Bingham Willoughby

Artist Information

Biography

Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, the debut release from Bingham Willoughby, on Hurry Up Comfort Records, introduces us to a singer-songwriter, giving voice to his creativity and exposing sentiment to light. His songs offer us intimate glimpses into a world of hushed confidences, strived for goals, loss, and then hard-won redemption. Confessional raw emotions, intersecting with wry humor--sometimes in the same song--it's no wonder that Bing's lyrics have been described as "cinematic."

Bing's music has drawn comparisons to the Smiths, Roy Orbison, Lloyd Cole, Neil Young and the Byrds. Once being boldly proclaimed as: "Belle & Sebastian, meets Dylan."

"Sweet Talk", the opening track will be the next Lou Reed hit if he gets to it first. The tracks are adventurous, brutally unleashing a lot of backed-up self-examination that comes across as playful rather than self indulgent. I like the drumming and I am a harsh critic of beating on plastic with trees by nature. "Evil Words", "My Swan Song", "Little Cloud", "And Happiness", "Fall Now" and "Hurry Up Comfort", all showcase Bing's voice as an instrument suited to his writing which may very well be the most divisive component of his music. "When You're Up You're Up", "Amber", and "Friends", is so clearly Bing, providing such a specific kind of pleasure, that it might as well come with a trademark symbol attached to each line. "What If You'd Chosen Me?", "The North Light" and "Some Will Build" are some of my personal favorite tracks; exceedingly diverse: moodwise. It is alternately, romantic, personal, rocking, and epic, with each mood individually represented by its own melodic approach, lyrical imagery, and vocal delivery. "When Is Long Enough" and "It Happened By Chance" are equally involving and intriguing with poetic imagery that brings to mind Dylan in his many diverse and always creative early stages."

-Gary Allen (The Charlie Daniels Band/JJ Cale/Stonewall Jackson)

"Bingham Willoughby/perceives more than mere mortals/His songs freeze beauty."

-Musicgoat.com

"These aren’t traditional pop songs in any way. Bingham ignores most traditional structures and the songs just sort of melt together one song smeared into the next with melodies that are all in the same family. This is moody pensive music with a Velvet Underground twinkle and maybe some Belle and Sebastian."

-Eat Sleep Breathe Music

"The mere fact that people have compared me, to artists who I consider to be rock-poets--I just find humbling. Being told your guitar playing reminds someone of Johnny Marr or your lyrics make them think of Dylan--that makes all the hard work you put into the writing and recording, really worthwhile. The goal of every single person who makes a record is, for it to hit people on an emotional level, and when you're presented with evidence that you've succeeded--it's just very gratifying."

The story of Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, is a bit like one of Bingham's songs, in that it definitely was a discernible journey; from his tenure as a rock player, to the discovery of the challenges and rewards of acoustic performance. When he started singing his songs, whilst self-accompanying, it opened the door to a process that was finally, fully realized in Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow. And after several beginnings, Bing, finally ended up making it truly a solo enterprise. He produced, engineered, arranged and played all the instruments on the album. This was not so much a plan, as the aforementioned evolution. He knew that, for the full distillation of this particular vision, his only avenue was to do everything himself.

"It might sound a little strange, but I felt that every aspect of this record, had to be my responsibility. That's not to say that I don't respect the playing of other people, because I do, but for some reason, on an emotional level--I needed to say: everything you hear--I did. It made for a more complicated process, but I knew that when I was done, I could stand back and say: at this particular time, this is the mark I have chosen to leave."

Bing's personal stamp is evident, in every aspect of Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, from the chiming guitars, to the subtle brushwork and the atmospheric keys. You can tell it's the undiluted vision of one very creative person.

Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, evokes memories of musical sounds from the past, from the warm, enveloping bass guitar to the otherworldly, bell-like tones of the Rhodes piano. When combined, with the sound of his finger style acoustic, the production echoes a lot of great retro touchstones, while reworking them all into what can only be described as a modern sensibility. When all this is fused to Bingham's, at times, literate, lyrical preoccupations, the end result provides the listener with a thought-provoking and evocative musical experience. Some have equated listening to Bing's songs, as feeling like they are being told secrets. The secret being told is, that there is music and poetry dwelling, in our everyday experience.

"I strive in my lyric writing, to achieve a 'conversational' tone, because I think what's valuable and meaningful, comes from what happens between people in these; their unguarded moments. I think of my songs as a dialogue between myself and the listener, I'm trying to present some of my unguarded moments and communicate through them. I place the utmost value in what the listener interprets the songs to mean. I don't feel that anything poetic, ever has an absolute concrete meaning. I really feel that people's impressions can, and often will--alter over time, and if something resonates--it will transform. I want the listener to arrive at their own conclusions, and I place the greatest value on what people evoke for themselves. I get a thrill from finding out what people take from my songs. At times I've been so surprised and delighted at what someone has taken from a song it transforms me a little. I'm just telling some stories. Not every story needs a ending."

