The object of cultish adoration for years, singer/songwriter Lucinda Williams is universally hailed as a major talent by both critics and fellow musicians, but it took time for her to parlay that into attention from the general public. Part of the reason was her legendary perfectionism: Williams released records infrequently, yet her attention to detail and adherence to her vision were what helped build her reputation. When Williams is at her best, even her simplest songs are rich in detail, from her poetic imagery to her flawed, conflicted characters. Her singing voice developed into an evocative instrument that seemed entirely appropriate to her material. So if some critics described Williams as “the female Bob Dylan,” they may have been oversimplifying things, but the parallels were certainly too strong to ignore. Her first album, Ramblin’, was released in 1979, followed up by 1980’s Happy Woman Blues. The simply titled Lucinda Williams was released in 1988, and it received glowing reviews. It would be four years before Williams completed he follow-up, Sweet Old World, in 1992. The record won rave reviews once again, and Williams toured Australia with Rosanne Cash and Mary Chapin Carpenter. On that tour, Carpenter decided to record “Passionate Kisses,” and it shot into the country Top Five in 1993 and won its writer a Grammy for Country Song of the Year. In 1998, she finally released Car Wheels on a Gravel Road. The album won universal acclaim, making many critics’ year-end Top Ten lists. It also won Williams a Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album and became her first to go gold. Williams delivered her next album, Essence, in 2001 and was greeted with rapturous reviews. The track, “Get Right with God,” won Williams her third Grammy, which further consolidated her credibility as a singer, not just a songwriter. Williams returned in 2003 with World Without Tears, which became her highest-charting effort to date when it debuted in the Top 20. 2005 saw the release of two live recordings, one (Live @ the Fillmore) for Lost Highway and the other (Live from Austin, TX) for New West. West arrived in 2007. More recently, she released The Ghosts of Highway 20 in 2016. Lucinda Williams continues to wow audiences around the world with her great talent.
