Bill Callahan Releases Animated Video For “Call Me Anything”

2019 has been a rocky year, full of plenty of ups and downs.  Back in February, I spent my birthday in an emergency room, discovering that I had gallstones.  The pain they caused wasn’t ideal, but it forced me to change up my diet and I’m actually a lot healthier because of it.  The surgery went smooth enough, but my mobility was severely limited for a while afterward.  I didn’t know what to expect, but my mother did.  She used to be a nurse.  She came out to stay with us for awhile and I had to reluctantly accept my limitations, even relying on her to help me sit up at times.  Her visit was another silver lining to an otherwise fucked up situation.  Hopped up on painkillers for much of it, I experienced what was, easily, the best and most productive times we’ve had with one another in years.  We discussed plenty about our individual histories, but one of the high points was that I was able to introduce her to a good amount of music that she was incredibly receptive to.  Among the material that she really responded to was Brazillian artists like Toquino and Novos Baianos.  She also loved everything that I would play her by Arthur Russell.  But over the years, there’s one songwriter in particular that, whenever it’s been playing, she’s inquired about who we were listening to.  That person is Bill Callahan.

Today, I hit up one of my local shops to grab her a copy of A River Ain’t Too Much To Love, Callahan‘s 2005 album and last release under his SMOG moniker.  I’d given my mom an extra turntable that I had, while she was visiting last Christmas, and am sending this LP out to her in a package for her birthday, which falls on Halloween.  For me, A River Ain’t To Much To Love is a perfect introductory Callahan release for someone that doesn’t have any of his music, but the truth is that he’s been on a pretty solid run with the albums like Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle and Apolcalypse that have followed it over the last decade and a half.  Up through the arrival of Dream River in 2013, Bill‘s albums were arriving like clockwork, every 2 years; the timeliness of his output as consistent as it’s quality.  In fact, since releasing his very first studio album in 1990, he had never gone more than 2 years between albums — sometimes, even less — and that’s not including EPs, compilations or variations, like the dub version of Dream River that showed up in 2014.  The release of Dream River aligned with Callahan getting married and the subject matter even reflected that.  Unfortunately, a period of silence came along with that.  There would be a random smattering of shows from time to time, but there was no sign of new material on the way until he dropped Shepherd In A Sheepskin Vest in June.

Well worth the wait, Shepherd In A Sheepskin Vest took 3 times longer to arrive between albums than his previous work, but it’s also a double-LP with a runtime of over 63 minutes.  With 20 individual tracks, it marks the longest studio album that Bill has ever released — his last 4 albums ranged from only 7 to 9 songs, a piece.  More importantly is how solid his songwriting continues to be.  This is an album that I’m still going through and absorbing the layers of, but the rawness and sharpness of his lyrical ability remains, providing a poetic insight directly into the mind and experiences of the man behind it.  One particular song that highlights his own self reflection is “Call Me Anything,” a simple enough tune that finds the Austin-based musician embracing his calling as a songwriter and how important that aspect is to his own identity.  Today, a brand new Arturo Baston-directed video for the tune has been released, featuring animated drawings by artist, Wahab Zeghlache.

Yeah… it’s been a rough year 10 months or so, with the long-awaited return of 2 of my all-time favorite songwriters front-loading the year with such optimism.  Callahan and David Berman (Purple Mountains, Silver Jews) were sorely missed and the fact that they both had new music and live shows on the horizon felt so encouraging.  Tragically, Berman‘s life ended at his own hands in August, before his Purple Mountains tour could ever take place.  Bill paid tribute to his friend and fellow Drag City recording artist by covering a pair of David‘s songs during one of his shows in New York.  Tears streamed down my face as I came across the fan recorded footage one morning, before ever leaving my bed.  Each uniquely brilliant in their own right, nobody could ever replace either of them.  The fact that Daniel Johnston has passed away since, only makes things feel that much more difficult.  And while many have fallen and will continue to, it’s a great comfort to know that Bill Callahan is still around to piece together those words that hit us right in our chests, before melting into them.  His themes and lyrics capture something universal enough that people as different as myself and my mother — who would listen almost exclusively to music like Culture Club and El Debarge, while I was growing up — both feel connected to it.   As Callahan states so clearly in “Call Me Anything,” he is the singer.  His part to play is to help us make sense of it all, and he proudly embraces that role with honor.

Watch the video for “Call Me Anything” below.  Shepherd In A Sheepskin Vest is available now through Drag City Records.