Bill Withers: The songs, the soul and a little sweet relief

Some songwriters have a way of making the complicated things in life sound remarkably simple. Bill Withers was one of them. Whether he was singing about love, loneliness, friendship or the people who shaped his life, there was an honesty to his music that never needed much dressing up. Now, more than 50 years after his first album, a remarkable collection of musicians has come together to celebrate his songs while helping the people who make music for a living.

 

There are certain songs that seem to have always been around. You hear them coming out of a car radio, playing in the corner of a pub or drifting across a backyard barbecue, and somehow they still sound as good as the first time you heard them. Bill Withers gave us more than his fair share of those songs. ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’, ‘Lean On Me’, ‘Lovely Day’, ‘Use Me’ and ‘Just the Two of Us’ are woven into the fabric of popular music, crossing generations and genres without ever losing their appeal.

 

What made Withers special wasn't just that he could write a hit. It was the way he wrote about ordinary life. His songs were direct, personal and full of feeling, often built around a simple melody, a memorable groove and a voice that sounded like someone telling you the truth. There was soul, blues, gospel and a little folk in there, but he never seemed particularly interested in fitting into one musical category. He simply wrote great songs.

 

That spirit is at the heart of Who Is He And What Is He To You? A Sweet Relief Tribute to Bill Withers, a new 20-track collection bringing together an impressive group of artists to revisit his remarkable catalogue. Released on 27 November as an exclusive vinyl edition for Record Store Day Black Friday, the album features Ruthie Foster, Rickie Lee Jones, Ben Harper, Beth Hart, Lady Blackbird, Chris Pierce, Eric Gales, Buffalo Nichols and plenty more.

 

There's also a very good reason behind it. Proceeds from the album will benefit Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, the American charity that provides financial assistance to musicians and music industry workers facing medical expenses and other difficulties. It's an organisation built around a simple idea: the people who spend their lives making music for the rest of us sometimes need a little help themselves.

And there's something particularly fitting about using the songs of Bill Withers to support that cause. After all, this is the man who wrote ‘Lean On Me’, one of the most enduring songs ever written about friendship, community and being there when somebody needs you.

 

The project has been five years in the making, with Grammy-winning producer Sheldon Gomberg bringing together artists from across the worlds of soul, blues, country and rock. Rather than simply recreating the originals, the musicians have been given room to bring their own personalities to the songs, which is exactly what a good tribute album should do.

 

Rickie Lee Jones takes on ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’, while Ruthie Foster brings her wonderful gospel and blues sensibility to ‘Grandma’s Hands’, one of Withers' most personal songs. Beth Hart tackles ‘Lean On Me’, and Ben Harper turns his attention to the title track, ‘Who Is He And What Is He To You?’, a song that captures the uncomfortable feeling of jealousy with a groove that still sounds terrific more than half a century later.

 

There are some interesting connections buried in the collection too. Chris Stills performs ‘The Same Love That Made Me Laugh’, bringing a little family history into the picture. His father, Stephen Stills, played lead guitar on Withers' 1971 debut album, Just As I Am, the record that introduced the world to ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’ and ‘Grandma’s Hands’. It's a nice reminder of just how closely connected the great American music traditions have always been.

 

Buffalo Nichols strips ‘I Don't Want You On My Mind’ back to its country blues foundations, revealing just how naturally Withers' songwriting fits alongside the older blues traditions. Chris Pierce takes on the darker ‘Better Off Dead’, while Lady Blackbird, Eric Gales and Sugaray Rayford bring their own approaches to songs that have long been favourites among soul and blues musicians.

 

One of the album's particularly meaningful moments comes from Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Jr., whose version of ‘Just the Two of Us’ is already available to hear. The pair knew Withers personally, having worked and toured with him during their years with The 5th Dimension, making their involvement more than simply another contribution to a tribute record.

 

‘Bill Withers was an amazing talent. A brilliant artist, songwriter and a dear friend,’ they recall. ‘We made music together … we toured together during our original 5th Dimension years. It is a special privilege to join this nonprofit and these gifted producers by celebrating in song.’

 

For all the familiar songs, part of the appeal of this collection is the opportunity to dig a little deeper into Withers' catalogue. Tracks like ‘Ruby Lee’, ‘Harlem’, ‘Lonely Town, Lonely Street’ and ‘I Can't Write Left-Handed’ remind us that there was much more to his songwriting than the handful of classics that continue to dominate radio playlists.

 

Withers himself had one of the more unusual journeys in American music. Born in the coal-mining town of Slab Fork, West Virginia, he served in the US Navy before moving to Los Angeles, where he worked in factories while trying to establish himself as a songwriter. He was already in his thirties when Just As I Am arrived in 1971, and that working-class background remained an important part of his musical identity.

 

He didn't sound like somebody trying to become a star. He sounded like somebody who had lived a little, paid attention to the people around him and found a way to turn those observations into songs. 

 

His recording career was relatively short compared with many of his contemporaries, but the influence of those records has been enormous. His songs have been covered, sampled and reimagined by artists across soul, R&B, hip-hop, blues, country and rock. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005 and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2015, with Stevie Wonder doing the honours.

 

By the time Withers died in March 2020 at the age of 81, his place among the great American songwriters was well established.

Gomberg perhaps puts it best when talking about what made the music last.

 

‘His songwriting was genuine, simple and straight-ahead — just honest,’ he says. ‘You relate to him. I'd known the big hits since I was a kid and loved those songs. And they're still standing the test of time.’

 

That's really the thing about Bill Withers. His songs don't rely on elaborate arrangements or clever production tricks to make their point. Strip them back to a voice and a guitar, or hand them to a completely different musician, and the heart of the song is still there.

 

And while tribute albums can sometimes feel like an exercise in nostalgia, this one has something more worthwhile behind it. Twenty artists revisiting twenty songs, with the money going towards helping fellow musicians through difficult times. It's a pretty good way to honour a songwriter whose music so often reminded us of the importance of looking after one another.

 

Bill Withers gave us songs that have helped people through good times and bad for more than five decades. It's fitting that those same songs are now being used to help the people who keep making the music.

 

Who Is He And What Is He To You? — Tracklist

1 ‘Grandma’s Hands’ — Ruthie Foster

2 ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’ — Rickie Lee Jones

3 ‘Ruby Lee’ — Jonah Tolchin

4 ‘Use Me’ — Lady Blackbird

5 ‘Who Is He And What Is He To You?’ — Ben Harper

6 ‘Sweet Wanomi’ — Charles Jones

7 ‘Kissing My Love’ — Eric Gales

8 ‘Harlem’ — David Ryan Harris

9 ‘The Same Love That Made Me Laugh’ — Chris Stills

10 ‘Lean On Me’ — Beth Hart

11 ‘Hello Like Before’ — Alethea Mills

12 ‘Better Off Dead’ — Chris Pierce

13 ‘Lovely Day’ — Eli Smart

14 ‘Lonely Town, Lonely Street’ — Chavonne Stewart

15 ‘Just the Two of Us’ — Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Jr.

16 ‘Friend of Mine’ — Jade MacRae

17 ‘I Don't Want You On My Mind’ — Buffalo Nichols

18 ‘World Keeps Going Round’ — Sugaray Rayford

19 ‘I Can't Write Left-Handed’ — Jeff Young

20 ‘Hope She'll Be Happier With Him’ — Tina Schlieske

 

Who Is He And What Is He To You? A Sweet Relief Tribute to Bill Withers is available on exclusive vinyl for Record Store Day Black Friday, 27 November 2026, with proceeds benefiting Sweet Relief Musicians Fund.