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The iconic king of cool
by Ben Rooth12/ 5/2005
SOME regard him as the ultimate "King of Cool," while others
simply believe that he is one of the great icons of American
pop.
With such hits as Music To Watch Girls By and Moon River to his
name, Andy William's position in the history of popular music is
assured.
But there was a period of uncertainty before his career came to
epitomise the American dream.
"Sure, I've known hard times when I was starting out," reminisces
Andy, 78, from his mansion in Branson, Missouri.
"I remember as a young performer being down to my last few dollars
and having to eat dog biscuits for a week simply because that was
all I could afford.
"It took me a long time and an immense amount of hard work to get
my breaks."
Andy Williams began his career in his home town of Wall Lake, Iowa,
singing with his three brothers in a local Presbyterian church
choir established by his parents. At the age of eight, he made his
professional singing debut as part of the Williams Brothers
Quartet. Widespread radio exposure followed, which eventually
caught the attention of Bing Crosby. With Crosby, Andy and his
brothers made their first professional recording, Swinging On A
Star, which became a hit in 1944.
But he had to wait for 18 years before his career went global. He
had just signed with Columbia Records, in 1962, when he scored his
first top 10 hit with Can't Get Used To Losing You. Many more hits
followed, but none would become more associated with Andy Williams
than Moon River, the Oscar winning song from the film Breakfast At
Tiffany's.
"My television series, entitled The Andy Williams Show, also
debuted on September 16, 1963, and lasted for nine years - that was
another turning point in my career," he says.
And Andy has never really stopped touring or performing since. In
the spring of 1999, he found himself unexpectedly back on the UK's
record charts. In England, a commercial for Fiat cars had featured
Andy's version of Music To Watch Girls By, which was a minor hit
for him in 1967. The ad became so popular that the record company
re-released the song as a single and this time around it was a top
10 hit.
Between September and December every year, Andy can be found
performing in his Moon River Theatre in Branson - which he built at
a cost of $12m in the early 1990s.
In the foyer, he exhibits works from his extensive art and
sculpture collection that is insured for $35m. It includes works by
Picasso, Jackson Pollack and Henry Moore.
"I started buying prints from junk shops simply so that I could
cover the walls of the rooms I used to rent, and my love of art has
spiralled from there," he says.
"Then, as I made a little bit of money, I would buy works which
interested me - they weren't always fashionable.
"After the theatre was built, I thought that it was the ideal place
to put them on display." These days, Andy admits that he tours
simply because of the pleasure he derives from singing and meeting
his fans.
"I just intend to keep on performing as I enjoy it as much as ever.
No - actually, that's not true. I think I enjoy it more with every
year that passes."
Andy Williams will be appearing at Manchester's Bridgewater
Hall on June 24 at 7.30pm. Box office 0161 9079000.
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