Biography
Whether
you’re a Lucinda Williams
fan or just discovering her
infectiously captivating
music for the first time, World
Without Tears is an
eclectic,
heartstring-pulling gem that
commands attention simply
because it defies
categorization. It’s equal
parts blues, folk, country
and rock anchored by deeply
poetic lyrics that cut right
to the chase in conveying
the full spectrum of the
human experience and the
emotions associated with it
– from heartbreak, loss,
betrayal and anger to
desire, exhilaration and
redemption.
That’s
always been Lucinda’s
strong suit. The oldest
child of renowned poet
Miller Williams, Lucinda
recorded two acclaimed
records for
Smithsonian/Folkways before
hitting her stride in 1988
with her self-titled debut
for the Rough Trade label.
Artists and music industry
bigwigs took note of her
songwriting prowess, and
within a short time country
artists Patty Loveless’
and Mary-Chapin
Carpenter’s versions of
the album’s “The
Night’s Too Long” and
“Passionate Kisses,”
respectively, shot right to
the top of the country
charts, with the latter tune
garnering Lucinda a Grammy
in 1992.
That
same year, Lucinda released Sweet
Old World, which
garnered much critical
acclaim and squarely placed
her at the forefront of the
burgeoning Americana music
scene. Then in 1998 the
floodgates opened with the
release of the stunning,
Grammy-winning Car Wheels
on a Gravel Road. That
was followed in 2000 with
the laid-back, sensually
dripping Essence –
an album that prompted Time magazine to name Lucinda as “America’s Best Songwriter.”
And now there’s the
genre-crossing World
Without Tears.
“Each
song has a different flavor,
and reflects some of my
influences,” Lucinda says
of World Without Tears.
What’s apparent is the
record reflects a cool mix
of many styles. For example,
there’s the raw, sexually
charged, r&b tinged
“Righteously” that
features a searing guitar
line reminiscent of Jimi
Hendrix’s “Third Stone
from the Sun.” The song
“Atonement” is a sinewy,
swampy, menacing ZZ
Top-meets-Howlin’-Wolf jab
at self-righteous bible
brandishers. Then there’s
the very Dylan-esque,
emotionally intense “Sweet
Side,” as well as the
ripping, blistering Exile-on-Main-Street-like
“Real Live Bleeding
Fingers And Broken Guitar
Strings.”
One
of the most revealing tracks
on World Without Tears
is the moody, Doors-flavored
“American Dream,” in
which Lucinda weaves a
chilling, harrowing,
first-person narrative.
“Even though, yes, it’s
a great country that we’re
living in and we have a lot
of advantages, but at the
same time there are problems
that we need to address.”
Lucinda says of the tune.
In
addressing the recording
process of World Without
Tears, Lucinda enlisted
the services of Mark Howard,
who’s also gone behind the
boards for Bob Dylan and U2.
As he’s done with other
artists he’s recorded,
Mark convinced Lucinda that
going for a live approach
would lend the material more
of a warm, intimate touch.
“Everything was so
spontaneous and
emotional,” Lucinda points
out. “It was great. We
recorded the album in this
huge 1920s mansion right in
the middle of Los Angeles.
We recorded the way a live
band would record.” That
crackerjack band consists
of: Doug Pettibone on
guitar; Jim Christie on
drums, percussion and
keyboards; and Taras
Prodaniuk on bass.
One
of the spontaneous moments
Lucinda is referring to
happened during the
recording of the reflective,
world-weary title track.
“I showed it to the band
one time, and before we had
time to even think about
anything too much, we sat
down and did it,” Lucinda
recalls. “It was truly
magical.”
The
rest of the tracks on World
Without Tears. “These
songs really are ‘The
Fruits of My Labor,’ which
is the title of one of the
songs on the album,”
remarks an enthusiastic
Lucinda. “It shows all the
different musical influences
that have entered into my
life, but none of it was
conscious. It just
happened.”
That’s
what makes World Without
Tears so special. The
mark of a true artist is to
synthesize various musical
elements and then create
something that’s so
completely original. Lucinda
Williams has definitely
captured that spirit and
sense of artistic vibrancy.
|
