Since he was the grandson of trumpeter and music teacher Jim Humphrey, the son of clarinetist Willie Humphrey, Sr., and the brother of both trumpeter
Percy and trombonist
Earl Humphrey, it is not surprising that
Willie Humphrey, Jr. became a musician. After some violin lessons, he switched to clarinet when he was 14 and started working locally.
Humphrey spent part of 1919-1920 in Chicago, where he played with
King Oliver and
Freddie Keppard, but then returned home, missing his chance to be recorded early in his career.
Humphrey spent 1925-1932 in St. Louis, playing with Fate Marable and
Dewey Jackson, and toured with
Lucky Millinder (1935-1936), but otherwise lived in New Orleans the remainder of his life. He worked as a music teacher and in a Navy band during World War II, and in the 1950s, he spent a period working with
Paul Barbarin.
Willie Humphrey and his brother
Percy came to fame performing with
the Preservation Hall Jazz Band starting in the 1960s, touring and spreading the joy of New Orleans jazz around the world. Although far from a virtuoso,
Willie Humphrey played his simple ensemble-oriented style with spirit; he recorded as a leader for Smoky Mary and late in his career for GHB. ~ Scott Yanow