With each new album, Keller Williams finds different ways to capture the various elements that make up his eclectic sound.
His 2004 live album Stage was a two-disc testament to Williams’ “one-man jamband” title. His follow up, 2006’s Grass – which featured Jenny and Larry Keel as his backing band – successfully brought his love for bluegrass to the forefront. But Dream, which comes out today, features the “Keller sound” like no album before has. Not only are the songs diverse stylistically, but each song has its own unique chemistry.
“Play This” opens Dream with punk-rock power chords and a funky, low-end acoustic guitar. Williams’ lyrical goofiness becomes immediately apparent with lyrics like “Grind your teeth/ Dye your hair/ Pierce your ass/ I don’t care.”
The jazzy funk of “Celebrate Your Youth” segues into “Cadillac,” a folksy song that features The Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir on acoustic guitar and vocals. The mellow song about the “prettiest ride that ever did roll in all of God’s creation” keeps the lyrics on the lighter side with “Jesus be ridin’ bitch seat cuz he’s good like that and he knows there ain’t no bad seat up in my Cadillac.”
“Ninja of Love,” which features Michael Franti on vocals, exemplifies another exceptional aspect of this album. While Williams incorporates many styles into his guitar playing, such as folk, bluegrass, reggae, funk and rock, these styles are explored deeper on Dream with the addition of other musicians. “Ninja of Love,” a song which Williams plays live with only acoustic guitar, is given the full reggae sound with a melodic bass line, one-drop drumming and muted guitar strums on the upbeat.
Béla Fleck and Victor Wooten, half of Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, add their signature fingerpicked banjo and dynamic bass to “People Watchin’.” Bluegrass also surfaces again on “Sing for My Dinner,” which features the String Cheese Incident. This song is a reminder of why this collaboration, also known as the Keller Williams Incident, is one of the most beloved in the jam scene.
“Restraint” is the only song on Dream that doesn’t feature any special guests. Williams plays a percussive acoustic guitar part under the lyrics: “I wanna jump your bones, but you’re on the phone, and it sounds kind of important/ I wanna jump your bones, but I don’t think you would go for it, in the middle of a call without a headset.”
Dream also features several instrumentals. “Cookies,” which has Williams on the acoustic baritone guitar, features Fareed Haque from Garaj Mahal on sitar-sounding electric guitar and percussion. “Twinkle” features jam-guitar guru Steve Kimock playing jazzy riffs and melodic solos, Williams on the bass, and Modereko’s John Molo holding it down with jazzy beats. “Lil’ Sexy Blues,” features several Indian instruments, including the hansa veena, a sitar-like stringed instrument, and tablas, Indian hand drums.
The album ends on a goofy groove called “Bendix/Dance Hippie” that features gibberish from Ella Williams, Williams’ daughter, with Williams on the eight-string guitar.
Dream is Williams’ most ambitious album to date. It fits well in the collection of any eclectic music fan. While the old-school Keller flavor is alive and rockin’, Dream successfully builds on that foundation and expands his musical realm.
Contact reporter Marc Shapiro at diversions@dbk.umd.edu.
