69.00 PLN

CD:

Nr kat.: NAIM141
Label  : NAIM Records

The divorce of William Fitzsimmons' blind parents' was so traumatic he wrote an album about it. The recording of that album (‘Goodnight') in turn proved so harrowing it precipitated the breakup of his own marriage, which the ex-psychotherapist has documented on this album - ‘The Sparrow And The Crow' Described as "a near masterpiece" by the Boston Herald, ‘The Sparrow And The Crow' is bathed in similar autumnal hues as ‘Goodnight'. It even starts with a version of the song that closed its predecessor - ‘Afterall' was the final track on ‘Goodnight'; ‘After Afterall' opens ‘The Sparrow...' "I intentionally connected the two records," he explains, "because they're different chapters of a similar book." The differences lay in the "surface-level stuff" - ‘The Sparrow...' was the first record he'd made in a proper studio. With regard to the songwriting, William says he'd "learned how to write songs which could communicate things I couldn't even suggest with words. I tried to be as honest as possible with ‘The Sparrow...' On ‘Goodnight' I was still hiding behind metaphors and clever analogies which is fine and can be entertaining. But I wanted ‘The Sparrow...' to be as plainly communicative as possible. All the way down to the bone." The titles - ‘I Don't Feel It Anymore (Song Of The Sparrow)', ‘We Feel Alone', ‘If You Would Come Back Home', ‘Please Forgive Me (Song Of The Crow)', ‘Further From You', ‘Just Not Each Other', ‘You Still Hurt Me' - leave no doubt as to how he was feeling when he wrote the songs. "I felt like going for poeticism for its own sake would have been a waste of time." ‘The Sparrow...' was recorded mostly with friends - Priscilla Ahn and Caitlin Crosby - and a few musicians brought in by the producer. "We recorded it piecemeal and wanted to keep it small," he says. "It was meant to be quiet and sombre." There has been nothing sombre about the way it was received on its release in the States. iTunes called it "The best singer-songwriter album of 2008." He's also delighted with the comparisons made between ‘The Sparrow...' and the Bon Iver record ‘For Emma, Forever Ago'. "I have a huge amount of respect for Justin [Vernon], so it's really an honour. I always think people need to be careful with comparisons, however, because both of these stories are very real and extremely personal and idiosyncratic. But as long as people realise that going in, the comparison is a brilliant compliment." Even before William had a manager or record label his music had become a staple of hit US shows including Grey's Anatomy and General Hospital thanks to a small TV and film agency who "believed in the music and truly thought it was something others should hear." Now the artist of choice for many influential TV supervisors, William has a worldwide fan base "most people play for several years before they build an audience. It happened much quicker for me." Produced by Marshall Altman *********************************************** Tottenham Journal "catharsis at its most blunt - and its most beautiful." more >> FolkingCool.co.uk "a solid album with its trampled heart in the right place, it’s one in the eye for the bald-chinned wannabes" Shakenstir "earns its place in your record collection as a very warming and heartfelt record" more >> Daily Express "His downbeat folkish pluckings will put you in mind of Bon Iver or Elliot Smith" Uncut Magazine "a lonesome American troubadour channelling personal heartbreak into art...elegantly arranged" The Northern Echo "speaks volumes for Fitzsimmons' ability to convey emotion without appearing self-obsessed. " more >> Independent on Sunday "Fitzsimmons wallows wonderfully [and] his loss is the listeners gain" more >> Scunthorpe Telegraph "deep and intimate with definite appeal" Q Magazine "country-tinged...sweet....ripe for signposting sad moments on US TV" Players Club "an ideal soundtrack to cold winter nights" more >> Classic Rock Society "a very stark album of acoustic Folk and all the better for it" Glasswerk "a stunning work of emotion, warmth and above all, immense depth." more >> Die Shellsuit Die.co.uk "an album that will stay with you for a long time and rightly so" more >> bbc.co.uk "Lush, acoustic delicacy and soft, smooth-as-silk harmonies " more >> Crackerjack "the sheer beauty of his melodies and his understated soulful voice make [William's] songs totally captivating" XYZ Magazine "deserves to be brought to the attention of British music lovers!...Truly beautiful" AllGigs.co.uk "one to fall in love with, listenable, enjoyable and above all meaningful." more >> Outline Magazine "Lyrically astute and acoustically stunning" more >> G3 "dry, intimate and the perfect album for the coming season" Saffron Walden Reporter 'this is catharsis at its most blunt - and its most beautiful'. more >> themusicfix.co.uk "quietly pleasing, inoffensive and mildly entertaining....a very pretty album" Hitchin Comet "catharsis at its most blunt - and most beautiful" Virgin Music Review "the songs start to work their way into your system from the very first listen" more >> Entertainment Focus.com "Fitzsimmons’s vocals remain gentle, spectral and touching throughout". more >> London Tour Dates "poignant, tender and beautiful" Washington Post “...doleful but delicately lovely album” more >> Boston Herald "makes art and beauty out of tragedy without selling the tragedy short..." more >>