LUCINDA WILLIAMS

'Lucinda Williams' (born January 26, 1953) is an American rock, folk, and country music singer and songwriter. A three-time Grammy Award winner, she was named "America's best songwriter" by ''TIME'' magazine in 2002.

Contents

Early life

Career

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

DVD

Guest Appearances

Samples

See also

External links

Early life

Williams was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana, the daughter of poet and literature professor Miller Williams. Her father worked as a visiting professor in Mexico and Chile as well as different parts of the American South, before settling at the University of Arkansas. His daughter showed an affinity for music at an early age, and was playing guitar at 12.

Career

By her early 20s, Williams was playing publicly in Austin, Texas and Houston, Texas, concentrating on a folk-rock-country blend. She moved to Jackson, Mississippi, in 1978 to record her first album, for Smithsonian/Folkways Records. Titled ''Ramblin''', it was a collection of country and blues covers. She followed it up in 1980 with ''Happy Woman Blues'', which consisted of her own material. Neither album received much attention.
In the 1980s Williams moved to Los Angeles, California (before finally settling in Nashville, TN), where -- performing both backed by a rock band and in acoustic settings -- she developed a following and a critical reputation. Nevertheless, it was not until 1988 that Rough Trade Records released the self-titled ''Lucinda Williams''. The single "Changed the Locks", about a broken relationship, received radio play around the country and gained fans among music insiders, including Tom Petty, who would later cover the song.
Its follow-up, ''Sweet Old World'' (Chameleon, 1992), was a melancholy album dealing with themes of suicide and death. Williams's biggest success during the early '90s was as a songwriter. Mary Chapin Carpenter recorded a cover of "Passionate Kisses" (from ''Lucinda Williams'') in 1992, and the song became a smash country hit for which Williams received the Grammy Award for Best Country Song in 1994.
Williams had garnered considerable critical acclaim, but her commercial success was moderate. Emmylou Harris said of Williams, "She is an example of the best of what country at least says it is. But, for some reason, she's completely out of the loop. And I feel strongly that that's country music's loss."
Williams also gained a reputation as a perfectionist and slow worker when it came to recording; six years would pass before her next album release, though she appeared as a guest on other artists' albums and contributed to several tribute compilations during this period.
The long-awaited release, 1998's ''Car Wheels on a Gravel Road'' was Williams' breakthrough to the mainstream and received a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album. Containing the single "Still I Long for Your Kiss" from the Robert Redford film ''The Horse Whisperer'', the album received wide critical notice and soon went gold. The single "Can't Let Go" also enjoyed considerable cross-over radio play. Williams toured with Bob Dylan and on her own in support of the album.
Williams followed up the success of ''Car Wheels'' with ''Essence'' (2001). This release featured a less produced, more stripped-down approach both musically and lyrically, and moved Williams further from the country music establishment while winning fans in the alternative music world. She won the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Female Rock performance for the single "Get Right With God", an atypically uptempo gospel-rock tune from the otherwise rather low-key release. The title track includes a contribution on Hammond organ by alternative country musician Ryan Adams.
Her seventh album, ''World Without Tears'', was released in 2003. A musically adventurous though lyrically downbeat album, this release found Williams experimenting with talking blues stylings and electric blues.
In 2006, Lucinda recorded a version of the John Hartford classic "Gentle On My Mind," which played over the closing credits of the Will Ferrell film''Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby''
Williams was a guest vocalist on the song "Factory Girls" from Irish punk-folk band Flogging Molly's 2004 album, "Within a Mile of Home", and appeared on Elvis Costello's ''The Delivery Man''. She duetted with Steve Earle on the song "You're Still Standin' There" from his album ''I Feel Alright'' from 1996. She sings with folk legend Ramblin' Jack Elliott on the track "Careless Darling" from his 2006 release "I Stand Alone".
Lucinda has released her latest album titled West for which she wrote over 27 songs. The album was released on February 13, 2007 and contains 13 tracks and has a similar sound to ''World Without Tears''. It addresses her mothers' death and a tumultuous relationship break-up. Vanity Fair has praised it, saying "Lucinda Williams has made the record of a lifetime - part Hank Williams, part Bob Dylan, part Keith Richards circa Exile On Main Street..."
In 2006, Williams announced her engagement to music executive Tom Overby. Although she first told reporters the marriage would take place in 2006, she still described Overby as her fiancé during her spring 2007 tour.
Jesse Malin's 2007 album Glitter in the Gutter contains the track "Lucinda", an ode to Williams.

Discography

Studio albums

★ 1979 - ''Ramblin'''

★ 1980 - ''Happy Woman Blues''

★ 1988 - ''Lucinda Williams''

★ 1992 - ''Sweet Old World''

★ 1998 - ''Car Wheels on a Gravel Road''

★ 2001 - ''Essence''

★ 2003 - ''World Without Tears''

★ 2007 - ''West''

Live albums

★ 2005 - ''Live @ The Fillmore''

DVD

★ 2005 - ''Lucinda Williams - Live from Austin, TX''

Guest Appearances

★ 2004 - Graham Parker -- ''Your Country''

★ 2004 - Flogging Molly -- ''Factory Girls'' on Within a Mile of Home album

★ 2001 - Kasey Chambers -- ''On A Bad Day'' on Barricades & Brickwalls

Samples

See also

★ Music of Austin

External links

★ Lucinda Williams official site

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★ TracksMusic.com 2005 Interview

★ Lucinda Williams as part of NPR Live Concert Series

★ Lucinda Williams Tabs

★ Official Lucinda Williams Lost Highway Artist Page

★ Lucinda Williams UK Artist Page

★ CD Lucinda Williams – Car Wheels On A Gravel Road (Deluxe Edition)