Songs You May Have Missed #527

27 Mar 2015 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

eye

David Wilcox: “Eye of the Hurricane” (1989)

Never one to be content simply subsisting on what pop radio force-fed me, there was a time when I defiantly asserted my musical independence from lemminghood with statements like: “Steve Earle is MY Bruce Springsteen” and “The Jayhawks are MY Eagles”. Well, singer-songwriter David Wilcox seemed to fit the bill as MY James Taylor. Not meaning to say he’s a dead ringer in terms of singing voice, lyric content or any other particular characteristic. Wilcox just occupied the place for me that the better-known Taylor did for most.

The fact that the studio recording of “Eye of the Hurricane” and indeed the entire How Did You Find Me Here album sound like microphone and artist were placed into a giant tin can notwithstanding, Wilcox was known for thoughtful–at times even haunting–reflections crisply sung and smartly accompanied on acoustic guitar. Had Wilcox come on the scene about twenty years earlier, he might have competed for radio airplay with Taylor, Carly Simon and Cat Stevens. Instead he cultivates a small but loyal cult following and a rare spin on an NPR station.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/11/10/songs-you-may-have-missed-501/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/02/13/songs-you-may-have-missed-330/

Video of the Week: David Wilcox–Blow ‘Em Away

07 May 2014 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in General Posts, Video of the Week Tags:

Songs You May Have Missed #501

10 Nov 2013 Leave a comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

wilcox

David Wilcox: “Language of the Heart” (1989)

Sometime in 1989, during a four-or-five-year phase of following popular country music (which wasn’t nearly as hackneyed or stuck in cliché as the current brand) I happened to have The Nashville Network on TV at work when this very performance aired:

I was instantly mesmerized by gifted songwriter David Wilcox. The song’s lyric pulled me in, as did the musicianship–he made eye contact with the audience while playing complex guitar lines throughout the song. This wasn’t your standard TNN fare.

So I went looking for his album (on cassette, my format of choice for most of the 80′s, sorry to say). However, by the time I made it to the shop, I’d forgotten his name.

Undaunted, I began the needle-in-a-haystack exercise of browsing through the cassette selection at Jerry’s Records in Pittsburgh, thinking I just might get lucky and recognize the guy’s name if his cassette happened to be there. Of course, looking alphabetically, it took a while to get to Wilcox, but I did indeed recognize his name. And the album’s title, How Did You Find Me Here, was startlingly appropriate.

When I finally got a chance to see him live his talent as a musician blew me away. I’d never seen a guitarist change tunings every song or two, or use multiple capos. (Wilcox shaved down parts of his capos so they only touched certain strings. On a given song he’d use as many as three of them.)

David Wilcox is worth a listen–or better yet the price of a live show–if you prefer substance to gimmick; if you like a well-turned metaphor or a life lesson in a lyric. You may not find yourself dancing in the aisles–but it’s a worthwhile tradeoff for the journey into your own head he’ll lead you on.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/02/13/songs-you-may-have-missed-330/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2015/03/27/songs-you-may-have-missed-527/

Songs You May Have Missed #330

13 Feb 2013 1 Comment

by Ed Cyphers in Songs You May Have Missed Tags: ,

wilcoxDavid Wilcox: “Start With the Ending” (Live) (2002)

The wit and wisdom of David Wilcox are on full display as he explains why the secret to a successful relationship just might be…ending it.

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2013/11/10/songs-you-may-have-missed-501/

See also: https://edcyphers.com/2015/03/27/songs-you-may-have-missed-527/

David Wilcox: Same Song, 23 years Earlier

17 May 2012 Leave a comment

And here is the actual TV performance that first drew my attention to the man. This was during my four or five year phase of actually listening to popular country on the radio and watching The Nashville Network.
What impressed me about Wilcox here, in addition to the song’s lyric, was the musicianship he displayed–making eye contact with the audience while playing complex guitar lines throughout the song. This was not standard TNN fare.
So I went looking for his album (on cassette, my format of choice for most of the 80’s, sorry to say). But by the time I made it to the shop, I’d forgotten his name! Undaunted, I began browsing through the tapes, thinking I just might get lucky and recognize the guy’s name if his cassette happened to be there. Of course, looking alphabetically, it took a while to get to Wilcox, but I did indeed recognize his name. And the album’s title was completely appropriate: How Did You Find Me Here.
When I finally got a chance to see him live his guitar playing blew me away even more. I’d never seen a guitarist change tunings nearly every song or two, or use multiple capos. (Wilcox shaved down parts of his capos so they only touched certain strings. On a given song he’d use as many as three of them.)
David Wilcox is worth a listen if you prefer substance to gimmick–if you like a well-turned metaphor and a life lesson in a lyric.

Video by Ed Cyphers

David Wilcox: “The Thinking Man’s James Taylor”

17 May 2012 Leave a comment

In case you haven’t heard him, I’ll introduce you to David Wilcox the same way he was introduced to me back in 1989: with the song that relates the experience of falling a little deeper for someone than they fell for you. “Language of the Heart” shows off both his lyrical gift and his gift for lyrical guitar playing.
This isn’t a perfect performance–Wilcox was quite ill on this particular night, almost to the point of passing out onstage. But fortunately he wasn’t playing “Won’t Get Fooled Again”.
“The thinking man’s James Taylor” was something a writer slapped on Wilcox early in his career. It’s a fair description.

Video by Ed Cyphers