HE DIDN’T JUST LIVE ON “TULSA TIME” — HE TAUGHT THE WORLD HOW TO BREATHE AGAIN.
They used to call Don Williams “The Gentle Giant.” Not because he was tall — though he was — but because everything about him moved slower, softer, and somehow, deeper. He wasn’t chasing stadium lights or headlines. He just wanted his songs to feel like morning coffee after a long night — warm, calm, and honest.
When Don sang “I’m living on Tulsa Time,” it wasn’t just a lyric. It was a philosophy. It meant taking things as they come, trusting that life doesn’t always need to hurry. He sang it like a man who knew the value of silence. The kind of silence that lets you hear the wind, or the soft hum of a steel guitar in a lonely bar.
People often said he had a voice you could lean on — strong enough to carry a lifetime of truth, but gentle enough to ease a restless soul. He never shouted his words; he whispered them, and somehow, they landed louder than any scream. “Lord, I Hope This Day Is Good,” “Good Ole Boys Like Me,” “Tulsa Time” — each song was a slow dance with simplicity, a quiet rebellion against a noisy world.
There’s a story some fans tell — maybe true, maybe not. They say one night after a show, Don stayed behind long after everyone left. He sat on stage, strumming the same chord again and again, eyes half-closed. When the janitor asked if he was waiting for someone, Don just smiled and said, “No, just waiting for the world to slow down enough to listen.”
That’s who he was. A man who made peace sound like poetry. Who made stillness feel sacred.
Even now, decades later, when someone plays “Tulsa Time” on an old jukebox, it doesn’t just fill the room — it changes the air. You can almost feel him there: calm, steady, timeless.
Don Williams didn’t need fame. He didn’t chase noise. He gave us something rarer — the reminder that real strength doesn’t shout… it hums quietly in the background.
And maybe that’s why, every time life gets too loud, we still find ourselves reaching for that voice — the one that tells us it’s okay to slow down, breathe deep, and live on Tulsa time.