[2] Alvin Jr's brother, William Butler Fielder, became a trumpeter and was professor of jazz studies at Rutgers University.
[2] Fielder initially learned the piano as a young child, but stopped and did not regain an interest in music until, at the age 12, he heard drummer Max Roach on record.
[2] Fielder took responsibility for managing the family business, became involved in political activism, and continued to pursue his passion for music.
[2] In 1975, Fielder began working with Kidd Jordan in what became the Improvisational Arts band, which featured various musicians over three decades, and appeared at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival every year from 1975 to 2008.
[2] He recorded in 1987 with Ahmed Abdullah, Charles Brackeen, and Dennis Gonzalez, and continued exploring in the free jazz vein in the 1990s with Joel Futterman, Kidd Jordan, and others.