JOYAS MUSICALES: WILLIAM FITZSIMMONS

*It's not true.

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William Fitzsimmons (born 1978) is an American singer-songwriter, based in Illinois, perhaps best known for his songs "Passion Play" and "Please Don't Go", which aired during pivotal scenes in ABC's medical drama Grey's Anatomy.^[2] His first two full-length albums, Until When We Are Ghosts (2005) and Goodnight (2006), were completely self-produced and recorded by Fitzsimmons at his former home in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His The Sparrow And The Crow (2008) was his first studio record. In addition to the above, his music has also been featured on ABC's Brothers & Sisters and Grey's Anatomy spin-off Private Practice, MTV's Life of Ryan and Teen Wolf, The CW's One Tree Hill,[Blue Bloods CBS] ABC Family's Greek, Lifetime's Army Wives, and USA Network's Burn Notice, and he has been given reference in Billboard, Rolling Stone, Paste, Spin, Musikexpress, Uncut, Q Magazine, and Performing Songwriter Magazine.

Fitzsimmons was born the youngest child of two blind parents, and was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is said to have developed his multiple instrumental abilities from his mother and father, both of whom were recreational musicians. His childhood home even housed a fully functional pipe organ, hand-built by his father. He was taught the piano and trombone during elementary school, and began teaching himself guitar while in junior high school. He is also proficient at the banjo, melodica, ukulele, and mandolin, and is known for mixing folk music with electronica in some of his production. In addition to performance abilities, Fitzsimmons is credited as the engineer and producer of his first two releases. He is often compared to contemporaries Iron & Wine, Sufjan Stevens, and the late Elliott Smith.

Will's career in music came only after completing a Master's Degree in counseling at Geneva College, and working as a mental health therapist. Prior to his graduate studies, Fitzsimmons worked with the mentally ill for several years. It was during a summer break in the midst of graduate school that Fitzsimmons recorded a collection of songs on home recording equipment which would subsequently become his debut album.

Fitzsimmons' writing often includes reference to personal and family subject matter. His 2006 effort, Goodnight, is said to have been based largely on his parents' divorce during his adolescence, and his 2008 work, The Sparrow And The Crow, was written entirely about and following his own divorce.

Fitzsimmons' music was noticed initially largely through MySpace, and touring with fellow artists Ingrid Michaelson, Brooke Fraser and Cary Brothers among others, and from several featured song placements on popular national television programs such as Grey's Anatomy. William currently resides in Springfield, Illinois.

A video for "The Tide Pulls From The Moon" was released on 8 February 2011. In June 2011 Fitzsimmons was touring in Europe, presenting his recent album Gold In The Shadow, which was released March 22 via Nettwerk.

Fitzsimmons' new album, "Lions," was released on 18 February 2014.