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.
Come On
Lucinda Williams Lyrics
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You don't even have a clue
All you did was make me blue
You didn't even make me, come on!
You're so self-involved
You're in some kind of fog
You're hung up on your hog
You think you're in hot demand
But you don't know where to put your hand
Let me tell you where you stand
You didn't even make me, come on!
Dude you're so fire
Shut up, I'm not inspired
All I'm feeling now is tired
You didn't even make me, come on!
You weren't even worth it
I'm sorry I ever flirted
The effort wasn't even concerted
You didn't even make me, come on!
All you do is talk the talk
You can't back it up with your walk
You can't light my fire, so fuck off
You didn't even make me, come on!
The lyrics of Lucinda Williams's song "Come On in" are a clear message to an ex-lover who the singer has moved on from. The song expresses a feeling of being over the relationship and the ex-partner, calling him out on his selfishness and lack of ability to please her. The opening lines show that the singer is no longer interested in the ex-lover and that she has emotionally moved on from the relationship. She knows that he is unaware of this because he did not truly care for her feelings.
The second and third verses reflect the singer's frustration, calling the ex-partner out on his self-absorbed behavior and inability to be a good partner in the relationship. The singer conveys that the ex is too wrapped up in his own interests (his hog) and is unaware of how to be with a partner in a mutually satisfying way, despite his over-confidence.
The fourth and fifth verses allow the singer to express her annoyance with the ex-partner's behavior, calling him out on his inadequacy as a lover. The singer feels like he is trying to impress her with his words and confidence, but he falls short in actually delivering in the relationship. The final lines of the song communicate that the singer is completely over the ex-partner and that she sees no reason to be with him in any capacity.
Line by Line Meaning
Dude I'm so over you
I have moved on from you completely
You don't even have a clue
You are clueless because you don't realize I have moved on from you
All you did was make me blue
You only caused me sadness and melancholy
You didn't even make me, come on!
You failed to sexually satisfy me
You're so self-involved
You are overly preoccupied with yourself
You're in some kind of fog
You are confused and lost
You're hung up on your hog
You are obsessed with your motorcycle
You didn't even make me, come on!
You did not sexually satisfy me
You think you're in hot demand
You believe that you are highly desirable
But you don't know where to put your hand
You lack sexual prowess
Let me tell you where you stand
Let me inform you of your position
You didn't even make me, come on!
You were unable to sexually satisfy me
Dude you're so fire
You think you are amazing
Shut up, I'm not inspired
I am not impressed by you
All I'm feeling now is tired
I am fatigued and worn out
You didn't even make me, come on!
You were unable to sexually satisfy me
You weren't even worth it
You were not worth my time or effort
I'm sorry I ever flirted
I regret flirting with you
The effort wasn't even concerted
I did not try very hard
You didn't even make me, come on!
You failed to sexually satisfy me
All you do is talk the talk
You only talk about what you can supposedly do
You can't back it up with your walk
You cannot deliver on your promises
You can't light my fire, so fuck off
You cannot sexually arouse me, so go away
You didn't even make me, come on!
You were unable to sexually satisfy me
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: K. BLAKE, J. BUSH, KEN IFILL, L. JOHNSON, S. PRICE, ERNESTO SHAW, T. WILLIAMS, D. YATES
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind