Feature Artist LUCINDA WILLIAMS

By Donn Jehs

Artist:	Lucinda Williams
Title:	"Car Wheels on a Gravel Road"
Label:	Mercury
Reviewed By:	Donn Jehs
Rating:

Lucinda has been a nomad for most of her life, both physically and musically, so it is perhaps apropos that her latest album is called "Car Wheels On A Gravel Road" because she has certainly been down a lot of them. In the first eighteen years of her life she lived all over the South and even in South America. This continued as she began her professional career, starting out in New Orleans, and vainly trying to follow the slowly dying sixties folk movement from Berkley to New York. Her first album was recorded for Folkways with a $250 check they sent her, along with a one page contract and the admonition to go record an album. She did, "Ramblin' On My Mind," so it seems she's always been on the musical road. A year later she did "Happy Woman Blues," but it would be eight years before she recorded another, her self-titled album, for the Rough Trade label, which also released several EPs over the next several years. However, she just never could catch on with a major label. Her folksy rock oriented country blues was out of step with the radio world. In '92 she cut another album, "Sweet Old World," for Chameleon Records, which shortly went belly up. Two years later, Mary Chapin Carpenter covered her song, "Passionate Kisses," which Carpenter still plays to rousing applause from the fans as she did when I saw her in concert recently (see October issue). This cover won both Carpenter and Williams Grammys for best song and songwriter of the year in '94, a fact Williams only found out after a friend called to tell her. Seems she had missed four flights to LA and ended up having, as she calls it, a "pajama party" instead, and didn't even watch the Grammy's. If her current album isn't nominated for album of the year there is no justice. The album was actually first recorded three years ago, but Lucinda wasn't happy with the sound of her vocals, and after hearing the sound the combo of Steve Earle and producer Ray Kennedy achieved, she decided to try a couple of tracks with them. The result was so impressive that Lucinda rerecorded the whole album with Earle. Still, Lucinda is a perfectionist and wanted to tweak the album some more. Earle couldn't do it, so she enlisted the aid of Roy Bittan from the E- Street Band. The album was intended to be released on the American Records label, but as Lucinda was finishing up the album, the label owner was negotiating to sell the label, and Mercury Records used this as an opportunity to buy the rights and be the ones to release her new album. Lucinda currently resides in Nashville with Ray Price, bassist for her band, just a few doors down from longtime friend Emmylou Harris. Perhaps the wheels now turn more slowly. ======================================================= Having had the pleasure of seeing Lucinda in concert shortly after receiving her CD, my judgment about the quality of this CD was reinforced as I saw her take command of the crowd with her music. It was tangible proof that what had happened to me the first time I popped the CD into my player was no fluke. For the second time in the last few months I had no qualms about handing out our best rating from the very first listen. Lucinda is that rare artist who can convey more than just a feeling when she sings. From song one to the last cut, it's like turning the pages in her personal photo album as she takes us through her past in a highly personal way. Loving, leaving, regretting, grieving, palpable emotions she shares like snapshots in vivid color of cherished moments enshrined in song. The opening cut, "Right In Time," rivals "Passionate Kisses" for the depth of feeling, but the image of longing is considerably more erotic, and "moaning at the ceiling" probably will keep this song from getting the air play it deserves. The title cut is moving (literally), as it dredges memories many of us had ourselves, or thinking about our children, nose pressed to the glass, leaving the place we called home. "2 Kool 2 Be 4-gotten" is the hangout, the juke joint where memories are blurred by the alcohol, every one the same yet you remember the signs over the bar, the words scratched into the tables surface. And one who hung out in places like this was "Drunken Angel," Blaze Foley, friend and a promising guitarist lost in a senseless moment, a simple pull of a trigger. Lucinda gives us "Concrete And Barbed Wire," about love and lovers imprisoned behind them. Her voice has an exaggerated twang, like the teased up hair of a woman visiting her man, reminding him of what waits outside those walls. One who broke the walls that bind us returned to "Lake Charles," in death coming home where he belonged. A dirge, sweetly delivered. Even if she can't hold onto it, memories of love haunt Lucinda, anger, regret, longing, she "Can't Let Go." Another road with many stops, memories return unbidden, can't be chased away. Lovers leave her and Lucinda says, "I Lost It" about love, the squeezebox echoing her plaintive cry. Her fuse was lit in a "Metal Firecracker" when she was young and innocent, and now all she asks is that he tell no one her secrets. Perhaps a woman's reply to Meatloaf's by "The Dashboard Light," later telling him to go back to "Greenville," as her illusions have been shattered. Yet, "Still I Long For Your Kiss" is her mournful wail. The realization sets in, the memories can't erase the fact he stole her "Joy" and she wants it back. Let's all chant together "You took my joy, I want it back" - one of those songs that will become a sing-a-long at future concerts. Those wheels keep rolling from "Jackson" to Lafayette, Baton Rouge and finally to Vicksburg, leaving her memories behind her. The wheels have stopped rolling. As the album's cover slowly shuts, the pictures and songs are indelibly imprinted on my consciousness. Put away for the moment, but ready to be taken out to share with friends and lovers. Come listen with me.

LIVE IN CONCERT!

