The AllMusic journalist, Bill Dahl, considered Watts "one of the most incendiary [...] fire-breathing tenor sax honkers" of the 1950s.
He gained musical training at Florida A&M, where he played in the school's marching band with future saxophonist Cannonball Adderley.
During the 1950s, he would work with Lionel Hampton, Paul "Hucklebuck" Williams, Dinah Washington, Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, the Everly Brothers, and others.
[3] He also appeared on American Bandstand with Johnny Mathis in 1957,[4] and performed in the house band at a Harlem club owned by boxer Sugar Ray Robinson.
He played lounge music in parts of Florida before being "rediscovered" by record producer Bob Greenlee.