Williams has garnered considerable critical acclaim but her commercial success has been moderate. She has a reputation as a perfectionist and as a slow worker when it comes to recording; six years passed between the release of her second and third albums. However, she frequently makes guest appearances on other artists' albums and contributes to compilations and soundtracks. She has recorded with Elvis Costello, Nanci Griffith, John Prine, Leftover Salmon, and Steve Earle, among others. She has also opened concerts for artists such as Neil Young.
Early life
Williams was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana, the daughter of poet and literature professor Miller Williams. Her father worked as a visiting professor in Mexico and Chile as well as different parts of the American South, before settling at the University of Arkansas. His daughter showed an affinity for music at an early age, and was playing guitar at 12.
Career
By her early 20s, Williams was playing publicly in Austin, Texas and Houston, Texas, concentrating on a folk-rock-country blend. She moved to Jackson, Mississippi, in 1978 to record her first album, for Smithsonian/Folkways Records. Titled Ramblin', it was a collection of country and blues covers. She followed it up in 1980 with Happy Woman Blues, which consisted of her own material. Neither album received much attention.
In the 1980s Williams moved to Los Angeles, California (before finally settling in Nashville, TN), where -- performing both backed by a rock band and in acoustic settings -- she developed a following and a critical reputation. Nevertheless, it was not until 1988 that Rough Trade Records released the self-titled Lucinda Williams. The single "Changed the Locks", about a broken relationship, received radio play around the country and gained fans among music insiders, including Tom Petty, who would later cover the song.
Its follow-up, Sweet Old World (Chameleon, 1992), was a melancholy album dealing with themes of suicide and death. Williams's biggest success during the early '90s was as a songwriter. Mary Chapin Carpenter recorded a cover of "Passionate Kisses" (from Lucinda Williams) in 1992, and the song became a smash country hit for which Williams received the Grammy Award for Best Country Song in 1994.
Williams had garnered considerable critical acclaim, but her commercial success was moderate. Emmylou Harris said of Williams, "She is an example of the best of what country at least says it is. But, for some reason, she's completely out of the loop. And I feel strongly that that's country music's loss."
Williams also gained a reputation as a perfectionist and slow worker when it came to recording; six years would pass before her next album release, though she appeared as a guest on other artists' albums and contributed to several tribute compilations during this period.
The long-awaited release, 1998's Car Wheels on a Gravel Road was Williams' breakthrough to the mainstream. Containing the single "Still I Long for Your Kiss" from the Robert Redford film The Horse Whisperer, the album received wide critical notice and soon went gold. It received a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album. She toured with Bob Dylan and on her own in support of the album.
Williams followed up the success of Car Wheels with Essence (2001). This release featured a less produced, more stripped-down approach both musically and lyrically, and moved Williams further from the country music establishment while winning fans in the alternative music world. She won the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Female Rock performance for the single "Get Right With God", an atypically uptempo gospel-rock tune from the otherwise rather low-key release. The title track was co-written and co-recorded with alternative country musician Ryan Adams.
Her seventh album, World Without Tears, was released in 2003. A musically adventurous though lyrically downbeat album, this release found Williams experimenting with talking blues stylings and electric blues.
In 2006, Lucinda recorded a version of the John Hartford classic "Gentle On My Mind," which played over the closing credits of the Will Ferrell filmTalladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby
Williams was a guest vocalist on the song "Factory Girls" from Irish punk-folk band Flogging Molly's 2004 album, "Within a Mile of Home", and appeared on Elvis Costello's The Delivery Man. She duetted with Steve Earle on the song "You're Still Standin' There" from his album I Feel Alright from 1996.
Williams released the album "West" on February 13, 2007, to mostly good reviews. The material is highly personal, chronicling the death of her mother and the breakup of a turbulent relationship.
Lucinda released her ninth studio album, "Little Honey", on October 14th.
Can't Let Go
Lucinda Williams Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't make me sit all alone and cry
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
I'm like a fish out of water
A cat in a tree
You don't even want to talk to me
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
Says he's sorry then he pulls me out
I got a big chain around my neck
And I'm broken down like a train wreck
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
See I got a candle and it burns so bright
In my window every night
Well it's over I know but I can't let go
You don't like to see me standing around
Feel like I been shot and didn't fall down
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
He won't take me back when I come around
Says he's sorry then he pulls me out
I got a big chain around my neck
And I'm broken down like a train wreck
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
Turn off trouble like you turn off a light
Went off and left me it just ain't right
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
Round every corner something I see
Bring me right back how it used to be
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
He won't take me back when I come around
Says he's sorry then he pulls me out
I got a big chain around my neck
And I'm broken down like a train wreck
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
He won't take me back when I come around
Says he's sorry then he pulls me out
I got a big chain around my neck
And I'm broken down like a train wreck
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
It's over I know it but I can't let go
It's over I know it but I can't let go
It's over I know it but I can't let go
"Can't Let Go" by Lucinda Williams is a song about the heartbreaking feeling of being unable to let go of a relationship despite knowing it's over. The first verse begins with the singer pleading with her lover not to make her "sit all alone and cry," but she knows that the relationship is finished. However, she cannot release the emotional hold her lover has on her, and she feels out of place, like a fish out of water or a cat in a tree.