Lucinda Williams

With Special Guest

Jim Lauderdale

Janus Landing St. Petersburg, FL 10/30/98

There was a hint of fall in the air, a welcome relief from a summer of constant heat, and the large, eclectic crowd was relaxed but eager for the show. From the family with their little boy and girl, to the 40-something businessmen/women and their spouses, the crowd was definely different from the regular "Green Day" punk/ska crowd that this venue usually hosts. The only dyed hair here was that done to hide those telltale signs of gray. It was a crowd of adults expecting some mature entertainment, and that's just what they got from "Jim Lauderdale" and "Lucinda Williams." Lucinda, like her fellow songstress "Emmylou Harris," refuses to be catalogued into the neat little niches the music industry so likes. She isn't country enough for country radio, isn't pop enough for the power pop stations, isn't rock enough for rock stations. What she IS is too good for these stations that prefer pablum to real music. Thank goodness at least one label had the sense to give her a home where she could be herself and give us her first studio album in six years, "Car Wheels On A Gravel Road." Her concert tonight proved how wise (and lucky) Mercury was to sign her. " Jim Lauderdale" has been singing harmony and playing guitar with Lucinda's band for years, but has also had time to record six albums of his own, and write hits for artists like "Patty Loveless" and "George Strait." He has been opening for Lucinda on this tour, playing acoustic guitar and singing songs from his lengthy repertoire. For 3/4 of an hour Jim touched on some of his best.

He opened with the first four cuts from "Pretty Close To The Truth," probably his best album, although his recent release, "Whispers," for BNA/RCA contains several gems. "This Is The Big Time" was followed in rapid succession by "I'm On Your Side," "Why Do I Love You" and "Divide and Conquer." One of the faults on Jim's earlier albums was his tendency to overdo his singing and playing, something he did during these numbers also, trying to fill the venue with the music. After he relaxed, he eased up and made the crowd "listen" for his music as he sang "Whispers" and "I'll Lead You Home." He then played several songs that he had written for others, including "You Don't Seem to Miss Me" and "Halfway Down," both of which have been hits for "Patty Loveless." "King Of Broken Hearts," one of ten songs written by him that "George Strait" recorded, was one of his most popular songs of the night. While Jim gave good renditions of his songs, his is the case where others have taken them places he can't go. I like his singing but feel his true talents lie in his harmonies that make others sound better, and the words he puts on paper for others to make magic. The crowd gave him a warm response though, clearly enjoying the effort and entertainment he had provided, as they waited for Lucinda to take the stage. And after what seemed an interminable amount of time, but was really less than 20 minutes Lucinda and her band took the stage. Dressed in a simple black shirt and jeans with white hat it was obvious she had come in her working clothes. And work she did, playing nearly 90 minutes and over 20 songs.

She opened with one of her most popular tunes, "Pineola," from "Sweet Old World," and it was obvious from the first notes that Lucinda and the band were "on" tonight. After this rocking opening, she proceeded to hit us with six in a row from her latest album, "Car Wheels On A Gravel Road," beginning with "Metal Firecracker," a song about remembered love that slowed things down just a hair. Lucinda likes to tell stories about many of her songs, the inspirations, her hiatus from recording and life's little tales. After playing the title track from her current album, and "Right In Time," she spoke about guitarist Blaze Foley, a friend whose death in a drunken argument extinguished his talent. "Drunken Angel" was her way of remembering him, and was delivered with just that bit of extra feeling that told you this was a highly personal song. "Greenville" kept the downbeat mood going, and like the album, was followed by the immensely popular song "Still I Long" - which also appeared on the best selling soundtrack recording from "The Horse Whisperer." At this point the crowd started to really move, and some to dance. Not one to ignore what was going on, Lucinda played "Hot Blood," from "Sweet Old World," and changed the set list to play "Changed The Locks" next. "Joy" was supposed to have followed, but in that kind of inspired thinking that marks the true artist, she used it as the closer for her regular set. It was a terrific move, for "Joy" was nearly ten minutes of hard-rocking, guitar driven blues, with her pouring it out, and guitar work from Kenny Vaughan and John Jackson, Richard Price on bass and Fran Breen leading the beat on drums. If the night had ended here the fans would have been well entertained, if highly disappointed, and gave a terrific ovation, which I'm sure would have been a standing "O," except the venue is SRO all the time, so only the applause can measure the crowd's feeling. Lucinda had clearly enjoyed herself and returned for the first of two encores. She opened this mini-set with "Sweet Old World," which Emmylou Harris recorded, and finally gave in to the crowd and played "Passionate Kisses," unquestionably the crowd's favorite. She followed with another crowd-pleaser (but then weren't they all), a song also written for Emmylou Harris, "Crescent City." She closed this encore with "Jackson," to another rousing sustained round of applause and calls for more. To be honest I don't think folks really thought Lucinda would come back once again but when the roadies made no move to take down the equipment it became obvious to all that Lucinda was coming back on stage. From what I understand, this isn't something that occurs at every show, but given the beautiful weather, the warm crowd and a hot band, we were rewarded with three more songs as Lucinda passed on a word from her guitarist that they had to play the blues. And Lucinda said she "knew" this was a blues crowd as she sang "Tumbleweed," "Traveling Woman," and to close the night out, a cover of the Howlin' Wolf song "Come To Me Baby." The final song was another tremendous explosion of energy like we got earlier on "Joy" sending the crowd home on a great set of notes.