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These days Bill Withers doesn't seem to
get enough props other than being the singer behind "Ain't
No Sunshine," "Lean On Me," and "Just the
Two of Us." But Withers transcends being both a pop and
R&B artist-he is natural-sounding with an unassuming persona-he
is a gifted storyteller. Just As I Am, his debut, is a
gem both on a musical and personal level: combining gritty soul
with elegant pop. Although it contains his signature lament song
"Ain't No Sunshine," the album also has some other
great tracks such as the urgent "Harlem," "I'm
Her Daddy," and the sly "Better Off Dead." He
also covers "Everybody's Talkin" (put in the context
of the black experience in the '60s and '70s) and "Let It
Be" and makes them his own. Nearly 35 years later, Just
As I Am finally gets the deluxe treatment in the Dual Disc
format; aside from the audio, the DVD portion contains a video
documentary of the making of the album and a new interview with
an honestly frank Mr. Withers by critic Elvis Mitchell.
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