Don Williams – My Heart To You

Boasting an inimitable, favorite-shirt baritone that’s been a dependable aural back-rub to all but the most unrepentant cynics, this now 65-year-old troubadour’s music has been quelling babies’ cries — even as it’s sent those very same kids’ parents back in the sack for more procreative gymnastics — for nearly four decades.

Shamelessly romantic, eternally hopeful, and blessed with a knack for rocking-chair tunefulness (whether writ by his own hand or by notable songcrafters such as Bob McDill, Wayland Holyfield, Danny Flowers, Dave Loggins and Roger Cook), this long, lanky Texan has recorded a body of work that is as unique as it is massive. My Heart To You is the gentle giant’s first studio offering of new material (not including the lovely all-covers Silver Turns To Gold of 2002) since 1998’s sturdy I Turn The Page.

Williams’ time-tested, measured approach guarantees you won’t be shocked or grabbed by anything here, but his own easy-rolling “Running In The Fast Lane” and the luxurious “Fly Away” open the set with assured, familiar grace, and the fine sessioneers and Don’s professionalism make for a solid outing.

His cover of Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight” is a safe, if a bit tepid, no-brainer, but not even the Almighty could breathe life into the abominable Bette Midler vehicle, “The Rose”.

Over the course of 38 years and nearly as many records, Williams has become something of a victim of his own high-level consistency; My Heart To You fits roughly in the middle of a very special artist’s output.