In his Honkers and Shouters, Arnold Shaw credited Williams as one of the first to employ the honking tenor saxophone solo that became the hallmark of rhythm and blues and rock and roll in the 1950s and early 1960s.
Williams was born in Lewisburg, Tennessee, and grew up in Bowling Green, Kentucky, before moving with his parents to Detroit, Michigan, at the age of 13.
Williams followed up its success with three further chart hits released in 1948 – "The Twister" (which, according to Joel Whitburn, "had a 'rockin' beat" and "laid the foundation for Hank Ballard's 'The Twist'"); "Waxie Maxie"; and "Walkin' Around" – all featuring the honking tenor sax of Wild Bill Moore.
Reig claimed that he taught Williams to perform vigorously, "kicking as he played, bending and dipping, getting down on the floor while blowing that saxophone.
[2] Williams renamed the tune "The Huckle-Buck", and his recording, made in December 1948 with Reig producing, rapidly rose to the top of the R&B chart.
With Tiny Grimes, Williams co-headlined the first Moondog Coronation Ball, promoted by Alan Freed in Cleveland on March 21, 1952, often claimed to be the first rock and roll concert, and was the only act to perform before the show was abandoned because of the size of the crowd.
[1] Band members during the 1950s included Moore, Noble "Thin Man" Watts, the trumpeter Phil Guilbeau, and the singers Danny Cobb, Jumpin' Jimmy Brown, Joan Shaw and Connie Allen.