The R&B Archetype
Discover more from The Writings of T. Reilly
A multi-time Grammy winner, as well an esteemed member of both the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Bill Withers’ soulfully eclectic approach to composing songs and his distinctive and iconic voice are undeniably important ingredients to the artistically influential 70s R&B sound.
There is no mistaking a Bill Withers song. His voice is like being on a river with your eyes closed, the parts when you are just floating with the rippling waves that rub gently against the bottom of the raft, and the places where the river picks up speed and your body is in motion with the raft. But ever present is a calm confidence enveloping those mid and low range notes of his.
Still Bill was released in 1972 and was Withers’ second album. The most well-known song on the album is Lean on Me, one that is timeless in its musical relevance. Withers packs Still Bill with a full and rich experience that goes effortlessly from beautiful ballads to upbeat Soul Funk, from Let Me in Your Life, to Use Me.
The photography on the cover is stellar and the front opens up like two doors to give you a view of a full cover photo, one of the many examples of 70s record labels getting creative with different ways to open a few pieces of cardboard.