With his laid-back, straightforward vocals and large, imposing build, Don Williams came to be known as “the Gentle Giant.” That nickname was bestowed on him in the early ’70s when he began a string of countrypolitan hits that ran into the early ’90s. Williams was never known as an innovator, but his ballads were immensely popular; in the course of his career, he had a total of 17 number one hits. Williams began playing guitar when he was a child, learning the instrument from his mother. As a teenager, he played in a variety of country, rockabilly, folk, and rock & roll bands. After completing high school, he formed his first band with a friend named Lofton Kline. Williams and Kline recruited another singer, Susan Taylor, and formed the Pozo-Seco Singers, a folk-pop group, in 1964.
After the Pozo-Seco Singers disbanded, Williams decided to pursue a career as a songwriter in Nashville since he wasn’t convinced that he was suited for a solo career. He signed with Jack Clement’s Jack Music, Inc., initially just as a songwriter. By the end of 1972, he had signed with JMI as a solo artist, releasing “Don’t You Believe” as his debut. The song went nowhere, but “The Shelter of Your Eyes” climbed to number 14 at the beginning of 1973. For the next year, Williams scored a string of minor hits before he had his 1974 breakthrough, “We Should Be Together,” which reached number five. During the ’70s, Don Williams became the most successful country artist in the world.
In the late ’70s, he began acting, appearing primarily in the films of his friend Burt Reynolds, including W.W. & the Dixie Dancekings and Smokey & the Bandit II. In the early ’80s, Williams slowed down the pace of his career slightly, as he was suffering from back problems. Nevertheless, the hits continued to come, and many of his singles reached number one. In 1986, he left MCA Records, which had acquired the ABC label while he was recording for it, and signed with Capitol. The change in labels didn’t affect his career at all, as he continued to hit the Top Ten with regularity. Williams signed with RCA Records in 1989. He died in September 2017 at the age of 78.