01940 Winter 2018_V3

He writes
the songs
that make
the whole
world sing
BY BILL BROTHERTON
"Alexa, play 'Never Enough' by Loren
Allred," requests John Michael Williams.
A gorgeous voice fills the magnificent
Chestnut Street home of Lynnfield's
modern-day renaissance man. The song is
from the film "The Greatest Showman"
and the young woman's vocal elicits
goosebumps.
"My 7-month-old grandson, Jack,
and I dance to this every night,"
said Williams. "This and 'The Little
Mermaid.'" It's a highlight of his day.
The "Never Enough" video has
31 million views on YouTube. Pretty
impressive, right? Not when you compare
it to singer-songwriter Williams' video
for "I Believe in You," a haunting song
about love and faith that has nearly 46
million views.
When we arrive for an interview,
Williams is sitting at a piano, working
on a song he's writing for a Nashville
country music star who shall remain
nameless. Williams' voice is "a gift that
comes along rarely," says his mentor
James Houghton, an opera performer
and dean of music at Boston University.
Williams' voice is strong and
expressive. His song is a heartfelt,
emotion-packed ballad. But that's only
one of this renaissance man's talents.
He's a filmmaker whose
documentaries "The Gloucester 18,"
about a supposed pregnancy pact by a
group of local high school girls, and
"Bridgend," about a series of suicides
by young adults in a small Welsh town,
received glowing reviews.
He's an author: A series of children's
books, with such cute titles as "Rules
of the Road Toad" and "Wondering
William and the Sandman," have been
well received by both adults and kiddies.
He served as creative director of
John Michael Williams could be called a modern-day renaissance man of Lynnfield. PHOTOS: SPENSER HASAK
the Boston Film Festival from 2005-
07. And he's worked with some pretty
big stars: Natalie Cole, Brooke Shields,
James Woods, Sandra Bernhardt, Joe
Pantoliano, Eli Wallach, and Nancy
Kerrigan. He sang on the stage at the
world-renowned Carnegie Hall in
NYC and was the featured performer
at a $10,000-a-table tribute to film
producer Jerry Weintraub, where he
sat next to superstar George Clooney.
He has attended the Grammys several
times. He considers his voice his primary
instrument.
He and his wife, Karen, moved to
Lynnfield in 1989. They raised daughters
Jackie and Alexandra here and can often
be seen at town events, but most would
never realize that this modest man is a
star in his own right.
Williams grew up in Melrose and
graduated from Malden Catholic High
School in 1976 and then Northeastern
University. The second-oldest of eight
children, he said the home was always
filled with music.
"My dad was always singing around
the house," he said. "My job, when I was
six or seven, was to sing to (the) little
ones and help them fall asleep"
He said his sister is a classical
violinist who has performed with Sarah
Brightman, Whitney Houston, and
Smokey Robinson.
"I was always the kid with the voice,
even at 5 years old" he said. "I would sing
with the three Kelly girls next door."
"I never really liked the Beatles,
they were often out of tune to my ear. I
was more into classical music and Jane
Oliver, James Taylor, Chicago," he said,
then smiled. "I'm the king of ballads.
I'm a sucker for pretty lyrics that move
me. Good music makes you catch your
breath, makes you feel like crying. I
would sing 'Danny Boy' and people
would cry."
What about "I Believe in You," a
video that somehow went viral with no
promotion or a push by a major label?
The video features Williams playing the
piano and singing while a film, which
he directed, follows a young couple who
are having a baby, an elderly couple, a
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