I split Lucinda Williams’ discography into four periods.

You have the early years, from 1979-1992, featuring straightforward folk pop/rock and her most radio-friendly tunes and vocals.

Then there’s the span from 1998-2003, which saw her stretch into more challenging song styles and favor raw emotion over more polished performances. 1998’s Car Wheels On a Gravel Road, still her masterpiece, bridges the first two phases.

Skipping ahead, from 2014 through the present day, you have the veteran blues woman, cranking out traditional riffs and seemingly focusing more on lyrics than melody, perhaps because her vocal range is now quite limited.

Today’s SOTD comes from the period between the second and fourth, a span from 2007 through 2011 when Williams hit a nice groove, releasing three albums of smart, sensitive folk rock. Working with a group of excellent backing musicians and in top vocal form, she set a high bar for accessible but cerebral adult rock music.

Today’s track comes from 2007’s West, probably my favorite of that trio of albums (the others are 2008’s Little Honey and 2011’s Blessed).