William Taylor – Blessfully Yours

William Taylor
Blessfully Yours
Garment Records 2011
http://www.singwilliamsing.com/

From Angier, North Carolina, actor and singer William Taylor caught the attention of the gospel music industry in 2000 when he served as lead vocalist on “If You’re Gonna Worry, Don’t Pray” with Denver A. Wright & the Collective, featuring Tony Terry. He went on to release his debut solo CD, Blessfully Yours, in 2004, and reissued it on Garment Records this year.

Taylor sounds like a quartet lead, his voice containing an amalgam of influences, from Al Green to Johnnie Taylor and Sam Cooke. In addition, his songs have the quartet’s penchant for down-to-earth lyrics and messages, the mother wit that gets you through the day. The result is an album with a distinctively 1970s southern soul sound and messaging.

Especially interesting tracks are Taylor’s gospelization of Stevie Wonder’s “Signed, Sealed, Delivered,” and the funkiest version of “All God’s Children Got Shoes” I’ve ever heard (Taylor titles it “Heaven”). On the other hand, Taylor’s almost note-for-note cover of the Soul Stirrers’ “Touch the Hem of His Garment” could have used a little less percussion, as it competes with the vocals for the listener’s attention.

The album’s top tracks are Rev. Norris Garner’s “Glory of the Lord,” a simple worship ballad with a moving arrangement; and the title track, which on its surface appears conventional but you find yourself singing along with the catchy chorus soon enough.

Taylor spices some of his songs with flights of falsetto improvisation, and they are so good he could have done more of them. Nevertheless, William Taylor has an easy way with a song, and Blessfully Yours is a pleasant listening experience.

Three of Five Stars

Picks: “Glory of the Lord,” “Blessfully Yours.”