Just As I Am: The uncomplicated beauty of Bill Withers

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Screenshot 2020 04 03 at 11.18.27 PM
Bill Withers, 1938-2020

Who do you think of when you hear the song “Just The Two Of Us”? Chances are, you immediately think of someone you deeply love … thanks for making it that easy, Bill.

For some reason, the news of Bill Withers’s death moved me with unexpected emotion and after informing a friend of the unfortunate news, he had the same reaction. I decided to put aside the day’s tasks, for the time being, plugging in earbuds, to learn why.

Withers had a true voice that preferred not to be cluttered by the music industry’s  pretensions.

He did not like the idea of being overproduced, and for his stripped-down style of singing, he was certainly correct. Competition with his voice including backing vocals simply detracts from the purity and beauty of his distinct vocals, rich in its mahogany tones, with just the right amount of rasp in the exact right places.

It doesn’t take much of an inclined ear to hear the collision of gospel and blues in his music, the way he made us feel his emotion in “Ain’t No Sunshine,” the instant injection of dopamine, causing us to instinctively raise our heads upon hearing the airy “A Lovely Day,” the primitive undertones of “Use Me,” the way the phrasing of his song seems closer to a one-way conversation in “Who Is He,” or the crystalline-like threads of magic woven throughout the notes of, “Just The Two Of Us.” There is a sympathy in his voice, an underlying sense of understanding as heard in “Lean On Me” that ironically lends itself in appropriateness, given the reality of the current crisis we are facing together.

Once you hear Withers, he lingers. His artistry is straightforward, yet simultaneously unforgettable. Instinctively we know, this person cares…this person feels, and at a time where division seems paramount, even unfortunately during crisis, Withers left us with that same simple uncomplicated message, to care for each other. Surely he has found grandma’s hands once again.

Learn more about Bill Withers here in his own words:

About this Author

Constance Cherise

Constance Cherise is a freelance writer and contributor for Turner Classic MoviesSee her work here.