The singer is aware that her lover is not interested in talking to her and will not take her back when she comes around. Although he apologizes when he sees her, she knows that he doesn't really mean it. She feels trapped in the emotional turmoil of the relationship, represented by the "big chain around my neck" that is weighing her down like a "train wreck," and she cannot break free.
The final verse describes the singer's inability to move on from her lover. She has tried to "turn off trouble," but she cannot forget the happiness they once shared. Everywhere she turns, she is reminded of the good times they had together, which prevents her from moving on. Although she knows that their relationship is over and tells herself "It's over I know it," she cannot let go emotionally.
Line by Line Meaning
Told my baby one more time
I've already had to tell my significant other not to leave me feeling abandoned and helpless.
Don't make me sit all alone and cry
I don't want to find myself sitting and crying by my lonesome again.
Well it's over I know it but I can't let go
I recognize that the relationship is finished, but I'm having a hard time moving on.
I'm like a fish out of water
I feel unable to breathe or survive without the support of my past love.
A cat in a tree
I feel helpless and stuck, much like a cat stuck in the branches of a tree.
You don't even want to talk to me
My partner has cut off all communication with me.
He won't take me back when I come around
Even when I try to reconcile, my partner refuses to accept me back.
Says he's sorry then he pulls me out
My partner apologizes but retracts that apology later.
I got a big chain around my neck
I feel weighed down by the emotional burden of the failed relationship.
And I'm broken down like a train wreck
My emotional state is completely shattered and chaotic.
See I got a candle and it burns so bright
I hold on to the hope that the relationship can be reignited at any time.
In my window every night
I keep the candle burning in my window every night as a symbol of my unending desire for the relationship to be reignited.
You don't like to see me standing around
My partner seems to have no interest in me anymore, regardless of my attempts to be present and involved.
Feel like I been shot and didn't fall down
The pain of being rejected by my partner feels like a gunshot wound that I cannot recover from.
Turn off trouble like you turn off a light
My partner seems to be able to turn off our problems and emotions like a light switch, whereas I am unable to do so.
Went off and left me it just ain't right
My partner left without explanation or resolution, which feels wrong and unjust to me.
Round every corner something I see
Everywhere I go, I am reminded of my past love and the memories we shared.
Bring me right back how it used to be
These reminders often transport me back to the beginning of the relationship, when things were good and we were happy.
It's over I know it but I can't let go
Despite understanding that the relationship is over, I cannot seem to move on and let go of my past love.
Lyrics Β© BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sentric Music, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Randall Weeks
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@GirlNamedNino
Told you, baby, one more time
Don't make me sit all alone and cry
Well, it's over I, know it but I can't let go
I'm like a fish out of water, a cat in a tree
You don't even want to talk to me
Well, it's over, I know it but I can't let go
He won't take me back when I come around
Says he's sorry then he pulls me out
I got a big chain around my neck
And I'm broken down like a train wreck
Well, it's over, I know it but I can't let go
See I got a candle and it burns so bright
In my window every night
Well, it's over, I know it but I can't let go
You don't like to see me standin' around
Feel like I been shot and didn't fall down
Well, it's over, I know it but I can't let go
He won't take me back when I come around
Says he's sorry then he pulls me out
I got a big chain around my neck
And I'm broken down like a train wreck
Well, it's over, I know it but I can't let go
Turn off the trouble like you turn off a light
Went off and left me, it just ain't right
Well, it's over, I know it but I can't let go
Around every corner, something I see
Brings me right back how it used to be
Well, it's over, I know it but I can't let go
He won't take me back when I come around
Says he's sorry then he pulls me out
I got a big chain around my neck
And I'm broken down like a train wreck
Well, it's over, I know it but I can't let go
He won't take me back when I come around
Says he's sorry then he pulls me out
I got a big chain around my neck
And I'm broken down like a train wreck
Well, it's over, I know it but I can't let go
It's over, I know it but I can't let go
It's over, I know it but I can't let go
It's over, I know it but I can't let go
@SergeCeyral
When Kenny Vaughan is backing you, you always fly on a magic carpet...
@CleanHead
and Jim Lauderdale singin with you never hurts...
@kevintaylor1012
Amen brother!π
@charlespeterson3798
Himself, Jim Lauderdale, mah favorite white boy..
@sirwinston2368
I noticed that. Dude is good!
@lindsayfoster685
Kenny is the real deal.
@donstand2195
Anyone who didn't love this doesn't appreciate music
@SunbearBluesBand
Apart from the fact that this is simply a great song ... the guitars are awesome here.
@andyreddekop991
Yeah, I love the energy in this performance!
@nicholasstephens1349
You can taste the piss and vinegar in the guitar, lyrics and Vocals. Itβs a Randy, Kenny and Lucinda cocktail that is impossible to dislike.