Steve Williamson (born 28 June 1964) is an English saxophonist and composer (
tenor saxophone
The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (whi ...
,
soprano saxophone
The soprano saxophone is a small, high-pitched member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented in the 1840s by Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax. Built in B♭ an octave above the tenor saxophone (or rarely, slightly small ...
,
alto saxophone
The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgians, Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in the key of E♭ ( ...
,
keyboard
Keyboard may refer to:
Text input
* Keyboard, part of a typewriter
* Computer keyboard
** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping
** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware
Music
* Mus ...
and
composition
Composition or Compositions may refer to:
Arts and literature
*Composition (dance), practice and teaching of choreography
* Composition (language), in literature and rhetoric, producing a work in spoken tradition and written discourse, to include ...
). He has been called "one of the most distinctive saxophone voices in contemporary British jazz".
Biography
Born in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, England, to Jamaican parents, Williamson began playing saxophone at the age of 16 and started his career playing in
reggae
Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...
bands, including
Misty in Roots.
In 1984 and 1985 he studied at London's
Guildhall School of Music
The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a music and drama school located in the City of London, England. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz along with dram ...
, where he was tutored by
Lionel Grigson. Williamson was a member of the noted collective of British-born black jazz musicians who came together as the
Jazz Warriors in the mid-1980s.
At the
Nelson Mandela 70th birthday open-air festival in 1988, Williamson played alongside
Courtney Pine
Courtney Pine, (born 18 March 1964) is a British jazz musician, who was the principal founder in the 1980s of the black British band the Jazz Warriors. Although known primarily for his saxophone playing, Pine is a multi-instrumentalist, also ...
in
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...
,
IDJ Dancers, Courtney Pine, Steve Williamson & Band at The Nelson Mandela Concert 1988
/ref> and afterwards was a constant presence at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club
Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club is a jazz club that has operated in Soho, London, since 1959.
History
The club opened on 30 October 1959 in a basement at 39 Gerrard Street in London's Soho district. It was set up and managed by musicians Ronnie Sc ...
. He was member of Louis Moholo
Louis Tebogo Moholo (10 March 1940 – 13 June 2025) was a South African jazz drummer. He was a member of several notable bands, including The Blue Notes, the Brotherhood of Breath and Assagai.
Biography
Born in Cape Town, Moholo formed The ...
's Viva La Black (1988) and of Chris McGregor
Christopher McGregor (24 December 1936 – 26 May 1990) was a South African jazz pianist, bandleader and composer born in Somerset West, South Africa.
Early influences
McGregor grew up in the then Transkei (now part of the Eastern Cape Prov ...
's Brotherhood of Breath (1990). During the 1990s he led his own band and appeared in projects of Iain Ballamy
Iain Ballamy (born 20 February 1964) is a British composer and saxophonist. He is considered one of the 25 greatest jazz saxophonists of all time and was featured as one of the world's all-time greats in ''BBC Music Magazine''s "100 Jazz Legen ...
, Maceo Parker
Maceo Parker (; born February 14, 1943) is an American funk and soul jazz saxophonist, best known for his work with James Brown in the 1960s, Parliament-Funkadelic in the 1970s and Prince in the 2000s. Parker was a prominent soloist on many of ...
, Bheki Mseleku, US3, and Graham Haynes
Graham Haynes (born September 16, 1960 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American cornetist, trumpeter and composer. The son of jazz drummer Roy Haynes, Graham is known for his work in nu jazz, fusing jazz with elements of hip hop and electronic music. ...
.
In 1990, Williamson released his first album '' A Waltz for Grace'' with Verve, featuring vocalist Abbey Lincoln
Anna Marie Wooldridge (August 6, 1930 – August 14, 2010), known professionally as Abbey Lincoln, was an American jazz vocalist and songwriter. She was a civil rights activist beginning in the 1960s. Lincoln made a career out of delivering dee ...
. In 1992, he released his second album, ''Rhyme Time'', followed by ''Journey to Truth'' in 1994, featuring Cassandra Wilson
Cassandra Wilson (born December 4, 1955) is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. She is one of the most successful female jazz singers and has been described by critic Gary Giddins as "a singer blessed wit ...
.
Discography
As leader
* '' A Waltz for Grace'' (Verve, 1990) with Abbey Lincoln
Anna Marie Wooldridge (August 6, 1930 – August 14, 2010), known professionally as Abbey Lincoln, was an American jazz vocalist and songwriter. She was a civil rights activist beginning in the 1960s. Lincoln made a career out of delivering dee ...
* ''Rhyme Time'' (Verve, 1992) with Cassandra Wilson
Cassandra Wilson (born December 4, 1955) is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. She is one of the most successful female jazz singers and has been described by critic Gary Giddins as "a singer blessed wit ...
* ''Journey To Truth'' (Nippon Phonogram, 1994)
* ''#One'' (Babel
Babel is a name used in the Hebrew Bible for the city of Babylon and may refer to:
Arts and media Written works Books
*Babel (book), ''Babel'' (book), by Patti Smith
* Babel (2012 manga), ''Babel'' (2012 manga), by Narumi Shigematsu
* Babel (20 ...
, 2014) with Black Top ( Orphy Robinson, Pat Thomas)
As sideman
* Jazz Warriors, ''Out of Many, One People'' (1987)
Sources
* Martin Kunzler, ''Jazz-Lexikon'', vol. 2, 2002.
References
External links
*
"Steve Williamson Pt.1"
"Steve Williamson Pt.2"
Interview by Michael J Edwards, UK Vibe.
"Steve Williamson: Enigmatic Jazz Warrior meets Tomorrow’s Warriors"
Ancient to Future, 12 July 2011.
* John Fordham
"Steve Williamson review – former Jazz Warrior back for next round"
''The Guardian'', 3 September 2014.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williamson, Steve
Living people
Alumni of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama
English jazz saxophonists
English male saxophonists
British jazz saxophonists
Post-bop saxophonists
English people of Jamaican descent
Black British musicians
21st-century English saxophonists
21st-century English male musicians
English male jazz musicians
Jazz Warriors members
1964 births