Willie Henderson (musician)
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Willie Henderson (born August 9, 1941 in Pensacola, Florida) is an American soul musician. Henderson moved to Chicago with his family while still a child, and began playing the baritone saxophone. He gigged with Otis Rush, Syl Johnson, Alvin Cash, and Harold Burrage while in his twenties, and began working for Brunswick Records in 1968. Henderson and producer Carl Davis did arrangements for musicians such as The Chi-Lites, Jackie Wilson, Tyrone Davis, and Barbara Acklin; Henderson played on many of these records and also did some production work himself. Henderson co-wrote the tunes "I Made a Mistake" and "Slow Motion (Part I)" with Johnny Williams, the latter of which became a Top Ten hit in the US. Henderson released a few singles, which included the Lowrell Simon-written 1974 instrumental "Dance Master", "Funky Chicken (Part I)" (as Willie Henderson and the Soul Explosions), "Break Your Back" b/w "Same", and "Gangster Boogie Bump" b/w/ "Let's Merengue".
Henderson left Brunswick in 1974 and began working independently as a producer. He produced the group Essence for Epic Records, continuing to produce into the 1980s and occasionally self-releasing singles on his label, NowSound. He formed the Chicago Music Organization in 1999, and still occasionally performs in the Chicago area.
