TIM BUCKLEY is one of many reassuring points of reference in the work of CAL WILLIAMS JR. (this new album includes a version of Buckley's yearning "Once I Was"). Cal is an Australian with a string of previous good form, recording now in Robin Hood's Bay (Carthy/Waterson territory on the Yorkshire coast of England). Like Buckley, he has a folk/jazz approach to songwriting and performance. My guess is that you will recognise and remember him by his delicate musical perfectionism as soon as you hear him. His guitar playing is exceptional, light, varied and inventive. His singing voice is beguiling in an M. Ward sort of way, but the guitar seems to carry most of his emotional commitment.
The guitar gets there right from the start. "Winnebago" is a Spanish guitar intro with substantial echoes of Rodrigo's concerto, followed by a subtle shift into an edgier minor key before the folk dance of a fiddle tune rollicks it up, just a little. The melancholy feel is one that lingers through this first song (and then through the album) maybe emphasised by the deeper resonance of Paul Wilson's playing viola where the fiddle might have been in a less imaginative recording.
"Sanctuary" introduces Williams's delicate high tenor voice, with some moody guitar and more exquisite solo viola. By its end a tougher mood has set in, with Ross Stirling's carefully light percussion and more forceful chords on the guitar. "Absolution" continues both the religious imagery in its title and the gracious waves towards Spanish guitar in its music.
"Lean Into Me" has a jazzier start, with guitar following voice in little rushes of notes. This could easily be French chanson. Pivotal track "Once I Was" (5th of 10) has a country folk feel, but remains delicate despite its more elemental approach. The Buckley song has a confident strength that makes the track a landmark highpoint on the album.
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After that "A Brief Moment Of Clarity" is a short jazz piece with the guitar alternating chords and runs as if there were two guitars. The final couple of verses features some neat clarinet playing by Matthew Dunn. "Rescue Me" is a soft-voiced love song, with a bluesish back story in the guitar part.
"My Best Defence" and "Light In The Dark" are songs in the style of "Lean Into Me" - whispered laments to the fragile joy of intimate relationships. The warmth of "My Best Defence" is increased by the distinctive ensemble of bass clarinet, congas and guitar.
At the end of it all "Early Morning" is a brighter tune with an optimistic Jansch/Renbourn feel in the opening bars and a rather perky clarinet line that entwines itself very neatly with the guitar playing as the tune proceeds.
This is a beautifully realised CD, quite small in scope but ultimately very rewarding. It doesn't shout, but then, in all its gentle humility, it doesn't mumble even for half a bar. Anyone tracking my audioscrobbler logs this summer will be surprised at just how many times I have played it.
www.calwilliams.co.uk
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