ALBUM REVIEW: William Bell Keeps Soul Chops Sharp on ‘One Day Closer to Home’
Henry Carrigan
Posted On April 13, 2023
The review of this album could be very short: William Bell is a master of soul music who can tear out your heart with one vocal phrase and soothe and comfort with the next, and One Day Closer to Home reveals a master at work.
William Bell (photo by Ginette Callaway)
Bell’s signature 1961 song “You Don’t Miss Your Water (Until Your Well Runs Dry)” was one of the earliest hits on a then-new label called Stax. With Booker T. Jones, Bell wrote “Born Under a Bad Sign” (1967), which Albert King turned into a hit. To our good fortune, Bell has never stopped writing and singing songs that blend gospel, blues, and soul into smooth ballads that settle deep into hearts and rollicking soul stirrers that soar on the playful wings of joy.
One Day Closer to Home opens with the funky soul slider “I Still Go to Parties,” a reminder that no matter how old you feel, a crunchy guitar and boppin’ bass will keep you on the dance floor with a smile on your face. The bright country blues “I Will Remember Tonight” rides a Carolina beach music rhythm as it evokes an unforgettable moment in the singer’s life, while the tender ballad “In a Moment of Weakness” palpably recalls the exquisite time-stopping seconds of falling in love.
The swaying jazz blues “I Got Feet” dances joyfully on the promise that if his lover wants him, the singer’s “got feet / that will walk right into” her heart. The slow burning, atmospheric “Let’s Make Loving Great Again” stands with every great soul ballad of the ’60s and ’70s like Bloodstone’s “Natural High” and Marvin Gaye’s “If I Should Die Tonight.” Bell’s soaring anthem offers a sorely needed riposte to the divisiveness of our times, calling for unity and love.
The swampy blues of the title track chugs along with the yearning feeling of being so close to being up after having been down so long; it’s a haunting song. Bell’s raw and emotional “When I Stop Loving You,” which he co-wrote with Larry Campbell, conveys the ache of what happens the moment love dies (“my heart will beat no more”).
Every song on One Day Closer to Home is a winner, and Bell’s silky vocals define soul. Bell inhabits a song deeply and delivers it with emotional tenderness and fire. It’s a treat to have a new album from the master.
William Bell’s One Day Closer to Home is out April 14 on Wilbe Records.
