Audio recording clip of interview with Johnny Pate and Jillean Williams by Claytee D. White, March 4, 2004

You were his conductor at one point? Well, let me explain that. We've been here — this is our 21st year, since I moved here in '83. Joe and I, throughout the years, we stayed in touch. When Joe went with the Basie Band, I guess we didn't see each other as often as we did while he was in Chicago and while I was in Chicago. Because when he went with the Basie Band, they immediately went on the road. But every time they'd show up, we'd see each other. When I moved here, I moved here to retire. I moved here to retire and raise a son. My son was seven years old at the time, and I didn't want to bring him up in L.A. And of course, I knew Joe was here. And Joe and I had stayed in touch. So when I called Joe, He said you're moving to Vegas? I said, Yes, I'm retiring. He said, Oh, no. We'll have no retiring here, he said. So Joe would keep me writing something. You know, he'd get a bright idea. As Jill had said to you, Joe was a golf junkie. Joe would be out on a golf course somewhere, and an idea might come to him. And he would play all over town. And the doorbell would ring here, and here's Joe coming off the golf course. He'd say, I just got an idea. And he'd come in, and we'd sit here for hours. I'd be sitting at the piano and Joe would sing and we'd kick over this idea; and then a lot of times Joe would come and stop by, Give me a glass of juice. We'd sit here for three or four hours just listening to music, just listening to music and not saying a word. And every now and then, something would happen musically, and one of us would say, hmmmmm, you know. And as I said before, Joe said, No, there's going to be no retiring here. So whenever Joe had one of these benefits — well, Norman Simmons, this musical conductor who lives in Jersey — well, this is a freebie. So he's not going to bring Norman. I'd get a call and Joe would say, Come on, we're doing this benefit over here. Then, as I said before, he kept me writing. And we went through a period there when Disney World, Epcot Center in Florida booked Joe to come down there, I think, for two or three days. And something happened and Norman — I don't even know whether Norman was in Japan or wherever — I'm not sure exactly how it happened. But Joe would call and say, Come on, you're going to Florida with me. So we did this about four or five years in a row, I 18 think, we played Epcot Center. This was a program that Disney had started, where they would audition music students from all over the country, conservatory jazz programs in colleges, and even some high schools. They would put together the cream of the crop, and they would work, say, maybe six to eight weeks at the Disney properties. These were young kids, and they would have them working like they would when they became professionals. So that's who would accompany us down there. And part of the deal down there, we would do a seminar the last day where these kids would — you know, we would talk to them. So Joe kept me doing that most of the time. And then recording, we did two or three recordings here. Then when Joe recorded the album with Robert Farnum [Farnon] in London, Joe took us over to do that. This was a big thrill because Joe and I had discovered Robert Farnum [Farnon], this fantastic — well, he's Canadian originally, but he's living in London — this fantastic orchestrator, arranger, conductor. We had discovered him, I think, in 1957. This is when we had heard about Robert Farnum [Farnon]. And, of course, Joe and I both had been just big Farnum [Farnon] fans. And so when this thing came up where Joe was going to record with Robert Farnum [Farnon], I guess we were both just totally elated, you know. But just up until the end, Joe kept me doing something. He passed on a Monday. The Saturday before, we were scheduled to do a concert with the Greensboro Symphony.