Vocals.
Born in Seattle and raised by well-to-do club operator Russell “Noodles” Smith and his first wife, Evelyn’s sister, Elbee, Williams graduated from Garfield High School and studied voice and piano in Washington, D.C. Upon returning to Seattle, she sand with pianist Oscar Holden at Doc Hamilton’s after-hours club; the Chinese Gardens; and Finnish Hall. In the ’30s, Williamson married alto sax man Marshal Royal. Royal became the lead alto player for Lionel Hampton, who hired Williamson as his first female vocalist. With Hampton, in 1940, she recorded “I Nearly Lost My Mind,” written by Seattle band leader Gaylord Jones. She retired in the 1950s.
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