#98 Lucinda Williams, 'Car Wheels on a Gravel Road' (1998)

Previously #305

‘Car Wheels On A Gravel Road’ was the fifth release for Lucinda Williams, an artist who’s a notoriously slow worker. Between this and her second album, for example, was 6, 4 and 8 years respectively. This was due to her perfectionism, which often became a bone of contention between her and her collaborators. Steve Earle, who contributed guitar, vocals and production to the record had in fact said that it was "the least amount of fun [he] had working on a record." She also butted heads with previous long-time producer, Gurf Morlix, so much so that they ended their partnership on this project. Many moments on this record reminded me of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, which would come as no surprise because ultimately, ‘Car Wheels On A Gravel Road’ was produced by Roy Bittan, aka The Professor, the pianist, organist, synth and accordion player from the E Street Band.

The long wait was worth it as this collection of songs is near perfect. It’s a journey through Southern USA, telling stories of its people as we travel along dusty gravel roads of tales. Other than ‘Concrete and Barbed Wire,’ which I didn’t care much for, each track is better than preceding one. Her voice is gritty, the guitar playing is top notch and the songs excellent. Highlights for me were the title track, ‘Can’t Let Go,’ ‘Joy’ and ‘Right In Time’ (Bittan’s organs really give the song life). The critically acclaimed album was Williams’ first to go gold.

#rs500albums