Don Williams’ “Reflections” Reminds Us of What’s Important
We hear it all the time. It pursues us throughout our daily lives. It seems to be one of the eternal lessons of life. Yet no matter how much we all believe in the message and take it into our hearts, it is amazing how easily we stray from taking time, slowing down, and appreciating the important things in life and living in the moment. Because no matter how much you tell yourself how paramount this is, there’s an endless world of priorities and distractions awaiting you on your phone, on your computer, and on your television. You can preach the virtues of slowing down all you want, but the best way to drive the message home is by example, and this is what the wise-minded, and golden-throated guru of classic country music Don Williams does on his new album Reflections.
The message wouldn’t have so much meaning behind it if it wasn’t so obvious Don Williams practices what he preaches. He had his day of moving and shaking in the music business (5 CMA Male Vocalist Trophies & seventeen #1’s to be exact), and when it was obvious that the industry had put him out to pasture, he didn’t shake his fists in anger or reconfigure his image to appeal to the younger generation. He was appreciative of the time he spent in the spotlight, and stepped back to rest on his laurels and re-evaluate his priorities. Even now that he’s re-ignited his career of sorts by releasing two albums in the last three years, it seems like he’s doing it only as a dabbler; to get the devil out of him so to speak, so that music doesn’t pursue him in his mind as he tries to relax and revel in his golden years.
This is the attitude and approach that Reflections is recorded with—slow and easy—like Don told his wife, “I’ll be back for supper,” and then went out for an afternoon to cut an album of songs that he believes in and lives by every day. Then as producers, engineers, and label people labored to get this record ready for release, it was the farthest thing from Don’s mind as he takes a late breakfast and heads out fishing.
Where Reflections outdoes his 2012 album And So It Goes is in the song selection. Don Williams can sing anything and make it gold, and one of his greatest assets is being able to sing a song that performed by any other artist would come across as sappy, and make it somewhat cool and more universally appealing. But there’s a little bit of swagger, a little bit of grit in some the songs of Reflections, not necessarily in the words, but just in the attitude. Selecting a song from Townes Van Zandt in “I’ll Be Here In The Morning”, and from Merle Haggard in “Sing Me Back Home” which refers to Merle’s stint in prison, gives this album some gravel, despite the otherwise smooth and subdued approach of the music. Yet these two famous covers still sit well within the theme of the album of appreciating the small things in life.
Reflections is much more than just the easy listening country it may appear to be on the surface. It’s an album with a message, and leads by example. Instead of whining about the state of country music, it does something about it.
The laid back, gentle-of-mind ease drips from this album like the sweetness of sun-drenched dew. Sometimes it’s simply implied, and other times it’s directly spoken, like in the appreciative and well-written “Working Man’s Son” or the song that ties the entire theme of Reflections together, “Back To The Simple Things.” Enough can’t be said either about the Townes cover “I’ll Be Here In The Morning”. Like when Willie and Merle took “Pancho & Lefty” to another level, Don Williams’ touch on this song immortalized it, and in a different time it would have been a super hit.
Reflections is the album we needed right here, right now. Not just from the perspective of saving country music, but the perspective of saving ourselves from the overwhelming onslaught of ensnaring technologies that rob the preciousness from life.
Two guns up.
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March 19, 2014 @ 10:56 am
Great review, definitely going to buy this one!
March 19, 2014 @ 11:09 am
I couldn’t agree more, Trigger. This is easily one of the most outstanding albums released so far this year. I just love everything about this project.
And you’re so right, ‘Reflections’, is so much stronger than ‘And So It Goes.’ I felt like I could engage with it more. His mellow attitude didn’t overwhelm me this time around.
March 19, 2014 @ 11:09 am
Definitely a sight for sore ears…will be buying!
March 19, 2014 @ 11:20 am
Great review. We’ll be promoting at Bob Wills Triple B Ranch House in California. http://centralcalmusic.com
March 22, 2014 @ 10:52 am
Bob Wills is still the king… (;
March 19, 2014 @ 11:42 am
Beautiful songs, moving and deep.
When I think of everything that I like about classic country, Don Williams pretty much represents the ideal in my mind. The warmth of his voice reminds us of exactly what is missing in today’s mainstream country music.
I would also like to add that “Sing Me Back Home” is one of my favorite Merle Haggard songs. I am glad that Don Williams is trying to keep it in the limelight.
March 19, 2014 @ 11:46 am
his voice is still top notch. This album will be one of the years best yet most people will never take a minute to listen or buy it. I expect to see this album on triggers year end award finalist.
March 19, 2014 @ 11:49 am
I bought the digital version directly off Sugar Hill Records. The digital download is 320kbps. Loseless is of course better and real CD’s sound better still. I’m happy not to be tied to physical CD’s anymore myself and I’m not so picky I have to have everything in loseless. 320kbps is the best you can do for MP3’s and it sounds great to me.
The digital download is missing the booklet and album art. They also didn’t insert the album art into the MP3 tags (easy enough to fix). The genre in the album tags was set as ‘Alternative’ which just didn’t seem right at all. I changed that to ‘Country’.
March 19, 2014 @ 2:00 pm
I feel like I remember an article on here pertaining to someone else but there was some slight Don Williams bashing because he wasn’t country enough in the 80’s??? In which I completely disagree… If anyone has been to any of his concert the past couple years he draws a lot of young people that are pretty passionate about his music. Either way looking forward to this new album. Thanks for the review.
March 19, 2014 @ 2:19 pm
Great review! I will be buying this album today. I listtened to a preview of it and absolutely loved it. That voice is just as pure as it gets and I agree so much with the perspective that Don is singing about a lifestyle that he truly lives. It just seems so natural.
One thing I really appreciate about Trigger about your reviews is your wide range. I think too many people who speak out against the current state of country music have a little to narrow view about what country music is some times. So many of those people simply want to rattle off names like Willie, Waylon, Shave, Jones, Haggard, Paycheck and other guys who somewhat personified an outlaw lifestyle. A guy like Don Williams was just as much country as any of those guys, his style was just a little different I for one am happy that he is still doing it!
If one of the big awards shows wants to do something really outlaw this year, how about giving Don a spot on the show and let him sing by himself.
March 19, 2014 @ 5:25 pm
Good stuff, I will have to possibly buy this one!!
March 19, 2014 @ 5:27 pm
Thanks for highlighting this album. Don Williams is playing here in Pittsburgh next Thursday and I’m going to make it a point to see him after reading this.
March 19, 2014 @ 6:21 pm
Did not realize the gentle giant was still making records. He sounds great! Definitely gonna buy this one.
March 19, 2014 @ 9:04 pm
I loved his last album ‘And So It Goes’, even went to see him when he came through my city. He just sat on a stool with his guitar and sang. I’ve been to awesome concerts where performers went all out but dang this guy had the audience hanging on his every word. This is definitely on my to-buy list.
March 19, 2014 @ 10:11 pm
Been fortunate to see Don 3 times, and he amazes me every time. So smooth in his delivery and stage presence. Very funny at times as well. He is one of the artists I wish my generation knew more about, or appreciated more.
March 20, 2014 @ 5:23 am
He voice sounds the same as it did 30 years ago!
Timeless.
I don’t buy much music nowadays.
Thanks for the info.
March 20, 2014 @ 10:39 am
Question, Trigger: are the linked performances live or are the studio tracks overlaid on the video? I really enjoyed “I’ll Be Here in the Morning” and “Sing Me Back Home” wasn’t bad, either. Don Williams has never been my forte though I’ve always respected the man and his music. That said, the first performance almost singlehandedly talked me into buying the album wholesale, but I’ve never liked getting used to a certain performance (live, etc.) and figuring out that it isn’t the version that is included on the album. Are the versions of these songs in the videos the same ones that are on the album? And if not, are they comparable?
