Williams, a native of Newport News, Virgina, was admitted to the Sentara Hospital in nearby Hampton after he suffered a stroke on 2 March. He fell into a coma and later died of cardiac arrest.

Although probably nobody outside the music industry knew his name, practically everybody on the planet heard his work thanks to his in-the-pocket playing on Michael Jackson's smash Billie Jean. Williams contributed the clean, funky strummed solo that was integral to the sound of the song - more on this story

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