Whippoorwill's Singing: All Things Will

I’ll never forget the first time I heard Will Johnson sing. I was at home listening to streaming radio on my computer and getting ready to go out for the evening when I heard a man’s unusual voice. I suddenly stopped and thought to myself “who in the world…?” I looked at the screen to see who it was and thought “wow, he’s different and I like him…a lot.” That “like” of Will Johnson and his music in time turned into an enduring love and appreciation for this underappreciated singer/songwriter. What I heard on my computer that evening was called “Just to Know What You’ve Been Dreaming” (listen below).

A pretty and romantic song, yes -- but it wasn’t so much the song that grabbed my attention as it was the emotion and singing style of the artist singing it. I’ve since heard album after album of Will’s music and have to say he’s one of my favorite artists and one with an ability to invoke raw feeling. Some people (and they know who they are) like to tease and say I love “sad bastard” music, meaning slow and morose type songs (you know, the kind you could cut your wrist by). While I have to admit that yeah sometimes that is true I also appreciate variety a great deal and that's exactly what I get from multifaceted Will Johnson. He’s a true talent, a solo performer who doesn’t just write meaningful songs; he’s also the front man for his two bands, Centro-matic and South San Gabriel. Centro-matic, with the same four members for fifteen years, is the slightly more rock of the two. South San Gabriel includes the same members, plus various rotating guests and is more of an outlet for Will’s quieter introspective songs. Whether he’s playing music solo or with one of his two bands, with Will Johnson…it’s all good.

I’ll never forget the first time I saw Will Johnson perform live. A few years back, Mark and I drove to Kansas City with the sole intention of seeing the band “The Bottle Rockets”, which we did. But when we discovered Centro-matic was playing the same night across the state line, we knew we had to somehow see both bands. Lucky for us the Bottle Rockets played an early show so after catching them in KC (KS) we hopped in the car and rushed to see Centro-matic at a place called The Record Bar in KC (MO). We made it in “record” time and a short while later in walked the subject of this post. I had never seen Will Johnson in person before but knew it was him right away. He came in quietly and unpretentiously blended with the crowd and seemed happy just to be there. Will’s music isn’t the only thing I like and admire about him. I like the fact that he’s friendly, approachable, and just a regular guy. He’s a man of small stature (literally) but after seeing him perform with his band Centro-matic that night he couldn’t have been any larger in my eyes. They were great then and they’ve been great the many times we’ve seen them since.

After witnessing much live music the last few years it’s amazing to me the quantity of untapped musical talent there is out there. And what I find even more amazing is that many mainstream and famous artists today don’t hold even a smidgen of the talent of someone like Will Johnson. Somehow that doesn’t seem right but something tells me Will probably doesn’t mind too much. I think he’s happy being a regular guy writing remarkable songs, performing with his bands, kicking his leg up, and singing with all the heart and soul he alone owns. Oh and how very happy that makes me.