he played with count basie between 1938–1945 and 1947–1950. he also played with cecil scott, spike hughes, fletcher henderson, benny carter, teddy hill, jimmy rushing, buck clayton and ray charles. in the middle years of the 1960s, wells toured and performed extensively, and the onset of alcoholism caused him personal problems which led to his semi-retirement. publication of his autobiography in 1973 helped to steer wells back to his profession.