CD Odyssey Disc 790: Lucinda Williams

The weekend has arrived! I had a pretty crazy work week, but it all ended with a romantic dinner with my lovely wife at a fine restaurant so it was worth it.

Disc 790 is….West

Artist: Lucinda Williams

Year of Release: 2007

What’s up with the Cover? “Who’s that tough and thoughtful lookin’ woman?” “Why that’s Lucinda, son.” “And where is she?” “Out west. You can tell by her hat.”

How I Came To Know It: I discovered Lucinda while listening to the Steve Earle album “I Feel Alright.” I wanted to know who he sang the duet “You’re Still Standing There” with and it turns out it was Lucinda. By the time “West” came out I was basically just buying anything she recorded.

How It Stacks Up: I have 11 Lucinda Williams albums and I like them all. “West” is great but competition at the top is intense. So intense, “West” could only manage to finish fourth best.

Ratings: 4 stars but almost 5

I recently watched a clip of Lucinda appearing live at KEXP radio. During the interview portions of the appearance she was awkward, staring at the floor and answering the questions in a clipped embarrassing style somewhere between reclusive trailer park lady and shy eight year old country girl.

When she picked up her guitar and sang a song she still stared down (now at a sheet of lyrics) but her voice became that of a broken angel, rough and beautiful. Those words she was staring at were clear, insightful, honest and refused to cut emotional corners.

It’s this combination of total vulnerability and artistic brilliance that makes every one of Lucinda Williams’ albums incredible, and “West” is no exception.

“West” is one of Lucinda’s more subtle and quiet efforts. The songs don’t scream for attention, but ask that you settle down on the old porch and let them soak into you slowly.

The first song on the record is also the best one. “Are You Alright?” is a classic Lucinda Williams break up song. There are no recriminations here, just three big guitar notes echoing with reverb and worry, followed by Lucinda asking her lover where he’s gone and why. The hurt in Lucinda’s voice is all the accusation the song needs – a reminder that when you leave someone, that someone is still out there wondering what the hell went wrong for days or months, or maybe even for years. With Lucinda’s voice you’re pretty sure it is forever.

A lot of the songs on “West” address issues of heartache, but Lucinda finds time to pick us up emotionally at just the right moments. Directly after “Are You Alright?” “Mama You Sweet” gives us a love song for all the moms out there.

Lyrically, one of my favourite songs on “West” is “Fancy Funeral” where she warns of wasting money on your funeral when that money could be buying groceries and paying bills:

“Lovely little daffodils

And lacy filigree

Pretty little angels

For everyone to see.

“Lily of the Valley

And long black limousines

It’s three or four month’s salary

Just to pay for all those things.”

In Lucinda’s world, life is often painful but she comes down clearly on the side of living it. Spend what money you have while you’re alive on the things that matter; vanity will do you no good in the grave.

Lucinda is often sad and suffering from some malady of the heart, but she can also be sexy as hell. With the David Gilmour style guitar and horn section on “Unsuffer Me” her vulnerability is expressed as pure and irresistible desire. When the coin turns, as it does in “Come On” she can express her scorn sexually equally well:

“You think you’re in hot demand

But you don’t know where to put your hand

Let me tell you where you stand

You didn’t even make me come on!”

I can see why the guy in the first song was afraid to call and let her know he was alright.

Musically, the album has multiple styles to accompany Lucinda’s vocal. Sometimes it is a simple guitar strum, sometimes classical violin and sometimes blues-rock arrangements. The brilliance of the songs work regardless of the package they are put in.

The album’s final third isn’t as brutally powerful as the beginning, but it comes pretty close. I think the only reason is that at 68 minutes it is almost too much of a good thing. I find I’m pretty emotionally wiped by the time I’m nearing the end.

This record is absolutely beautiful and the fact that it still can’t crack the top three records (all of which I’ve previously reviewed) is just testament to Lucinda Williams’ consistent brilliance, not a detraction in any way from what she accomplishes on “West.”

Best tracks:  Are You Alright? Learning How to Live, Fancy Funeral, Come On, Unsuffer Me, Everything has Changed, Come On, Rescue