For more information, please visit Bing's site at: www.binghamwilloughby.com

Instrumentation

Bingham Willoughby--acoustic guitar and voice.

Discography

"Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow", 2010.

Links

• Twitter
• Facebook
• MySpace
• Last.fm
• SoundCloud
• Reverbnation
• CD Baby
• Digstation
• Pure Volume

Audio

• It Happened By Chance
  Listen  
• The North Light
  Listen  
• My Swan Song
  Listen  
• Sweet Talk
  Listen  
• What If You'd Chosen Me?
  Listen  
• Amber (Like The Flame)
  Listen  
• When You're Up, You're Up
  Listen  
• When Is Long Enough
  Listen  
• Evil Words
  Listen  
• Hurry Up Comfort
  Listen  

Lyrics

• It Happened By Chance
• My Swan Song
• Sweet Talk
• What If You'd Chosen Me?
• Evil Words
• Amber (Like The Flame)

Video

What If You'd NEW-What If You'd Chosen Me?-H.264 LAN Streaming

Photo Gallery

Press

• Take a road trip with Bingham Willoughby [+ Show ]
  

  If you’re wondering, no a Bingham Willoughby is not a kind of animal that hangs in a tree in Austral...If you’re wondering, no a Bingham Willoughby is not a kind of animal that hangs in a tree in Australia or something. He is actually a singer/songwriter and part Lou Reed.
  
  Bingham’s latest album is Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow and is the kind of album that is made for long road trips when you’re driving alone through the desert or along the coast or some other expansive doldrums of your choice.
  
  These aren't traditional pop songs in any way. Bingham ignores most traditional structures and the songs just sort of melt together one song smeared into the next with melodies that are all in the same family. This is moody pensive music with a Velvet Underground twinkle and maybe some Belle and Sebastian.
  
  And funny that this album is made for journey’s because according to Bing (yea, I’ll use nicknames if I want) the album was like a journey. But how could it not be? When you undertake the whole recording and writing process alone, like Bing did, it’s bound to feel like quite a pilgrimage.
  
  At the end of the day, that’s what this album is. It’s a roaming and exploring of sorts, with the explorer giving insight into the whole thing. A conversation if you will that reveals something deep and secretive.
  
  Find Bingham Willoughby’s music here or on Facebook. Get his album now on iTunes.

• Bingham Willoughby [+ Show ]
  

  Bingham Willoughby decided to take full responsibility for his new solo CD, so he left the big city ...Bingham Willoughby decided to take full responsibility for his new solo CD, so he left the big city of Toronto and moved to the country where living is easy, and began work on Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow. An impressive collection of songs, Bing played all the instruments as well as producing, engineering and even the CD artwork. He is related to the poet Richard Lovelace, a seventeenth century Cavalier and metaphysical poet.
  
  "Sweet Talk", the opening track will be the next Lou Reed hit if he gets to it first. The tracks are adventurous, brutally unleashing a lot of backed-up self-examination that comes across as playful rather than self indulgent. I like the drumming and I am a harsh critic of beating on plastic with trees by nature.
  
  "Evil Words", "My Swan Song", "Little Cloud", "And Happiness", "Fall Now" and "Hurry Up Comfort", all showcase Bing's voice as an instrument suited to his writing which may very well be the most divisive component of his music. "When You're Up You're Up", "Amber", and "Friends", is so clearly Bing, providing such a specific kind of pleasure, that it might as well come with a trademark symbol attached to each line.
  
  "What If You'd Chosen Me?", "The North Light" and "Some Will Build" are some of my personal favorite tracks; exceedingly diverse: moodwise. It is alternately, romantic, personal, rocking, and epic, with each mood individually represented by its own melodic approach, lyrical imagery, and vocal delivery. "When Is Long Enough" and "It Happened By Chance" are equally involving and intriguing with poetic imagery that brings to mind Dylan in his many diverse and always creative early stages.
  
  
  The guitar work and production is reminisent of JJ Cale and Neil Young on several songs in this new batch, and since few artists have made such a virtue out of minimal arrangements, Bing is sitting pretty. Cale is all about less is more, too.
  Cale's only advice to me when I joined up with him was, the licks I didn't play would be the best licks I would ever play for him.
  
  "After The World" is the closing track. Honest, inspired and the emotional climax of Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow. Bing has a great beginning with this groundbreaking work. And I can tell you he has a great sense of humor and is passionate about his craft and it shows. I am a fan and give this CD a 5 drumsticks up! A truly gifted Canadian songwriter and my new golf partner. That's only if either of us ever learn to play. FORE!
  
