Here we have it … some forgotten masterpieces revisited and some fresh new sounds. You can file these songs somewhere between The Triffids and The Go-Betweens. It’s music for the backbar where the heartbroken sit uneasily soaking up Billie Reid’s words and nursing their own grief and melancholic moods. But Billie is the antidote for their distress, for with a few simple words he gives voice to unspoken dreams, he rejoices in the passion of surrender whilst drinking from the poisoned chalice of love. Amen!
So here are his words. Some songs have a fresh voice with Lily, Quinlan Porteous and Wayne A. Halifax giving their interpretations. It really doesn’t matter who is singing because the song is there to be sung and perhaps also to be listened to. These include wonderful alternative versions that are respectful, yet perhaps take a few more steps up in production values, showing just how under rated a songwriter Billie is.
You can find all of Billie’s lyrics here in the site.
Billie Reid’s latest release intertwines his original vocal stem from his “Ode To The Dudes” song (off his album of the same name) with genre’s, dubstep, electronica and alt-rock. Australian electro artist SquidEyes cleverly sound crafted this complex piece, intertwining his music with Reid’s angry angst-ridden “rant”. It’s a powerful political release from one of our planets true environmental warriors.
Billie Reid “self, muso, poet, regenerationist extrordinaire, polymathic re-planetarizationist” …. “i write from heart when spirit moves me”.
“This street walkin’ cheetah with a heart full of napalm has a lot to say about love, loss, and the state of the world at large. Put more simply, Reid is a poet and he xxxx-xxxx knows it” Liam Allen
Musically, “Acid Blue” takes the listener on a pop-rock / electronica / alt-pop / journey. In that order! Quinlan intertwines Billie Reid’s lyric into an electro bed of sub-bass, bass, electric guitars, heavy drums, and keyboard sounds that morph as we progress through the song, following the theme of the lyric.
Lyrically, “Acid Blue”, sadly, is about depression. There is, however, some short-lived relief via an acid trip. The lyric at the end of verse three “… the rainbows in my head …… turn into tunes …” provided the transition point to morph the mood into a spacey, tempo changing, electronica interlude. After a minute or so, sadly, we (Billie) transition “back in reality, the light caved in, made my sunburst brain feel sick again. I wish that the light would come shining through, I’m acid blue, I’m acid blue”. It’s a powerful song.
“There’s a crack in my skull that lets the light get in, let’s it tan my brain & I can’t remember when, that I last saw the sun, shining through, that’s nothing new” Acid Blue
“Easy listening is a tagline that’s often attached to artists of a sombre character, and songwriters who pen democratic pieces of love and loss. These musicians selflessly offer their material for listeners to adopt the world over. Their lyrics are captivating beasts that embody the fragile and complicated nature of society and, in particular, the way in which we engage with one another. Their words are usually pivotal to their music, not just because of their demanding nature, but because of the way they’re delivered – carefully, with control, but also with ample feeling. The description of ‘easy’ does little to reflect the soulful depths of these purveyors of heart. In fact, it can corrupt the representation
All that said, a standout aspect of Lily’s career to date is undoubtedly her vocal. The 28-year-old’s voice contains wisdom well beyond her years, calling out to the depths of time to expose an enduring and unforgettable quality. It’s the kind of soulful power that her peers crave and her seniors strive to get back. Lily can paint a thousand pictures with a simple croon, and we wouldn’t have it any other way” Tiffany Daniels
“Billie Reid is one intriguing cat …. as in, on a hot tin roof, as in scalded. I’m hearing a rich hybrid telling me that he’s been absorbing & assimilating for a long time; that he understands the power of words, of poetry even. He’s plainly a rocker at heart but just as plainly there’s a lot going on in his heart & head – from skittering banjo to grinding blues to playful pop. There could even be some whirlygig jugband going on &, dare I say it, a nod or two to His Bobness [both Zimmerman & the acerbic Irish Knight – Geldof]. One gets the feeling that Billie’s not overly concerned with expectations or categories, that he’s having a whale of a time & if you want to come along for the ride that’s fine by him. How did The Hombres put it all those years ago? “Nobody knows what it’s all about. It’s too much man, let it all hang out.” ….”
Glenn A. Baker [Australian Rock Historian]
A thoughtful, soulful song about love. Full of ambient textures. Quinlan’s voice is a perfect conveyance for Billie Reid’s lyric. It’s heartfelt yet understated.
“I can hear your heartbeat honey, can you hear mine. You’re coming closer baby, and I feel fine”
Resultantly, Quinlan Porteous’s music is a volatile hybrid, combining the purebred folk compulsions of bluegrass and rockabilly, infused with his own punk-influenced approach to songwriting.
Australia’s charming nightingale Lily has released a beautiful, melodic and mesmerising piece of music. It’s a timeless song about love.
“I can hear your heartbeat honey, can you hear mine”
“Tomorrow”, rich in ambient textures, most certainly fits the alt-pop / adult contemporary genre. Lily’s mature sincere soulful voice perfectly compliments Billie Reid’s beautiful lyric.
With this tune, we had lyrics but no tune! Chris Murphy & Rob Agostini were asked to create a melodic mesmerising contemporary piece of music. Lily initially didn’t think it would fit her style. She was given freedom to mould it to suit her voice, & requested that be ambient, “alt”, & adult contemporary …. & these guys delivered this track, she loved it so we worked on the production, and here it is!
