Uncle Willie’s 80th Birthday
Andrew Youngren (admin) | February 13, 2011
So, Uncle Willie turns 80 today. Here's a space for you all to give him some birthday messages. I guess I'll start...
Yo my man, you're a great inspiration to us all. Its been a lot of fun creating this site with you. You're a great partner and a great friend. Here's to many more years of tootin' and teachin'.
Love, Andrew
Happy (belated) 80th, Willie! I’ve been crushed for time but am now starting to catch up on Jazz Everyone. Hope we can do that Skype hang sometime soon!
Yo Willie T,
Finally…you’ve been making points on being
“almost eighty” for some time. Now we can bestow even more credit upon your octogenarian being for upholding the (still) New Testament, Bird continuing to be the word.
Hope it’s not to cold o’er in the Republic –
or Democratic Federation. Rumor is the sauna will be up by March 1. Look forward to
signifying in person upon your advanced age at that time.
Peace Out
joe
Testament
Hello Willie,
Wish you a very happy birthday Thanks a lot for the great job and keep on jazzin’!!
All the best from France
Thierry
Happy Birthday. Thank you for all that you do!!!!!!
Yo Willie, many happy returns. I am very pleased you were born……
Hey Willie, on behalf of The Fiddlin’ Four kids and parents, whose lives you’ve changed with your love of jazz and your willingness to teach the youth of today — “youth of today” now meaning everyone under 80 — we all deeply and sincerely appreciate your presence on this planet!
Yo Uncle Willie, Happy Birthday! May you have 80 more!
Happy Birthday Uncle Willie! Thank you for sharing with us your great knowledge and love for jazz music.
Dear Uncle Willie,
all the best for your 80th birthday. You’re just a tiny 30 years ahead – I will try to catch up…
Thanks for your wonderful website, keep on going!
Kind regards from Germany
Joerg
Hi Uncle Willie,
Germany Calling
All the best wishes to my dear friend, tutor, language-guru etc.
I’m really looking forward to meet you this Friday.
So, have a nice celebration and as you might have noticed: with your birthday spring has come.
Cheers
Johannes, Irene and the boys
Yo Daddy-O – happiest of birthdays! Lucky to have been touched my your genius for 40 of your 80 years. thanks for being such an inspiration. keep on swingin’!
Bruce
Yo! Happy, happy birthday, Uncle Willie! We miss you here on Orcas, but glad you’re celebrating the big eight-oh with family. Things are good here — Molly’s getting better and I played a Valentine’s dance gig last night with the Orcas Horns. Thanks to you and the wonderful resources you’ve provided on this site, I sounded way more as if I knew what I was doing during the couple of solo choruses that I took. (At least I thought so!) I look forward to picking up the lessons again when you get back. Take care, and have an awesome 80th!
Just be coool Uncle!!!
Yo Willie,
Happy Birthday, man. You’re an inspiration to us oldsters (I’m 64). Thanks for your perceptive approach to a difficult genre.
Your Friend in Jazz,
Steve
Happy Birthday, Willie,
You should feel very proud that your enthusiastic teaching by example on your website has brought so much solid content and inspiration to all of us. You have done a wonderful thing there. Thank you!
Neil Sirman (jazzcowboy) – trombone
Happy birthday, Uncle Willie!
Happy Birthday Uncle Willie! All the best and thanks for a great site.
Happy 80th Birthday, Uncle Willie! You’re have been a true inspiration and integral part of my trumpet playing development. Thank you for the great website and the great lessons the you have provided they like you yourself are invaluable.
May you be bless with 80 more years.
All the best
Stephen
Dear Willie! May you hang around and make music and inspire the kids for several more decades to come! We need that! You never know whom you touch and whose life you change forever! I’m sure you’ve done that many times, whether you know it or not, and still will! Don’t forget to blow ALL the candles!
hugs! Moneva
A very happy birthday to you, Willie! We wish we were there to help celebrate the day you turned 80 years young!
We’re thrilled to know you and look forward to making lots more music in the very near future.
Much love and music,
Lizanne & Roland
Mia & Bram
A very happy birthday, Willie.
Happy birthday, Uncle Willie! Thanks for your great website! Keep on keepin’ on! 🙂
Frank
Happy 80th birthday. Thank you for sharing with us your wisdom.
Hey uncle Willie. Happy Happy! I’m in FL this week,for a slightly sad occasion, my mother finally passed away. Brother Bill and I will treat it as a joyous occasion, maybe having a small jazz wake for her, playing the tunes she used to play on many gigs in FL and the South.
I made a comment to the JazzLives blog, recalling an incident that helped kick-start us into music – you can read it here: http://jazzlives.wordpress.com/2011/02/12/from-the-1969-manassas-jazz-festival/#comment-6258.
Of course, I started to perfect my playing in those sessions at your place in Maitland, where you would play the LPs at 45 and 78 rpm, playing those Bird recordings in new keys. Have a good one buddy.
Happy Birthday, Uncle Willie! You’re an inspiring guy. Thanks so much for being a great teacher and putting this site together.