Once upon a time, there were two birds. Both were head over heels in love and flew and chirped lovely around the world. One day one bird turned out to be a sweet sparrow, but the other one turned out to be a black crow. After the careless crow strongly hurt the lovely sparrow, both birds flew their own ways – sad, bruised and lonely. However, the crow was as well as depressed and felt sad about hurting his lovely sparrow. That was why the crow decided to mutate into a nightingale to apologize to the sparrow with thirteen wonderful songs. Eventually, the crow wanted to get back his inner peace.
William Fitzsimmons, Singer and Songwriter from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, called himself a such a crow. But today many people can confirm that he became a nightingale. That is more than a reason to meet him at his concert in Leipzig and to talk with him about his childhood, his music and his change.
You wrote on your Twitter that you have forgotten your mandoline in Berlin. Did you find another one?
No, I haven’t checked it for an hours if somebody did. But it’s okay so. We have many other instruments.
It isn’t your first time in Germany…
Yes, we actually came first time in November last year. So it’s our second headlinetour.
Do you like Germany and its people?
I love it. I mean that. I wouldn’t just say that. It’s one of my favourite places that I’ve ever been. The people were treating me very very kindly here. And I felt very lucky because that. I studied the language when I was in university for a little bit. I just wanted to come here, I never thought that I would be able to. So I came here and play music and meet the people here. It’s very exciting every morning. Oh yeah, I love it.
Can you tell us something about your first contact with music or a very special moment in your childhood concerning music?
That’s a good question. We had, since I can remember, music in the house. We grow up with it, my brother and I. My parents were both musicians. They were playing records or my mother was on the piano or my father was on the organ. So, it was always there – which is pretty amazing, you know? It’s like living inside a radio. It was pretty special. One of my favourite memories, not just with music or just childhood in general, is going to sleep and listening to my father playing the organ. It was pretty loud. It was like churchorgan. And I don’t know, it gives me a special feeling. Whenever I hear an organ it reminds me up my father, being a child. That’s one of my favourite things.
Did you learn the instruments by yourself or did your parents teach you?
It’s a little bit of both. They did teach us. My mother talked me for the piano and a little bit for guitar. But really they left us alone. They consist that we would play. We had to play instruments. But it was up to us to practice and to learn. They gave us a lot of freedom to do that. But it was always we are practicing on our own. It was okay. But we really never had lessons or anything like that. I just played at school when I was younger.
When did you decide to become a professional musician?
That was very late. I trained for many years to be a therapist. I was loving music. I didn’t think it make sense to do it for a job. I just play it for fun on my own. That was great for myself. I guess it was when I was working as a therapist. I had a few songs on myspace, just for fun, and people started to hear it. And they responded very well. It grew bigger on its own. And I thought: Well, you know, I could just let this go bye and disappear and I can stay there first to try it out and see if it is the right thing to to. Maybe that was three years ago. I love it, but I miss therapy, too. That was my enjoyed work as well.
Your songs seem to come from deep inside. Is it difficult for you to write them down and to perform for the audience?
I think it is maybe for other people. But it never was difficult for me. Not because I’m special, but because while my training and work in psychology you learned to be very open. I sat with people, just like this, they were suicidal. They were very bad, they were schizophrenic. You know, everything. And when you do that you get use to talk about very very hard things and whenever I started writing whatever came out that were the deep things. It was normal, it was typical. It was actually never that hard.
…like doing your job in another way.
Ja, genau. It was perfect! Just like that.
How important is the music, the melodies, to express your intentions?
Music is very important. The melodies are important. But I always think for me at least and for the things I create: I want to communicate. I wanna talk to people through the songs. So the lyrics to me are always more important. I really wanna have great music. I wanna be interesting. I don’t really like music with more music than words. The words are very important to me. When I listen to music, the song can be amazing but when the lyrics don’t mean anything to me I can’t connect with the song.
On your shows there is an interesting contrast. Despite your songs are quite sad you smile and joke. But also the audience seems to be happy most of the time.
Yeah, it’s weird. I never did on purpose. When I started playing the first shows no one talked me what to do. They never said: you just sit up there and be very quiet and very depressing and be lovely.
There’s a lot of hope in music. And I think many people take hope of it. They get lost in that. Many musicians think if they want people to take them seriously they have to act very seriously. I’d rather be myself on stage. I have a lot of pain just like you do and everybody else. We all have pains. We all have things we are sad about. But I’m not always a sad person. I wanna be myself.
You recorded your first two albums at home. Why have you decided to go for your current album in a professional studio?
The songs on the new album, on the sparrow and the crow, were very very important to me – the other ones were too. But it was the first time I really felt to speak to one person in the songs. I needed to communicate things to my ex-wife. And I didn’t wanna risk and I wanted to take the chance. I wanted to be as good as I can be. I wanted to be perfect. I knew that what I can do at home was good. But at the studio it would be better. It was important for myself to make the songs as good as possible. I wanted to have other people that knew even more about recording than me.
Did your ex-wife talk with you about the album?
We didn’t talk for a while which is normal. The first things get pretty dark. But when we finally were able to talk to each other and forgive each other she did eventually listen. She said she can make it through what happened. It was very hard for her to listen to it. But she forgave me eventually. That’s all I wanted. I wanted us just to forgive each one and that happened. I wasn’t happy about that. But I was relieved, I was okay with it.
…like an inner peace.
Peace! Perfect, that’s it. That’s what it was.
How long are you goingt to make music? Would you return to your job to be a therapist?
It depends to what day you ask me. I love the music. That is a wonderful thing I only want to do. I could play music. That is so lucky. Anybody would kill to do that. But I feel miss it. I feel like: I don’t really believe in my chance. I cannot believe that it would suppose to go along. And I worked so long to become a therapist. And I still don’t think that this job is totally done. So, I think one day I will go back to that. But for now music feels what I’m supposed to be doing.
…but maybe if you ask me tomorrow…
…and you will record much more good albums?
Yeah, I hope so.
Do you write some new songs?
Yeah, I have some. I was home for a couple of months and I was able to write some new things. And they are different. I’m able now to write not just about divorce and sad things and such shit. It was were I was. But I want to go to different things. I wanna to be joyful.
Maybe we are going to hear some happy things?
Eventually, on the next record. I think that’s the direction I’m going. I have to write what’s inside. I feel myself moving in a direction. But it’s not Lady Gaga, it’s not like…[he performed some funny dance moves].
Beside Lady Gaga, do you also hear some important German musicians?
I know some classic ones. And Rammstein. Grönemeyer is also very good.
We allways see you make music. What are you doing if you don’t do it?
Puhhh….ahm…
…beside smoking…
[laughs] I really like to spend a lot of time at home. But I also like the country. I love fishing. I really like just hanging out with friends and family.
…watching Scrubs…
Yeah yeah yeah! I like some TV movies. But especially in the warmer months it’s so great to be outside. But, I’m pretty boring! I don’t party or any stuff like that.
One last question: how old are you?
What do you thing? But be carefull!
37 to 40? Maybe? …
Oh no. I’m just 31! But 40 is pretty good. Nobody said 40 before. I think it’s the beart!
Would you shave it?
Oh no, I would look like a child, like 12 years old!
Do you have some last words in German?
Vielen Dank für deine Liebe! ["Thanks a lot for your love!"]
Thank you very much!
I have to thank. Good bye!
PHOTOS: René Berger
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[...] wird es auch mit William Fitzsimmons geben. Der Sänger und Songwriter, letztes Jahr bei uns im Interview, ist zwar auch kein Unbekannter mehr, aber das mögen die Besucher des Immerguts den [...]