Passport 68: BILL KELLY
Bill Kelly - Bread On The Waters 
Time passes by like the cars that roll down her lane
And a scar turns purple when ever it’s about to rain (uit: Seraphima)
Mishandeling is al vaak bezongen, soms beklemmend mooi. Seraphima is ook zo’n gruwelijk mooi liedje.
She sits at the picnic with nothing to say
And it looks like she’s made out of paper mache
Het zijn de eerste zinnen en ze grijpen me direct, bij mijn keel. Als de schade wordt opgemaakt en het litteken paars kleurt, heeft Bill Kelly mijn keel dichtgeknepen.
Kelly is een New Yorker die al in teamverband musiceerde met/als The House of Cards, Folkfoot en de bluegrass folk groep Spare Parts. Bread On The Waters zijn de eerste, zekere, passen op het solopad. Die passen mogen ook ferme schreden genoemd worden. Kelly klinkt alsof hij nooit anders heeft gewandeld, hij klinkt alsof hij er altijd al geweest is. Vertrouwd als Lyle Lovett (soms, als het luchtig is), Bruce Springsteen (als het rockt), Tom Petty (als het droogt), Jackson Browne (vooral, maar dan eentje met meer twang) en Darden Smith (zie hier: de twang). Hij schaart zich onder de mannen die achteloos de kern van de zaak raken, die een klein verhaal kunnen opblazen zonder buskruit te gebruiken. Kelly is een allround troubadour. Hij is misschien niet hard core maar hij is zeker the lost of the all-night, do right. Stand beneath your window 'til daylight. Bread On The Waters is daar het harde bewijs van. (Patrick Donders)
1. What’s in the name/what’s in the title?
I got the title from a conversation with my friend John Beebe, who is a world renowned Jungian psychologist. Bread On The Waters is from Ecclesiastes 11:1-2 “Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days.
Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth”.. The songs address different kinds of waters. And cd is my bread, so to speak and it’s ON the waters for listeners to pick up.
2. What’s your first musical memory?
My dad singing in the car.
3. First cd/lp you bought?
It was a 45. Hanky Panky by Tommy James and The Shondells.
4. At which moment did you decide that your music had to be heard?
I’ve been playing since 12. That’s over 35 years. But I decided to make a life out of it until my mid 20’s.
5. What was the biggest musical step you took so far?
Bread On The Waters.
6. You won a contest. First price is: a master class in song writing and you can chose the teacher. Who would you ask and what should the lesson be about?
Tom Waits and Keith Richards. The lesson would be about how they’re going make my next record with me.
7. Best concert you ever saw?
Johnny Cash at a small club in NYC, for the release of the first American Recordings. The whole family got up one at a time, and all together at one point. I was very lucky to have been invited.
8. Who of your musical friends is going to change the world? And how?
No one person changes the world, they can only help change the neighbourhood.
9. It’s the end of the world and everybody knows it and they ask you to sing one more song for the whole wide world ! Which one are going to pick?
Will The Circle Be Unbroken.
10. What’s up for the next couple of months?
I’m working on getting this record out best I can. Maybe get it picked up. Play some gigs. Keep writing. Make another record.
Passport 67: Christine Smith
