Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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42 of 45 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
From a recent convert..., January 23, 2002
Where have they been hiding Lucinda Williams all these years? Why aren't these songs - - her songs as sung by her - - standard hits?!? I am so grateful that I stumbled across VH1's Top 100 Women of Rock-n-Roll show last year, and as a lark, decided to watch it. My first thought was "how did they actually come up with 100 women in rock-n-roll?"...that half-hour episode happened to be the one that included Lucinda Williams. From what I heard, she sounded like something I'd like, so I made a mental note to check her out. I am kicking myself for waiting so long! You know how it is when you go cd shopping...you fill up your basket, and then you realize you're spending way too much so you put things back for another time. Well, I kept putting Lucinda back! I finally purchased this cd (with Xmas gift money, so I splurged, guilt-free!) and it has not left my cd player since! I would describe these songs as heartfelt, edgy, and very real, with stories we can all relate to. 'Side of the Road' has got to be one of the greatest songs I've ever heard...it really touched me by effectively articulating that need to occasionally identify myself separately, not only from my husband, but even from my children. This re-release also has a bonus track of a live version, and it is so beautiful! 'I Just Wanted to See You So Bad' is one of those songs that oozes that intensely wonderful, all consuming, sense of urgency, when a relationship is new; 'Like a Rose' is just heavenly; very Velvet Underground/Sunday Morning-ish; and, of course, the well-known 'Passionate Kisses', I think Lucinda's version is much more effective and exudes a deeper message than Mary Chapin Carpenter's, which I always found to be kind of grating and pop-ish. I find the cd as a whole to be delightfully under-produced, which gives it a very personal atmosphere, and the musicians in the band are obviously top-notch and "tight"! I don't know how you would categorize this music; folk/country/bluesy with a rockin' edge? This must be why we don't hear these songs on the usual radio stations, and it is a shame that a huge percentage of the general population will never be exposed to their magnificence. I am completely sold and am going to be scooping up all of Lucinda William's other recordings asap!
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15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
another gem from a brilliant songwriter, December 11, 2000
I bought Lucinda's Car Wheels On A Gravel Road CD because of the Steve Earle connection. I quickly realized she didn't need anyone's name to stand strong. I immediately went out and bought this self-titled release. She's a genius storyteller. She might even eclipse the mighty Dave Alvin when it comes to sincerity. It is impossible to hear any of her songs without being transported to the places that Lucinda is singing of. She'd be a... good writer even without the music. This CD isn't quite so polished as Car Wheels. It's properly stripped down. Jim Lauderdale, Pat Quinn & Gurf Morlix supply the perfect complimentary backup vocals. Morlix also supplies his usual master guitar work. These songs are so simple in theory that it amazes me still that so few can do it well. The Williams brand of love and pain and closure is refreshingly pure. There's nothing contrived about it. I seriously doubt that Lucinda Williams has it in her to produce a less than stunning record. Whatever you want to call it these days, folk/country/Americana, it's top of the line music by any standards. My CD only has the original 12 tracks, so I can't really comment on the live stuff. Still, I haven't heard enough bad songs from Lucinda to comprise an EP. Give her a try...you'll want more.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely essential, September 7, 2001
The world finally seems to have noticed Lucinda's greatness, and she's become a mild commercial success in addition to retaining her critical cachet. If you've not heard this album, seek it out. It's Lucinda's best, yet her most accessible.I'm not a huge country music fan, but I realize these songs were considered too rock for country radio & vice versa when they came out, but now that popular country music seems to have shifted the emphasis to "popular" I think there's a huge audience out there that hasn't discovered this great album (especially since it hasn't aged a bit). Lucinda never seems to work when she's writing her lyrics. On the first listen, they seem like they came off the top of her head. Once you've absorbed them, they start to exhibit a wonderful poetry. They evoke the subject matter (usually relationships in a state of shambles or ecstacy) amazingly well. She's one of our best lyricsts, and is obsessed with production, so the album glimmers with quality. The resigned ballad "Side Of The Road" is the album's most obvious masterpiece, since it manages to spin a complex emotional tale of wanderlust while never losing its verse/chorus catchiness. Still, this is an album loaded with gems. "I Just Wanted To See You So Bad" is the rollicking country precursor to Cyndi Lauper's "I Drove All Night". "The Night's Too Long" precedes the Dixie Chicks' country tune as female empowerment anthem style by a decade, but is smart enough not to suggest that an empowered woman is above a night of fun with the right man. "Crescent City" is the most fun track on the album; a slice of down home nostalgia that doesn't make you feel guilty for loving its simplicity. "Big Red Sun Blues" contains one my favorite of all Lucinda lyrics: ("Sun in hanging in the sky / Sinking low, and so am I.") it's simple, metaphysical, beautiful, and packed with feeling. But that's what I love most about Lucinda's lyrical style... as she narrates, we see her as a constant observer. The world she examines melds itself to her state of mind. Lucinda, even when at her most depressed, tells us of the beauty she sees. There's nothing that can be ignored in her music. This is an album, not just a collection of singles... and its the best in a career filled with best albums.
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Lucinda Williams shares her favorite music with Amazon customers. See all artists' picks on our Music You Should Hear page.
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