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Nick Toshes will join Andre Williams for the New York City book launch of Andre's fiction debut, "Sweets and Other Stories". The historic tag-team title-match will happen on Friday, February 5th at The Poetry Project at Saint Marks Church, 131 East 10th Street, NYC.
TWIN SPIN AFTERSHOCK FEB 5! Late nite Smashed Blocked pop-in after reading event! Join SB kingpin Josh Styles as he hosts this velvet rope stop-in pop-in! (Andre rumored to spin seven of his sevens! Smashed Blocked at The Beauty Bar 231 East 14 Street, NYC smashedblocked.com)
For more info visit http://www.kicksbooks.blogspot.com/
Now 73 years old, Bessemer born Andre Williams is launching his fiction writing career this month with the publication of Sweets. Since the 1950's Andre has distinguished himself as a singer, songwriter and producer (see September post on this blog for more details).
"Sweets is a narrative which takes you for a wild ride from Chicago to Houston, New Orleans, and New York City, as a teenage girl finds herself in a family way, without a family. Forced to fend for herself, she is taken under the wing of a local pimp who entices her into prostitution. The adventures that follow are a free-for-all foray through the fantastic world of pimps and their women, funeral directors, gangs and drug running, with sidebar anecdotes that are guaranteed to appall, alarm and astonish. Extreme entries remain unedited, and none of William's raw drawl storytelling style has been tampered in this standout fiction debut."
During a bout of depression, Andre entered a forty-two day program at a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center to try to put himself back together. When he got there he called upon longtime friend Miriam Linna at Kicks Magazine. She suggested that he try his hand at fiction writing if only to while away the long days ahead at the center. In the book's preface, Andre describes how once in rehab he felt his mind begin to heal and thoughts began coming to him from all over the place, day and night. He began writing everything down and with Miriam's editorial help he was able to transform his rehabilitation process into the novelette, short story and song-poems comprising Sweets.
As author Nick Toshes writes in his introduction to Sweets, "Andre Williams has proven himself to be a survivor. The stories he has here written deserve to survive as well. They most certainly deserve to be read, as the rewards they offer are many and fine. Heed what I say. Otherwise you got nobody but your own self to blame." For some other folks' thoughts on Sweets, check the reviews by Mick Collins and James Sullivan.
The story collection is a posh pocket paperback originals release by the Kicks Books imprint www.kicksbooks.com which hatched from Kicks Magazine, now celebrating its 30th anniversary. The book design is an homage to vintage PBO paperback originals; its "tall" 7 inch format makes it the perfect size to take it in your coat pocket or handbag wherever you go.
Kicks Books will celebrate Andre Williams' arrival as an author on November 14, 8 PM, at a reading and book signing at Phyllis' Musical Inn, 1800 West Division Street, Chicago, IL. There will also be Q&A session with Andre and DJ party featuring Andre Williams' music selected and spun by DJ John Phillips.
And for those in the Memphis area, Andre Williams will be performing at High-Tone Cafe on Saturday, November 7th.
Andre "Mr. Rhythm" Williams was born in Bessemer, Alabama in 1936, and spent his youth in Chicago and Alabama. Andre launched his musical career in Detroit in the 1950's, recording for the now legendary Fortune Records. He is best known for his especially greasy R&B Fortune recordings like "Jail Bait", "The Greasy Chicken" and "Bacon Fat" which made it to #9 on the R&B charts in 1957. As a writer and producer, Andre Williams worked with Stevie Wonder, The Contours, Ike Turner as well as 1970's funk bands Parliament and Funkadelic.
The Meditation Singers were a Detroit based gospel group formed by Earnestine Rundless in the late 1940's. They recorded on a variety of labels through the 1970's and continued performing into the 1980's. The group's line up changed over the years, and at various times included Della Reece, Laura Lee and Rev. James Cleveland.
Later in their career, the Meditation Singers recorded two albums on the Jewel label, the first of which "A Change is Gonna Come" was released in 1971. Andre Williams produced the LP and wrote all of the songs, except for the title track, which is a Sam Cooke song.
"Getting High on the Lord", (listen here) is a funky gospel number from that LP that's a departure from the Meditation Singers' earlier, more traditional shout gospel sound. And, producing a gospel record is a departure for Andre Williams for obvious reasons. The result is strange and interesting, though the collaboration came to an end after the "A Change is Gonna Come" Jewel LP.
Since the 1990's Andre has toured and recorded albums with The Dirtbombs, Diplomats of Solid Sound and Morning 40 Federation who hail from the Ninth Ward of New Orleans. Recently he's been touring and helping to promote the documentary film, "Agile Mobile Hostile: A Year with Andre Williams". Check his MySpace page for up to date information.
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