13. Bill FayTime Of The Last Persecution
Again, this is a really recent discovery. I was touring with Kevin Morby in America and we were talking about maybe trying to do a cover together at the end of the night. He kept talking about this guy called Bill Fay and kept telling me to listen to this album. He kept at it and eventually said, "Can I play you Bill Fay, because I don’t know why you have never heard of him? This album is like a classic record."
So, Kevin put some songs on and I remember thinking, "Shit – this is incredible!" and then to learn that Bill is a British musician and had made an album that is as classic as this record but I had never heard of him was a huge surprise. It wasn’t an album that was in the tapestry – like a record by David Bowie that you would have heard of.
The songwriting and musicianship on the album is amazing and this seems like a classic story of being dropped by a record label after a second album – this was the second record he’d made. I don’t understand how he could have been dropped – you listen to this album and it contains some of the best-written songs ever. There is a song on it called ‘I Hear You Calling’ which is really poignant and beautiful and arresting. The album as a whole is just perfect – it’s an absolute classic and to me it should be a staple in anyone’s collection. I’m just glad I finally discovered it and am just sorry it took that long.