March 21, 2014 @ 12:58 pm
Just from the eyeball test, the videos look like they were shot live in the studio, while the album was being recorded live, with the same exact tracks that made it on the album. Then some overdubs were added later. Did not see any latency or synchronizing issues that would allude that it was anything but a live video. Of course, we don’t know if it took extra takes to land the performances perfectly, but it’s still cool to see the actual tracks being recorded.
March 27, 2014 @ 9:40 pm
I bought the album the other day and having listened to it, I’d say that it’s the same performances, and if there are differences, they are minute enough that I can’t personally tell. It would make sense that these videos were shot during the recording sessions: I can’t see the label spending money on a proper video given that none of these songs have a chance on modern country radio. The video seems more like a documentation of the sessions than a promotional element.
On another note, I really want to thank you for posting this review. I know that you don’t often get as many readers for positive articles as you do rants, but I would have never even considered picking up this album had I not read your review and now I’m even a Don Williams fan, though only casual. Same goes for certain other artists. Either way, I’ve been playing the album a bunch recently and am really thankful that I’m a SCM reader.
March 27, 2014 @ 9:42 pm
Thanks for reading Acca Dacca!
March 27, 2014 @ 9:53 pm
Thank you for your writing. And I forgot to mention: I listened to 30 seconds of the opening track of Out Among the Stars and now I have to get a copy. Dammit. If we were keeping score, you would definitely be winning (even though we’ll probably never agree on Big & Rich and Montgomery Gentry 😉 ). But at least I’m beginning to see eye to eye with you on Don Williams and earlier Cash.
March 20, 2014 @ 11:03 am
Wonderful album. Good review. Thank God for country music.
March 21, 2014 @ 1:32 pm
Sometimes I just love to sit back and listen to soft country music. Love this new stuff by Don Williams. Reminds me of listening to Josh Turners first album. Thoughtful and soulful album. Trigger, I haven’t heard you ever mention anything on Josh Turner. I know he isn’t really even a 2nd tier country artist right now. But his first three albums seemed to be very country for mainstream. His singles didn’t always chart at the top but he sold over 3.5 million of his first three albums. Seemed like his true country sound caught a lot of ears in the mid-2000s. But I’ve never heard anyone even mention JT on SCM (except if he was up for an award, then still no commentary).
March 26, 2014 @ 6:17 pm
Interesting thoughts on Josh Turner. Personally, I’ve never thought much of his music. It’s pretty pedestrian and vanilla. Comparing him to Don Williams seems fair enough, but there’s just something about how Williams delivers a song that Josh Turner has yet to capture. I can’t put my finger on it, but he just doesn’t have the same gravitas with his music.
March 22, 2014 @ 11:14 am
Trigger, I was hoping you’d review this. Thanks a lot. I’m just glad Don is recording albums again. If I recall, the 2012 album got a good review here, so if this one is even better, that’s pretty high praise.
Oh, and on a side note, if anybody’s interested in Don’s old albums, I noticed recently that British label BGO Records has started re-issuing the original LPs on CD. I’m glad to see it, because Don Williams is one of those artists, like a lot of country singers, whose actual albums are hard to get a hold of in this era. Here’s a link to of them:
http://www.amazon.com/Visions-Expressions-Portrait-Don-Williams/dp/B00CV920T2/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1395511126&sr=1-1&keywords=Expressions+don+williams
March 26, 2014 @ 6:14 pm
Excellent to hear Don Williams is still recording great music. The man is a horribly underrated fixture of country music, and has been for many years.
Keep up the great music, Don!
April 3, 2014 @ 9:01 am
This I believe is just the tip of the iceberg for Don Williams and a return to the simpler times in Country music. Thx Don for the many years of a true country voice.
February 22, 2015 @ 10:56 am
I just bought both this one and “And So It Goes” this morning but for more personal reasons; I’m on the High Functioning Autism spectrum and found that his music has been taking away a lot of the edge that I feel sometimes especially since I’m making some huge decisions in my life right now that are stressing me out right now like planning to move away from my family this summer.