Album Review – William Clark Green’s “Watterson Hall”

Texas Country (#550.3) on the Country DDS.

What exactly to make of William Clark Green has always been an interesting question. Clearly he’s one of the leaders and headliners in the greater Texas music scene, and deservedly so. In Lubbock and West Texas, it’s probably not out-of-bounds to characterize him as a sort of Texas country legend already, even if one prominent country outlet recently asked if he might be the next breakout star, 11 years after he had a Texas music hit with “Next Big Thing.”

William Clark Green has some great songs, a knack for composing strong melodies, is easy to like, and hard to hate. But his sound has always been a little too soft for true country, but not nearly fluffy enough for pop. It finds that safe zone in Texas music similar to Wade Bowen and Randy Rogers where it’s commercially accessible, while still delivering more substance than mainstream country radio stuff.

It’s never been about whether William Clark Green is good or bad as much as sometimes he’s hard to define, or difficult to distinguish when there’s so much music out there. He doesn’t come with a signature sound, or a unique style of writing. He’s pragmatic with his musical approach. He’s William Clark Green.

Enter his latest album Watterson Hall. It probably won’t compete for Album of the Year. You’re not going to hear his writing referenced in the same conversations as selections from Evan Felker or even Cody Jinks. Yet by really personalizing the songs on this album, taking a few years to re-align his compass, and becoming a father and a purposeful life partner creates a center of gravity that makes this record feel like an achievement and a career retrenching.

It’s a tried and true maxim of music that too many artists tend to get away from: the more personal your writing, the more resonant it is with an audience. When you start with the audience of one (yourself), that is when the audience of many can feel the inspiration behind the song. This is a recurring experience listening to Watterson Hall, including with the title track, as well as “Love To Fight Another Day” and “I Am The Kite.” The songs “Where The Wild Things Are” and “Something You Would Die For” are about being a father.

The word “inspired” is what comes to mind when listening to Watterson Hall. And even though the album’s namesake dance hall is located just east of Austin near the town of Red Rock, William Clark Green makes sure to put his signature West Texas stamp on the work with the song “Whole Lotta Lubbock.” Though it might sound like a cliché to compliment an album as “mature,” that’s certainly an appropriate characterization here.

At the same time, William Clark Green is going to William Clark Green. “Good Time” could be a hit on mainstream country radio. An no, that’s not meant as a compliment. Though “Drinkin’ and Drivin'” isn’t as bad as the title might imply (a golf cart on private property is the motor vehicle in question), it still feels like a song idea that should have been squashed on the legal pad. This album also does little to establish a defining sound for William Clark Green.

But Watterson Hall is Green is doing something all good artists and songwriters do. Instead of chasing what they think their audience or the public wants, they grow with the audience that brought them to the dance hall. William Clark Green is not going to be the next “breakout” artists in country music whether he wanted to be or not. Instead, he doubles down on being the best William Clark Green he can be, and it results in a strong, career effort.

8/10

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Purchase/Stream Watterson Hall