The petite singer has always known that music was her destiny. With a father who continues to sing and drum in numerous bands and a mother who was also a singer, Lily has always been surrounded by music, so it really felt inevitable.“Unlike a lot of kids, I was quite proud of my parents’ musical taste. There were a real mix of styles and genres constantly in our ears. There was a lot of Motown. Growing up, my brothers and I were surrounded by Earth Wind & Fire, the Chi-Lites and Aretha Franklin. It didn’t take me long to get suckered in by the powerful emotional pull of women like Billie Holiday and Nina Simone. This music became a tradition in our household”
Now with music by her side – and an ever-evolving wardrobe – Fremantle is the perfect place for Lily to take a deep cleansing breath and open her musical heart to Billie Reid’s songs” Ara Jansen
“There’s a crack in my skull that lets the light get in, let’s it tan my brain & I can’t remember when, that I last saw the sun, shining through, that’s nothing new” Acid Blue
Musically, “Acid Blue” takes the listener on a pop-rock / electronica / alt-pop / journey. In that order! Quinlan intertwines Billie Reid’s lyric into an electro bed of sub-bass, bass, electric guitars, heavy drums, and keyboard sounds that morph as we progress through the song, following the theme of the lyric.
Lyrically, “Acid Blue”, sadly, is about depression. There is, however, some short-lived relief via an acid trip. The lyric at the end of verse three “… the rainbows in my head …… turn into tunes …” provided the transition point to morph the mood into a spacey, tempo changing, electronica interlude. After a minute or so, sadly, we (Billie) transition “back in reality, the light caved in, made my sunburst brain feel sick again. I wish that the light would come shining through, I’m acid blue, I’m acid blue”. It’s a powerful song.
This enchanting, hypnotic song is about love, discovering your first love, and about finding a sanctuary within the depths of your mind, whilst sleeping and dreaming.
“Silver chains and magic eyes, keep me safe until the sunrise, ‘till dark shadows fall away, beneath the giant magic eye of day”
Written by Billie Reid. The music was created by dubstep dude SquidEyes. Kudos to these two artists. It’s a masterful timeless creation.
Billie Reid’s extended version of his polarising song “Ode To The Dudes” (from his album of the same name) was created by Australian electro / dubstep artist SquidEyes.
It’s the melding of genre’s, with the hard-edged vocal of one of our generations great alt-poets, that makes this “piece” unique. This musical creation showcases two artists at the very top of their game.
Billie Reid – “On a planet run by robotizer clockwork troglodytes, being a Heartbeat Human has become illegal”.
Quinlan Porteous takes this poetic heartfelt Billie Reid song into the americana-pop-rock genre. It’s a passionate vocal performance from “the man with a dark past”, complimenting a sad yet beautiful lyric .…“…. we chased to many rainbows, now we’v lost all those we caught .…”
Gavin Stang – “Billie Reid gets this. Gets it better than most, and delivers heartfelt and caustic reminders that “things will never be the same again”. Simple words, big truth, and the line as it’s sung carries a charge that we can all recognise if we’ve ever opened our heart to another and had them snack on it”
“We could hold onto the past, and try to pretend, but it would only hurt us more when we finally reach the end. We should say goodbye now, admit that it’s all over, set each other free again, but keep our memories of each other”
This release is Quinlan Porteous’ interpretation of the controversial Billie Reid song of the same name. It’s an experimental crossover musical “piece” intertwining genres pop/rock with dubstep/electro. It’s passionate and honest … a powerful, political musical creation, more of a chant than a song, aimed at supporting the movement against reckless global destruction.
“…. with doctors and lawyers ‘n’ labourers ‘n’ sheep, ‘N’ cattle and businessmen, all in a heap ….”
Lyrically, it’s a powerful statement by one of our planets true warriors. It’s alt-poet/tunesmith/musician Billie Reid at the very top of his game, sending a no-bars-hold king hit to those power-brokers, who are mindlessly destroying our planet.
To quote Contemporary Musicologist John Young “Alternative singer/songwriter/poet Billie Reid has a pedigree that is pure mongrel. A musician who stands proud as a purveyor of righteousness in current times”.
This song moves me. I’m eternally hooked and now Lily’s voice floats around in my head with it’s bittersweet pleading, edged with a side serve of melancholia. Very hip. There’s the dark mysterious promise of a lost love. So listen, then scratch that itch and you’re addicted. One bite and you’re in but it’s going to seep into your consciousness and tease you with it’s echo.
Make no bones about it this is no innocent pop song celebrating the joys of first love but something darker and suggests the frisson of a tryst that blurs sexual boundaries. For this tender song is Billie Reid at his very best and features Roy Martinez’s understated electric guitar that perfectly captures the songs mood and played with an understated honesty. No painful guitar heroics just naked emotion.
The production values are timeless and devoid of excess frippery. There’s little wank. If song writing is now a dead craft this song is a celebration of life and the rebirth of song writing! For Lily’s voice touches and seduces and hints at a carnal addiction that is going to burn you. This isn’t cheap sex, hell no! This isn’t sweet innocence but a deeper darker more satisfying coupling.
“If music can be just like putting on a dress and each one has a different style, shape, colour and texture, then Lily is currently wearing a soft and flowing wine-coloured dress with a fitted bodice. Short and just a little bit left of centre, it’s a perfect Fremantle dress and equally perfect attire for the two songs the dark-haired, creamy-featured singer has recently recorded.
Fuelled by Eurasian heritage, a lust to wander and a well-stamped passport tucked into that bodice, contemporary songbird Lily calls the West Australian port city of Fremantle home … the songs are soulfully country and with an undeniable feeling and yearning for the coast. The songs from the project have allowed her to re-interpret the songs and let imagination rule.
In her heart, Lily is a girl bursting with stories to tell. Irrelevant of era, genre or format, the ability to tell a worthy story makes for a beguiling song. Like any good story – even someone else’s – the chance for Lily to tell it in her own voice is a truly beautiful and honourable thing” Ara Jansen