had such a hold over me that it almost drove me insane
I thought for a while that your poignant smile was tinged with the sadness
I mistakenly believed that you had a touch of sorrow in your otherwise beautiful smile
Of a great love for me
I deluded myself into thinking that you had a deep affection for me
Ah yes, I was wrong
I realized that my perception was incorrect
Again
It wasn't the first time
I was wrong
I made a mistake in how I interpreted your intentions
Life is lonely again
Now that you're gone, my life is back to being solitary and dull
And only last year everything seemed so sure
Just a year ago, I was confident about life and its possibilities
Now life is awful again
But now everything is bleak and miserable
A trough-ful of hearts could only be a bore
Even the company of many people would be tedious
A week in Paris will ease the bite of it
A brief respite in Paris would alleviate the harshness of my situation
All I care is to smile in spite of it
Despite the adversity, all that matters to me is to put on a brave face
I'll forget you, I will
I'll find a way to move on from you
While yet you are still burning inside my brain
Even though you still haunt my thoughts and memories
Romance is mush
Love has turned out to be sentimental and impractical
Stifling those who strive
It has been preventing me from achieving what I want in life
I'll live a lush life in some small dive
I'll lead a life of luxury in some lowly bar or pub
And there I'll be while I rot
That's where I'll be until the end, no matter how much time passes
With the rest of those whose lives are lonely too
Together with all the other people who share my situation of loneliness and futility
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Reservoir Media Management, Inc.
Written by: Billy Strayhorn
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@carriehough2397
I never get tired of this song, especially by the great Joe Williams. I only wish people would credit the composer, wonderful Billy Strayhorn, who wrote so many of Ellington's most iconic songs like this one, Take the A Train, Satin Doll, Passion Flower, and on and on.
@georgiasteel4215
100%
@sunnysaxman
Go, Joe! I love this man's voice!! And can he tell a story!!
@wildcardartist
How lucky we were to see Joe in Reno in the early 80's.Great talent, fabulous, your humanity, your self-depreciation towards us, your audience.We all miss this wonderful man.
@ccaammiinniiito2
Such a sophisticated blues singer. Loved every note he hit. I wish we had met.
@jayyoung7804
They Billy Strayhorn was a ripe 15 years of age when he wrote this fantastic jazz number. And again Joe Williams wears so well in his rendition of the Strayhorn composition.
@vaughnmarlowe3101
Are you crazy? No 15 year old could write such a sophisticated song!
He was SIXTEEN.
@charlesjensen7918
He was 11 !!!
@debrathompson4319
Joe Williams...music all day long...what a voice!
@roybodden9243
What a great, but under rated, vocalist he was! The first and only time I saw him in person, he was with the Count Basie Orchestra at the N.Y. Paramount theatre. It was in 1956, at the time Frank Sinatra was in person also promoting an horrible western he made called “Johnny Coucho” I think. At the time I was 19 years old. A little while later I bought 2 solo albums by him on the RCA label.