Bill Mumy Circular (Global Recording Artists/BCD) -
Though Bill Mumy (pronounced Moo-Me) is best remembered by many baby
boomers such as myself for some of his extremely impressive
appearances as a child actor in the early to mid-1960s, on TV shows
like Twilight Zone, and as Will Robinson of Lost In Space,
along with nearly countless others, he has continued to act and
record music as well; this superb album is only the latest example
of Bill’s ongoing career as a singer/songwriter. Unlike some
celebrity releases, Mumy’s work could easily stand on it’s own as
worthwhile and interesting even if he pumped gas, or painted houses
for a living. Amongst the fourteen songs here, one can clearly
detect the stylistic influence of folks like Tom Petty, John
Fogarty, John Prine, Chuck Berry, Richard Thompson, and Neil Young,
but it’s ultimately Mumy’s artistic voice that emerges. He’s a
politically aware and slightly angry guy on at least one song (eight
years of one’s country being run by an incompetent nitwit will do
that to you) but mostly this is simply a fine showcase for Bill’s
considerable skills as a song writer, singer and storyteller. "Man
of Pride" wouldn’t have sounded too out of place on a CSN&Y album
with a dash of latter day Badfinger tossed into the mix. "The
Heart’s Fantasy" is the best song Neil Young and Tom Petty never
made together, while "Don’t Have Anything" is simply one of the best
love songs I’ve heard in a long time. The structure of "History"
recalls Brian Wilson’s "Rio Grande" and sections of Smile as
well. And "Hereby Invited" could have been recorded by the Traveling
Wilburys. But it’s all very good stuff, uplifting, intelligent and
highly accessible mid-tempo mellow melodic rock pop at it’s finest.
George Parsons
Dream Magazine #9
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