Feasting On William Topley

(BSRR would like to acknowledge Louis Santos, Comm 210.01, RWU, without whose help - specifically, three WilliamTopley CDS - this column would not have been possible).

The first and most obvious thing you notice about Englishman William Topley is his voice - the accent that sounds vaguely Jamaican, or maybe Deep South, or possibly Motown Soul - the way he stretches and bends a syllable to fit it flawlessly to the lyric, just as he modulates it from a drawl to a howl on the 12 standout tracks that make up "Feasting With Panthers". He actually has six solo CDs to his credit as well as three more under the name of his original band, The Blessing.

The second thing is the lyrics, like his musical trip to Cuba, "La Habana":
"Saw you stand in the street beneath a poster of Che
Watching young couples kiss in the Malacon...
All the girls in the Tropicana, they roll their own cigars
I stand there in the dressing room, just drinking it in...
Down at Papa's Marina the old man drinks alone
Writing notes to his son a thousand miles away..." (c) 2001 Trinifold Music/BMG Music Pub. Ltd.

The third and most confusing aspect of Topley's music is the fact that it simply can't be characterized. Besides " La Habana", there is the Spanish-flavored "Los Largos" with its soaring promises of love as well as a more mundane chorus:
"What you gotta do to get ahead these days it seems
You gotta rock Manhattan and Staten, Long Island, Jamaica and Queens..." (c) 2001 BMG Music Pub. Ltd.
"Excuses" is a funky, reggae-flavored "dancehall" tune, a lecture to a former lover who wants him back:
"And I've lost sweet time loving you
I said I've been heartbroken, angry
But now I've found somebody, too
So don't you give me excuses...(c) BMG Music Pub. Ltd./Dalmatian Songs (PRS)

"Drake's Drum" features a combination of blistering slide guitar, quavering tremolo and a little bit of Jimi Hendrix wah-wah style thrown in. That's just a taste of William Topley, hailed by the likes of Barry Beckett (Who's produced both Aretha Franklin and Paul Simon) who said: " He's the best singer I've ever heard."

As far as Topley himself is concerned: "...But often the most moving moments have happened to me in Belfast or Hamburg or on the lonely highways of the Midwest. I've ridden shotgun on the private jet and washed my hair on a cold street in Chicago...When you're Feasting with Panthers, you witness the extremes of the feast. But you don't get to eat." If you've got an appetite for exceptionally tight instrumentation, intelligent lyrics and a voice that simply transcends the genre, then feast on William Topley - you won't go away hungry.

Go to http://www.williamtopley.com/

Don't forget - the 2007 Rhode Island International Film Festival starts this Tuesday with 230 screenings around the state - world premieres, vintage Harold Lloyd, standout documentaries, even Elvis in the rough! Get the scoop at http://www.riiff.com/.

For Bruce Burnside's music: http://www.bruceburnside.com/.

For Scott Allen's "The Evidence" : http://www.milomusic.com/

For yet another twisted commentary: http://rantsfromrockyhill.blogspot.com/