“’Little Town’ has been in the works for over a year now and features musicians across the country,” said David Williamson about his latest single. “It has really been a matter of patience and finding the right folks to fill out the parts as I had envisioned them. The inspiration for this song came from my annual holiday returns to the East Coast to be with family and friends. It has been over 15 years since I left my hometown to explore the world. There is a hint of melancholy in ‘Little Town’ which reflects what I would feel when reconnecting with old acquaintances who seem to be trapped in the distant past. This song encourages us to take a leap of faith, get out of our comfort zone, and see if we can expand our perspectives and challenge our beliefs. In some ways, this song is a message to my younger self.”
Having grown up in Tallahassee, Florida, David Williamson Pichard II studied Media Production at Florida State University where he honed his audio production skills. “Having been in bands since I was a teenager, I was always the sound geek hooking up my Fostex X-28H four-track cassette recorder, trying to capture the performances of the various bands I was in back then.” Williamson started off playing bass but switched to guitar shortly after. “Being able to play both bass and guitar really helps me with my songwriting process and with the skills I can bring to the table when producing or working with other musicians.”
As for the other musicians involved with the production, Tom Corbett on drums and Dave Murphy on bass both hail from Tallahassee, Florida Jake Staron on pedal steel lives on O’ahu, Ka’ahele with lyric and melody contributions lives in Hawi, Louise Taylor on vocals lives in Colorado, and Williamson is on acoustic guitar and lives in Hilo.
“I feel fortunate to have such a wealth of talented musicians to work and collaborate with. It’s fun seeing (and hearing) the various flavors and influences come together when working with folks,” Williamson said. “’Little Town’ is the third song I have had the privilege to work with Ka’ahele on. I had come to her with the concept and a few bars of lyrics. She really helped me refine the message and imagery of the lyrics as well as provide a scratch outline of a melody which Louise [Taylor] ended up using most of in her vocal performance.”
And vocals? “Louise was the vocalist I had really written this song for but just didn’t know it at the time. I had met her when I lived on O’ahu a few years ago when she was running the Hawaii School of Voice. Her smooth, mellow, vocal style reminds me a little bit of the Cowboy Junkies,” notes Williamson. “I was stoked when she heard the song and said she really connected with the message and lyrics.” Taylor has had a successful career as a singer/songwriter in her own right and has penned six critically acclaimed albums to date.
You’ll find Williamson around Hilo working out of his home studio producing, engineering, and mixing for clients of his business DWP Sounds as well as writing his music and collaborating with friends.
“Little Town” will be available April 23 on all major streaming platforms including Spotify, iTunes/Apple Music, Amazon and Bandcamp.
Follow David Williamson on Instagram @david.williamson.music
Follow Louise Taylor on Instagram @hawaiischoolofvoice
Follow Ka’ahele on Instagram @kaahelemusic