Never one to rush, Williams took another six years before releasing her next album, Car Wheels on a Gravel Road. The long wait, and the story behind it, became another chapter in Williams’ story… she was derided as a control freak, her perfectionism painted in the worst possible light.
But it’s hard to argue with the results. Car Wheels was hailed as a masterpiece, winning Williams her first Grammy and topping countless year-end and decade-end top ten lists. It also was her first album to go gold (and possibly her last, though I’m not sure about that).
Williams waited four years before releasing her next album, 1992’s Sweet Old World. It’s similar in sound to her self-titled album, though it’s thematically much darker.
The YouTube availability of Lucinda Williams’ music is a mixed bag. Her whole early career is there for the taking, as well as her most recent album. But there’s a two-album stretch of songs that is blocked at every turn. I mention this because I’m straying a bit from the one album per day pattern in order to fill in those gaps.
It was eight years before Lucinda Williams put out another album. Eight years! Whether that was due to choice or bad luck, I don’t know, but when she finally did release her follow-up to Happy Woman Blues, it was well worth the wait.
This week’s featured artist is the great Lucinda Williams, a talented singer-songwriter who has made her mark in multiple genres, from folk to country, rock to (sort of) rap.
Meet Me In Montauk 