William Elliott Whitmore - I'm with you
I’ve been aware of the work of William Elliott Whitmore for most of his career, certainly since the excellent 2003 album ‘Hymns for the hopeless,’ and yet in all of that time I’ve never actually got around to reviewing any of his recordings. Since that 2003 release there have been seven more albums including this current collection, all of which I’ve listened to over the years and yet never felt the compulsion to put anything in black and white; that is until the first time I heard ‘I’m with you’. This tremendous albums predecessors, of which the last one was 2015s ‘Radium Death,’ were all excellent and completely unlike the work of anyone else around at the time, (a state of affairs that pleasingly still exists!) and yet there was little that really seemed to stick with me after listening to the albums. On relistening to several of them since getting hooked on this new disc it has become fairly obvious that the fault was mine for not giving them long enough to grow on me, the quality and depth of those recordings having now become revelatory with further listening sessions.
Perhaps the problem in not getting to know the albums is the fact that they always seemed to be almost overwhelmed by a pervasive, dark atmosphere created by his lyrics and enhanced by his deep powerful vocals and sparse arrangements. That, after a few cursory listens would still be the case, but it gradually dawns that whilst there is very little humour, he is not writing songs of depression, but tales that are rooted in the real world, albeit a real world in which the inhabitants lives are fraught with the struggle to make ends meet simply because they were born in poverty and/or ‘on the wrong side of the tracks,’ or perhaps, simply down on their luck. Tales of ‘what is’ rather than some idealised view of unrealistic desires. That is probably a much too general summation and over simplifies his extraordinary writing talents but new listeners certainly shouldn’t look for any ‘boy meets girl’ love songs on his albums, and yet none the less there are tales of love, albeit rooted in familial love and the utter determination to offer support in the fight to rise above the current struggles. Overall there may not be a huge amount of light but there is hope and even a little optimism that thanks to the subject’s determination and fight there could just be a slight glimmer of light starting to emerge at the end of the long dark tunnel. Having just listened to another couple of his earlier albums the theme of struggling against the tide is a thread that runs through most of his work but always with the intimation that the subjects will emerge into the light or at least be aware that there could be a positive end to the darkness.
He is a difficult artist to pigeonhole, his songs including a strong folksiness that is often offset by powerful blues and country elements, even including some old time (‘hillbilly’) influences, a punk attitude and I’ve even seen a couple of far-fetched references to bluegrass. All of this is emphasised by his deep, raw, incredibly evocative vocal style that even without the perfect for purpose instrumentation and arrangements provides a tremendously powerful and emotional atmosphere. Stylistically he is often referred to as ‘Americana,’ a catchall word that is often used if we don’t know where to place an artist and yet in William’s case it is probably a good fit, certainly much better than many who are slotted under that particular umbrella.
The album clocks in at little more than half an hour and nine songs but if ever there was a case of ‘less is more,’ this is certainly it. As the album comes to its conclusion the repeat button comes into play, even engendering a strong sense of anticipation in the listener for what is to come, despite having already listened to these tremendous self-written songs several times over in the session! Part of the appeal is down to the varied instrumentation and arrangements, every track being entirely different to those around it and in just about every way, apart from that is, William’s deep rich vocals that always bring a distinct ‘edginess’ to proceedings and tie everything together.
The albums quality is further emphasised by the talents of the musicians who worked on the recording and include Mike Schulte on drums, Dale Thomas plays pedal steel guitar, Annie Savage on fiddle, Brian Cooper, drums and Stephen “The Kid” Howard played electric guitar. Because the arrangements are so sparse the steel guitar, fiddle and banjo probably have more of a say in the atmosphere and the relationship between light and dark shades than just about any other instruments, in some ways rubber stamping the songs they dominate and creating a strong sense of diversity.
The album opener, Put it to use, gets underway with banjo and percussion, soon joined by weeping fiddle followed by Williams powerful deep vocal on a tale of someone who was taught some important lessons of life from a young age and will soon have to put them into practise. This is followed by Solar flare, another excellent song that immediately has the listener thinking that if this first pair of songs are anything to go by the album is going to be outstanding, and so it proves. The song opens with gentle acoustic guitar and Williams vocal on a thought-provoking ballad about an acceptance of the way things are, and a general satisfaction with what has gone before, with the setting being the aftermath of a funeral, something that often provokes thought in most of us! MK Ultra Blues is as its title suggests a blues song but one that has a hard-hitting message, telling of drug experimentation on, rather than in, the armed services, oddly, the darkness further enhanced by a slightly humourous edge. History contains a powerful vocal performance supported by acoustic guitar on another excellent song, this one underpinned by gorgeous steel guitar on a tale of the hope that we will learn from and not repeat our historic mistakes. If only! There is even a ‘country and western song,’ My mind can be cruel to me, with it’s dominant beautiful weeping steel guitar, although as you would expect that idealised ‘c & w’ world is maybe not quite what the listener expects (or wants!) and is more metaphor than allegory.
I think it’s safe to say, at this late stage of 2020 that “I’m with you” is one of the best albums of the year and I’m pretty sure that when I start recapping on everything I’ve heard in 2020 it will be in the mix for my, and probably many others, top albums of the year. It really is that good! William Elliott Whitmore is a unique and highly gifted singer songwriter who deserves to be heard by every real music fan. Learn from my mistakes. When you purchase his albums, as surely you will, give them a chance and don’t give up on them too soon; the rewards will be great!
https://www.williamelliottwhitmore.com/
Perhaps the problem in not getting to know the albums is the fact that they always seemed to be almost overwhelmed by a pervasive, dark atmosphere created by his lyrics and enhanced by his deep powerful vocals and sparse arrangements. That, after a few cursory listens would still be the case, but it gradually dawns that whilst there is very little humour, he is not writing songs of depression, but tales that are rooted in the real world, albeit a real world in which the inhabitants lives are fraught with the struggle to make ends meet simply because they were born in poverty and/or ‘on the wrong side of the tracks,’ or perhaps, simply down on their luck. Tales of ‘what is’ rather than some idealised view of unrealistic desires. That is probably a much too general summation and over simplifies his extraordinary writing talents but new listeners certainly shouldn’t look for any ‘boy meets girl’ love songs on his albums, and yet none the less there are tales of love, albeit rooted in familial love and the utter determination to offer support in the fight to rise above the current struggles. Overall there may not be a huge amount of light but there is hope and even a little optimism that thanks to the subject’s determination and fight there could just be a slight glimmer of light starting to emerge at the end of the long dark tunnel. Having just listened to another couple of his earlier albums the theme of struggling against the tide is a thread that runs through most of his work but always with the intimation that the subjects will emerge into the light or at least be aware that there could be a positive end to the darkness.
He is a difficult artist to pigeonhole, his songs including a strong folksiness that is often offset by powerful blues and country elements, even including some old time (‘hillbilly’) influences, a punk attitude and I’ve even seen a couple of far-fetched references to bluegrass. All of this is emphasised by his deep, raw, incredibly evocative vocal style that even without the perfect for purpose instrumentation and arrangements provides a tremendously powerful and emotional atmosphere. Stylistically he is often referred to as ‘Americana,’ a catchall word that is often used if we don’t know where to place an artist and yet in William’s case it is probably a good fit, certainly much better than many who are slotted under that particular umbrella.
The album clocks in at little more than half an hour and nine songs but if ever there was a case of ‘less is more,’ this is certainly it. As the album comes to its conclusion the repeat button comes into play, even engendering a strong sense of anticipation in the listener for what is to come, despite having already listened to these tremendous self-written songs several times over in the session! Part of the appeal is down to the varied instrumentation and arrangements, every track being entirely different to those around it and in just about every way, apart from that is, William’s deep rich vocals that always bring a distinct ‘edginess’ to proceedings and tie everything together.
The albums quality is further emphasised by the talents of the musicians who worked on the recording and include Mike Schulte on drums, Dale Thomas plays pedal steel guitar, Annie Savage on fiddle, Brian Cooper, drums and Stephen “The Kid” Howard played electric guitar. Because the arrangements are so sparse the steel guitar, fiddle and banjo probably have more of a say in the atmosphere and the relationship between light and dark shades than just about any other instruments, in some ways rubber stamping the songs they dominate and creating a strong sense of diversity.
The album opener, Put it to use, gets underway with banjo and percussion, soon joined by weeping fiddle followed by Williams powerful deep vocal on a tale of someone who was taught some important lessons of life from a young age and will soon have to put them into practise. This is followed by Solar flare, another excellent song that immediately has the listener thinking that if this first pair of songs are anything to go by the album is going to be outstanding, and so it proves. The song opens with gentle acoustic guitar and Williams vocal on a thought-provoking ballad about an acceptance of the way things are, and a general satisfaction with what has gone before, with the setting being the aftermath of a funeral, something that often provokes thought in most of us! MK Ultra Blues is as its title suggests a blues song but one that has a hard-hitting message, telling of drug experimentation on, rather than in, the armed services, oddly, the darkness further enhanced by a slightly humourous edge. History contains a powerful vocal performance supported by acoustic guitar on another excellent song, this one underpinned by gorgeous steel guitar on a tale of the hope that we will learn from and not repeat our historic mistakes. If only! There is even a ‘country and western song,’ My mind can be cruel to me, with it’s dominant beautiful weeping steel guitar, although as you would expect that idealised ‘c & w’ world is maybe not quite what the listener expects (or wants!) and is more metaphor than allegory.
I think it’s safe to say, at this late stage of 2020 that “I’m with you” is one of the best albums of the year and I’m pretty sure that when I start recapping on everything I’ve heard in 2020 it will be in the mix for my, and probably many others, top albums of the year. It really is that good! William Elliott Whitmore is a unique and highly gifted singer songwriter who deserves to be heard by every real music fan. Learn from my mistakes. When you purchase his albums, as surely you will, give them a chance and don’t give up on them too soon; the rewards will be great!
https://www.williamelliottwhitmore.com/