  
  Gary Allen (The Charlie Daniels Band/JJ Cale/Stonewall Jackson)

• Musician Interview: Bingham Willoughby, channeling his influences with his looks and within his music. [+ Show ]
  

  Bingham Willoughby perceives more than mere mortals His songs freeze beauty Introducing Rock Po...Bingham Willoughby
  perceives more than mere mortals
  His songs freeze beauty
  
  Introducing Rock Poet: Bingham Willoughby
  
  Your new album is called Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, are you a big procrastinator or is there another significance to the title?
  
  On one level, you could say that there is a slight essence of procrastination, in the title. But my intentions, speak to more of an anticipatory feeling–as if you might say, “maybe not today, maybe tomorrow…but soon.” I wanted the title to evoke an impression, more akin to having overheard a snippet of conversation, versus some grand mission statement. And on a personal note, I think I’ll answer the question of being a procrastinator, a little later on…
  
  You have a new video out for your song “What If You’d Chosen Me” what is the significance behind all of the nature shots?
  
  The concept for the video was to explore the interaction between the idea of traveling and the various surroundings you’ll encounter. The traveler responds to these situations, and yet what he sees remains unchanged. The viewer is the traveler. The various natural and urban backdrops are silent witnesses. The notion of looking through moss covered branches, points to a starting point for reflection. The traveler is then confronted with images of the guitar scuttling across the forest floor, a snare filling with sky, and Spanish moss springing to life to try on a Da Vinci shirt. The images from nature; the swaying flowers and trees all asking, “What If You’d Chosen Me?” Humans are moving and nature is moving; these images reflect the song’s sentiments: “I don’t know if I’ll ever have the strength to plan again. Say what you have to, you can’t stop this from happening.” We’re asking the questions and searching for answers–in moody, mysterious nature.
  
  If someone were to play Bingham Willoughby in a movie, who, dead or alive, would you want that actor to be?
  
  It might sound like a funny choice, but Orson Welles. Not just because, I like his acting, but mostly because I credit him with performing one of the most bizarre musical numbers, ever committed to film (in Citizen Kane). In fact, some day I’d love to do a shot by shot remake of it, for one of my songs. If I was forced to choose a living actor, I’d have to say Philip Seymour Hoffman (currying favor, with the interviewer).
  
  Your music sounds very reminiscent of Lou Reed, is he an influence of yours? Who are your other influences?
  
  I definitely feel indebtedness to Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground, and certainly, some of the ways I approach song writing are heavily influenced, by what I perceive to be some of their methods. In particular, I’ve always been a huge fan of Reed’s ability to manifest, not only evocative images, but also real emotional urgency. Any writer, who wants to try and speak “of the moment,” owes Lou a debt. In terms of playing, I think any person who utilizes, at times, a reductive approach when playing and ranging, also owes a debt to The Velvet underground.
  
  I have a lot of other influences. Just a few, off the top, would be: The Smiths (Johnny Marr), Lloyd Cole and Neil Young. Even Rockabilly greats, like Eddie Cochran are an influence. When it comes to lyrics, I’m drawn to that turn of phrase that resonates. In my own listening it’s something I always look for, and I’ve discovered it in many varied sources, from Cole Porter to The Shins. I’m always looking out for something that entices me.
  
  This album was truly a solo project, from the music, the recording, and the lyrics; what are the best and worst parts of recording an album alone?
  
  The best part about recording alone might in some ways be the worst part as well. If you have an idea, you can implement it, without consultation, somewhat streamlining the process. However, you also can’t benefit from several great ideas being offered at once, and then crystallizing into one grand idea. That is one of the huge benefits of a group process. The solitary approach fit perfectly, for the way I was feeling about this group of songs. Additionally, from a musician’s standpoint and recording standpoint, there are times when you are actively seeking this form of challenge. You’re trying to make the correct decisions that are going to be right for the songs.
  
  You look like a mixture of Philip Seymour Hoffman and Andy Warhol, what is your favorite Hoffman movie and Warhol piece?
  
  I’ve never been compared to those two people, at the same time before, though I do see the resemblance. I’m a huge fan of both of them, to tell you the truth, so I gladly take the compliment.
  
  I’m a fan of Philip Seymour Hoffman. He’s definitely one of the best character actors working today. I think it would have to come down to a tie between Happiness and Capote, but let’s face it, he’s great in everything he’s done (even Along Came Polly.) Todd Solondz’s, Happiness, is classic Seymour Hoffman and Solondz: equal parts compelling and disturbing. I think one of the greatest things about Philip Seymour Hoffman, is that he somehow elicits a humanity from his performances that allows us to see a little piece of ourselves in his portrayals. Songwriting, aspires to the same goals.
  
