Welcome
Thank you for your interest in my music and in my current album project "Songs in the Great Turning." While I possess a broad musical background, I found my most profound songwriting inspiration in the early 1970s in fellow singer-songwriters such as Carole King, Van Morrison, Marvin Gaye, Laura Nyro, Elton John, Joni Mitchell and Stevie Wonder.
The songs that I present to you in "Songs in the Great Turning" are a collection that demonstrates the range of styles that I enjoy writing in and where I have found my artistic voice. The songs featured on this website represent progressive stages in the development of a professionally produced commercial product and, therefore, are primarily intended to introduce me as a singer-songwriter and recording artist to prospective financial backers, music producers, talent managers and agents, publishing companies and record labels.
My album, "Songs in the Great Turning," refers to two premises. The first premise: “As above, so below” expresses the notion that the global human civilization is in the midst of profound change – a great turning. This turning is manifested in the inner experiences of human beings as well as in the larger systems that contain them, most notably, the natural environment. Let me mention here that I had named my album Songs in the Great Turning before I had any knowledge of Joanna Macy’s work (I believe she was the first to use the phrase The Great Turning in a series of workshops she facilitated) and then later I discovered that the author and social economist David Korten used "The Great Turning" for the title of his book published in 2006.
The second premise, which is a personal one, is that these songs reflect my own great turning from the alienation from my deeper, wiser soul-self to my evolutionary process which led to my embracing a new realization and sense of possibility for myself. What I am describing is a shift in consciousness. This is a development that I am still undergoing and that is requiring a profound shift in my perception of reality. It is both a cognitive revolution and a spiritual awakening. The songs complement my personal story which unfolds in my book. It’s uncanny, and I believe serendipitous, that while I did not set out with the idea that these two products of my creativity would be “a package,” it appears that’s what the universe is bringing forth as a distinct possibility.
Composing, performing and recording my original music has long been a great life adventure. I have been most fortunate to find warm and appreciative audiences throughout the years I have performed as a musician. Thank you for the opportunity to share some of my music with you.
McKinley Williams
Los Angeles, California
(310) 975-9359