To The Borderline

Will D was born Will DeVoursney in Jersey City N.J. on Feb. 17 1950 at 11:11 P.M. His family tells him that he would sing along with his dad’s banjo playing when he was five, but Will doesn’t really remember. But he does guess that this early start is why he can feel so at ease on stage once he gets performing. He started writing poetry when he was 16 and by 22 he was starting to put them to guitar tunes. Eventually he added piano playing to his music. He married the love of his life (as in Happy Anniversary Darling) in 1971. They moved to an intentional community called The Farm in 1973 and have lived there ever since. The Farm started as an extension of the Hippie Movement (as in Tribal). Will has performed on his community and in the surrounding area, on and off, over the last 30 years. He has written both songs and comedy during this time. He has always wanted to try his hand at songwriting as a living and is now attempting to give it a go. His approach is very individual and unique.
Will’s music crosses different styles and moods. From the playful (as in Cajun Cookin’, Loco in Acapulco and C’mon Baby Let’s Dance) to the serious (as in An Innocent Man, 666 Apocalypse and She Was a Beautiful Women) to many landscapes in between. His love of nature shows through in Still a Wild Thing and Time to Tend the Roses.
All in all there is diversity of material as well as virtuosity of playing as supplied by the Rock Docs. Alan Graf is a maestro of guitar and has the ability to do many styles well. His lead guitar is very tasty and strong in many different styles. From the whining guitar on An Innocent Man to his Santana like lead on Loco in Acapulco to his balls to the wall heavy rock lead on Time to Tend the Roses, he shows off his stuff on 16 of the 19 tunes. James Kohn is a seasoned professional who takes the lead on guitar on Hello Neighbor and Still a Wild Thing. His Jazzy style adds some very nice contrast to the mix. He sings some soulful back-up on Cajun Cookin’ and Smile Train. Also some rhythm on Tribal and some piano on Cajun Cookin’. Phil Schweitzer is the man when it comes to finding the right mix and the best sound for each of Will’s tunes. And Biko Casini adds his own brand of soul on percussion, particularly on the Djembe on Tribal and on Congas on Loco in Acapulco.
Will is also very proud to have his song Why Must We Fight featured in A Wave of Peace: Pilgrimage to the School of the Americas, a movie that is now available on utube.This album, You Gotta Have Touch, is Will’s debut into serious songwriting but is also a labor of love. His love of music has life long roots and he draws upon the experience of living in a very unique community for most of his adult life. His day to day life is the pallet from which he draws his material. She Was a Beautiful Women is presented in memory of his neighbor for many years, Kathyrn Hutchens. She was also a singer songwriter. Hello Neighbor was prompted by a new friend moving into the neighborhood at about the same time he saw a Harry Chapin video. Chapin's style of "talking outloud to his subject" inspired this song also. The last song on the album, Only The Best, was written to celebrate one of his sons wedding. It is a perfrect wedding reception song. He is grateful for the oportunity that he has had to live in such a unique situation. Gratitude is a constant companion and can foster great ideas, great works and great deeds. The people of The Farm community have had a tight bond and in many ways are family to each other. The opportunity to live in a community where one has had life long friends is becoming more rare and is indeed a treasure. Perhaps one can get a glimpse of the inspiration that he gets from the community from some of these songs. It took a village to make this C.D.