My oldest friend in the world (our moms have been friends since they were teenagers and we've been friends since he was born 2 months after me) Ryan told me about this dude 3 years ago and I did the classic, "Yeah, yeah, yeah...you know nothing about music, go back to your Britney Spears, fool!"
Okay, I didn't really say that to him. We actually have very similar taste in music, but for some reason I was into my music at the time and I kind of put William Fitzsimmons on the back burner and forgot about him.
Fast forward to last week when I bought a song on iTunes and it recommended ol' Fitzsimmons to me. I loved the sound bites so much that I actually ordered his album online so that I'd have the hard copy of it (I feel so corporate when I say things like "hard copy"...maybe I can add "roll out" and "go live" to this blog and people will be all crazy-confused as to whether or not it's my blog or a corporate memo).
I researched him a bit today and found out a few interesting facts, such as the fact that he is touring in Germany at the moment. Okay, that's not very interesting. What was interesting was the fact that he is the son of two blind parents (hence the coke bottle glasses) and sounds were very important in his house (What wasn't important in his house, you ask??? The use of a razor.) He also has his Masters to be a mental health therapist. Dang...helping the mentally ill makes for some great music.
Personally, I'm a fan of the tattoo on his forearm, which is "grace" in Hebrew. (Sidenote: Hey Chris, if you still want to get a tattoo on your forearm...pick that one. Grace will always be important and I can't imagine you regretting that tat in 10 years. Mom, please back me up in that sentiment.)
So, while I love his original stuff (ask me if you want to take a listen, you know I love sharing)...I saw this cover of Kanye West's Heartless on iTunes. I'm not going to lie. He's a bazillionty times better than Kanye.
PS. I just friended him on Facebook and this was his most recent status update:
"Remember that kid in 3rd grade who would eat handfuls of shredded cheese right from the bowl on taco day? That was me. Gosh I miss taco day."
I dare you not to love this guy.
PPS. This is Ryan's favorite song. Just thought I'd throw it in here as an added bonus. You're welcome, my lovelies.
4 comments:
Ryan does tend to find talented artists before anyone else. He discovered Jason Mraz before the general public jumped on THAT bandwagon.
This bearded fellow sings beautifully...almost too beautifully if that's possible. He puts me to sleep. Or maybe I'm just tired.
"Grace" as a tattoo stands the test of time in my opinion...I'm a big fan of grace in general...and mercy...and forgiveness and hope. I'm also a big fan of cheeseburgers and Snicker bars, but I probably wouldn't permanently emblazon either of those things conspicuouly on my personage. I say go with the biblical words.
I LOVE it!! I'm going to need you to burn it for me when I'm there in May!! :D
Well now its time to drop some more knowledge on you. i have three things......
1st YOU MUST try out Matthew Mayfield. He is my new favorite songwriter crush (in a non creepy way).
2nd I dont like Brit Spears... I LOVE BRIT SPEARS.
3rd I also have a tattoo that has a hebrew phrase.
And 4th (yeah i know i said three things at first but this is my comment soooooo suck it) 4th your mom is absolutly right im awesome and always right.
Hey Ryan...
1. Dang. You're right. Matthew Mayfield is delightful!
2. I'm sad for you.
3. Why am I not surprised? I'm now actually considering getting one. Hebrew is better than a skanky Chinese symbol. I promise I won't put it in a place that would be considered trampy.
4. Although my mom does think you're a lovely boy, she has never uttered the words "Ryan is always right."
PS. Who the crap is Frank the Tank????
Post a Comment