  As for Warhol, I am a huge fan, even to the point of having made the pilgrimage to the Warhol museum in Pittsburgh, (and yes, t-shirts were purchased). 5 floors of Andy including some of his taxidermy collection. Well worth a look. As for my favorite Warhol works, I have to throw down another tie, between his Flowers series from the early ’60’s, and a sentimental favorite, Elvis 1 and 2.
  
  …as for being a procrastinator. If I was, Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, would have ended with the title.

• Bingham Willoughby [+ Show ]
  

  BINGHAM WILLOUGHBY September 1, 2010 Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, the debut release from Bin...BINGHAM WILLOUGHBY
  September 1, 2010
  
  Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, the debut release from Bingham Willoughby, on Hurry Up Comfort Records, introduces us to a singer-songwriter, at the height of his craft. His songs offer us intimate glimpses into a world of hushed confidences, strived for goals, loss, and then hard-won redemption. Confessional raw emotions, intersecting with wry humor–sometimes in the same song–it’s no wonder that Bing’s lyrics have been described as “cinematic.”
  
  Bing’s music has drawn comparisons to the Smiths, Roy Orbison, Lloyd Cole, Neil Young and the Byrds. Once being boldly proclaimed as: “Belle & Sebastian, meets Dylan.”
  
  “The mere fact that people have compared me, to artists who I consider to be rock-poets–I just find humbling. Being told your guitar playing reminds someone of Johnny Marr or your lyrics make them think of Dylan–that makes all the hard work you put into the writing and recording, really worthwhile. The goal of every single person who makes a record is, for it to hit people on an emotional level, and when you’re presented with evidence that you’ve succeeded–it’s just very gratifying.”
  
  The story of Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, is a bit like one of Bingham’s songs, in that it definitely was a discernible journey; from his tenure as a rock player, to the discovery of the challenges and rewards of acoustic performance. When he started singing his songs, whilst self-accompanying, it opened the door to a process that was finally, fully realized in Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow. And after several beginnings, Bing, finally ended up making it truly a solo enterprise. He produced, engineered, arranged and played all the instruments on the album. This was not so much a plan, as the aforementioned evolution. He knew that, for the full distillation of this particular vision, his only avenue was to do everything himself.
  
  “It might sound a little strange, but I felt that every aspect of this record, had to be my responsibility. That’s not to say that I don’t respect the playing of other people, because I do, but for some reason, on an emotional level–I needed to say: everything you hear–I did. It made for a more complicated process, but I knew that when I was done, I could stand back and say: at this particular time, this is the mark I have chosen to leave.”
  
  Bing’s personal stamp is evident, in every aspect of Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, from the chiming guitars, to the subtle brushwork and the atmospheric keys. You can tell it’s the undiluted vision of one very creative person.
  
  Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow, evokes memories of musical sounds from the past, from the warm, enveloping bass guitar to the otherworldly, bell-like tones of the Rhodes piano. When combined, with the sound of his finger style acoustic, the production echoes a lot of great retro touchstones, while reworking them all into what can only be described as a modern sensibility. When all this is fused to Bingham’s, at times, literate, lyrical preoccupations, the end result provides the listener with a thought-provoking and evocative musical experience. Some have equated listening to Bing’s songs, as feeling like they are being told secrets. The secret being told is, that there is music and poetry dwelling, in our everyday experience.
  
  “I strive in my lyric writing, to achieve a ‘conversational’ tone, because I think what’s valuable and meaningful, comes from what happens between people in these; their unguarded moments. I think of my songs as a dialogue between myself and the listener, I’m trying to present some of my unguarded moments and communicate through them. I place the utmost value in what the listener interprets the songs to mean. I don’t feel that anything poetic, ever has an absolute concrete meaning. I really feel that people’s impressions can, and often will–alter over time, and if something resonates–it will transform. I want the listener to arrive at their own conclusions, and I place the greatest value on what people evoke for themselves. I get a thrill from finding out what people take from my songs. At times I’ve been so surprised and delighted at what someone has taken from a song it transforms me a little. I’m just telling some stories. Not every story needs a ending.”
  
  For more information, please visit Bing’s site at:
  www.binghamwilloughby.com
  
  You can check out Bing’s video playing at our studio at:
  http://www.livestream.com/flipsidetomusic
  
  http://flipsidetomusic.com/?p=6064

Setlist

Sets consist predominantly of originals, from Maybe Not Today, Maybe Tomorrow. Covers tend to be strategically placed and reworked as acoustic, popular faves from the '50's to present day.

Basic Requirements

Calendar