The new disc was produced by Mitchell Froom, whose credits include Los Lobos and Elvis Costello, among others. He is joined also by his NY rhythm section consisting of Tim Luntzel on bass and Dan Reister on drums and together they provide a warm rich acoustic disc. Producer Froom even adds keyboards on 6 of the tunes. As we struggle towards spring in the north, Julian warms things up and reminds us in his upbeat best to hang in there on “Spring is Just Around the Corner.” Opener “World Keeps On” is a lively tune that reminds us that basically whatever happens the world does keep on:

They pray in the temples they pray; sun up, sun down, and what have they found?

The world keeps on like this, it’ll make you mad if you let it….

but when the day is done, you put the burger on the bun,

and the world keeps on

Julian credits Mitchell Froom with helping to craft his ideas into song, in some cases suggesting less is more. Several of the tunes feature minimal instrumentation, and one of the most interesting tunes on the disc, “God lll” features just Richard’s voice and guitar. On this tune we hear the tale Jesus’ son, who doesn’t quite measure up to Dad and Grandpa.

God the 3rd, Jesus’ son, gpa 2.1 He’s just lazy, he’s not dumb…..

Grandfather have mercy on me.  Chasing tail, scoring weed…

Then like many ‘celebrities’ he was eventually forgotten:

God the third moved out west, was a big hit with the Hollywood press

Just a blank aimless kid, we were so enthralled with all he did

There he is. Page one.  It’s the son of the son…..

..then one day, one day we were done

done with the son of the son

”Syndicated” is Julian’s lament of the “Americanization” of the world finding “America, everywhere I go.” I enjoyed hearing songs about things other than love, the road and booze. He’s an excellent musician and songwriter who I imagine will be on the scene either solo or with his friends, for a very long time.

While Slow New York won’t get you jumping up and down, it’s perfect listening for a lazy Sunday morning rustling through the newspapers. Interesting melodies and instrumentation along with intelligent lyrics and a “New York state of mind” remind me of Paul Simon’s solo work, particularly the Here Comes Rhymin’ Simon period. We at the Narrows Center for the Arts recently did a show with Richard and a backup group (not the Little Willies), and were impressed by the solid musicianship and performance. Americana radio, wake up! This Little Willie needs a shot all by his lonesome.