Lucinda Williams' West

West is the latest album from Lucinda Williams. It arrives on the heels of Patty Griffin's latest, Children Running Through. Both artists share many of the same fans, and both have inhabited the same musical territory, so a comparison between them isn't out of the question. I'm happy to heap plenty of praise on the latter, which is one of the strongest releases of the year; but I'll take this opportunity to talk about the former, and whether or not I believe it stacks up.

I own legitimate hard copies of every Lucinda Williams CD, with the exception of her first album of covers, Ramblin', of which I have a digital copy. In light of this, you might safely infer that I think there's much more to her than her latest albums. In fact, it was "I Just Wanted to See You So Bad," the first track off of her self-titled album--and the first song of hers that I heard--that got me hooked. Essence and World Without Tears brought her to the attention of the NPR-listening indie rockers, and they brought her plenty of rave reviews, but neither was her best album, not by a long shot. World Without Tears was praised as such. And like Bob Dylan's Love And Theft, it was good: solid A-/B+ work, turned in on a tight deadline; but it wasn't the best work of someone who's already an A student. Ask most of her fans these days, though, and you might get an argument here.

Regardless, few songwriters could compete, album for album, with her string of original work beginning with Happy Woman Blues and culminating in one of the greatest albums ever made, Car Wheels On A Gravel Road. Only some of the greatest songwriters can challenge her here, let alone beat her: Bob Dylan and Townes Van Zandt could do it, but few others. So, Essence and World Without Tears, while good, can't help but lose a few marks when graded on the curve set by Williams' own discography.

Amid all of this, then, where does West sit? Well, World Without Tears received near-universal critical acclaim. West will not; and, indeed, has not. It is more divisive, partly because it's similar stylistically to her later work, and also because, sooner or later, critically-lauded artists face inevitable backlashes. But West is also, I think, a bit better than World Without Tears; accordingly, I am not surprised to see some of the more serious (as opposed to trendy) reviewers lavish praise upon it. I don't think it's her best work, but it's likely the best of her last three albums.

Musically, Williams is known for her voice, sometimes rough around the edges, but also remarkably expressive and unmistakably American. Against this, she juxtaposes a unique blend of country, folk, rock, and blues styles. If folk and country won out on her work up to Car Wheels, sounding most like Steve Earle's '90s work, adult alternative rock won out afterward. West continues this. But there are a few rockers, which dial down the softer pop sound while mixing in some harder-edged stuff, venturing deeper into blues stylings. "Come On"--which is about her ex-lover's inability to make her...well, come-- couldn't be more jagged, either lyrically or musically. Those, like me, who grew tired with the day-at-the-beach feel of some of the post-Car Wheels material will feel a bit more at home with this one.

I won't say too much about the lyrics. "Learning How To Live" is one of her weakest songs in this (but not only this) respect. But others, like "Fancy Funeral," are as touching as anything she's ever done. "Words" is another highlight; it serves as a nice statement of Lucinda Williams' station as a great American songwriter. Anyway, she's a wonderful writer, whose '90s work earned her the title of America's Greatest Songwriter from Time Magazine, so it's worth giving her a look if you haven't already. Her myspace page features a few songs from her latest album.

Getting back to the start of this post, is West better than Patty Griffin's Children Running Through? The answer is: Probably not. If I could get only one of the two, I would choose Children. Lucinda Williams has done better, more memorable work with her more rootsy country-folk records. But West is a good record, on a par with, or better than, her last two. Fans looking for another masterpiece will be disappointed. But those looking for some more good songs should be satisfied. If this isn't the best record of the year, it is a welcome and worthy release all the same.