Andy Williams

A versatile performer who excelled as a vocalist, television host, and businessman, Andy Williams ranked among the era's top-earning and beloved singers. His relaxed phrasing, flexible timbre, and easygoing appeal carried him from childhood appearances in a sibling vocal group to global solo renown, later establishing him as a theater proprietor in Branson, Missouri. He began in the crooning tradition that followed Frank Sinatra, attaining his signature success with a rendition of Henry Mancini's Breakfast at Tiffany's theme "Moon River" on the 1962 album Moon River & Other Great Movie Themes. Nevertheless his broad musical interests, apparent in the lineup of guests on his 1960s variety series, prompted him to explore material across stylistic and generational lines, and recordings document his interpretations of traditional pop, rock, bossa nova, country, and additional styles. Emerging before the rock & roll period, Williams remained one of the era's most familiar voices.

Born in Wall Lake, Iowa, he sang in the local church choir and later organized a quartet with his three brothers. The ensemble performed on Midwest radio broadcasts before relocating to Los Angeles in search of wider opportunities. The Williams Brothers Quartet contributed to Bing Crosby's 1944 hit "Swinging on a Star" and worked with comedienne Kay Thompson in the late 1940s.

Andy Williams launched his solo career in 1952, making several appearances on Steve Allen's The Tonight Show before signing with Archie Bleyer's Cadence Records in 1955. He reached the Top Ten in 1956 with his third single for the label, "Canadian Sunset." The following year his understated version of Charlie Gracie's rockabilly number "Butterfly" climbed to number one, still his biggest chart success. Subsequent Top Ten singles included "Are You Sincere," "Lonely Street," and "The Village of St. Bernadette" before he moved to Columbia in 1961.

Although another major single, "Can't Get Used to Losing You," appeared in 1963, Williams saw limited activity on the singles charts during the 1960s. His well-regarded NBC variety program instead stimulated demand for long-playing records among adult and middle-of-the-road listeners. The popular 1962 album Moon River & Other Great Movie Themes contained the song most closely linked to him, and the next year's Days of Wine and Roses reached the top of the album charts. Nine further LPs by Andy Williams entered the Top Ten throughout the decade, many built around unifying themes such as Broadway scores, ballads, and one project featuring family members. Despite the platinum success of 1971's Love Story, which also generated a Top Ten hit for its title song, his television series ended that year.

Williams retained substantial popularity during the 1970s, especially with British audiences. The title track from his album Solitaire reached the Top Ten in Britain in 1973. Two later releases, 1974's The Way We Were and You Lay So Easy on My Mind, also charted in the U.K. He issued relatively few albums in the 1980s but reentered the popular-music arena in the early 1990s by opening his own theater and resort in Branson, Missouri. He continued to headline there for twenty years, although he disclosed from the stage at a Christmas 2011 performance that he had been diagnosed with cancer. The disease claimed his life on September 25, 2012.