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.
Unsuffer Me
Lucinda Williams Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And set me free
Come fill me up
With ecstasy
Surround my heartbeat
With your fingertips
Unbound my feet
Come into my world
Of loneliness
And wickedness
And bitterness
Unlock my love
Unsuffer me
Take away the pain
Unbruise, unbloody
Wash away the stain
Anoint my head
With your sweet kiss
My joy is dead
I long for bliss
I long for knowledge
Whispered in my ear
Undo my logic
Undo my fear
Unsuffer me
Unlock my love
And set me free
Come fill me up
With ecstasy
Unsuffer me
Take away the pain
Unbruise, unbloody
Wash away the stain
Surround my heartbeat
With your fingertips
Unbound my feet
Untie my wrists
Come into my world
Of loneliness
And wickedness
And bitterness
Anoint my head
With your sweet kiss
My joy is dead
I long for bliss
I long for knowledge
Whispered in my ear
Undo my logic
Undo my fear
Unsuffer me
"Unsuffer Me" is a deeply emotional and intimate song by Lucinda Williams. The song speaks about the need to be loved, the desire to break free from the chains of pain, and the longing for passion and joy. The lyrics are a plea to a lover to unlock the singer's heart, to fill her with ecstasy, and to take away her pain. The use of metaphors and imagery throughout the lyrics emphasizes the depth of emotions and the intensity of desire.
The lyrics express the singer's desire to be free from the darkness that has consumed her, to be released from the pain and trauma that have left a stain on her soul. This is conveyed through the references to "unlock my love," "unbound my feet," and "untie my wrists." The singer is asking her lover to help her understand the world of loneliness, bitterness, and wickedness that she has been living in, and to show her the path to happiness and knowledge. The repetition of "unsuffer me" throughout the song emphasizes the singer's plea for a release from the pain that has been haunting her.
Overall, "Unsuffer Me" is a song of yearning, freedom, and healing. It expresses the depth of human emotions and desires, and the need for connection with someone who can help to heal our wounds and set us free from the suffering we experience in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Unlock my love
Open up my heart and let me love freely
And set me free
Release me from my emotional restraint
Come fill me up
With ecstasy
Give me the ultimate pleasure
Surround my heartbeat
With your fingertips
Embrace me with your tender touch
Unbound my feet
Untie my wrists
Free me from any physical bondage
Come into my world
Of loneliness
And wickedness
And bitterness
Enter my troubled life and make it better
Unsuffer me
Take away my pain and make me happy
Take away the pain
Unbruise, unbloody
Wash away the stain
Cure me from any harm and wash away any guilt
Anoint my head
With your sweet kiss
Bless me with your love
My joy is dead
I long for bliss
I am deeply unhappy and seeking happiness
I long for knowledge
Whispered in my ear
Undo my logic
Undo my fear
I want to be enlightened, to think and feel differently
Unlock my love
And set me free
Come fill me up
With ecstasy
Reiterate the desire to love, to be free, and to enjoy the pleasure
Surround my heartbeat
With your fingertips
Unbound my feet
Untie my wrists
Repeat the surreal image of being held and set free by a lover
Come into my world
Of loneliness
And wickedness
And bitterness
Reiterate the invitation to share the life
Anoint my head
With your sweet kiss
My joy is dead
I long for bliss
Restate the need for love and happiness
I long for knowledge
Whispered in my ear
Undo my logic
Undo my fear
Repeat the aspiration to transcend thought and emotion
Unsuffer me
Repeat the plea to alleviate difficulties and make things better
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: LUCINDA WILLIAMS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
AprilJasper
This song is a masterpiece.
Julia Miller
🖤 MASTERPIECE 🖤
Colin Williams
The more distortion, the better.this woman rocks and I have been listening to her for....Lord knows how long.as a person of color who listens to of lot of diversity of music,she is the coolest!!
windy miller
I can feel her pain and I'm loving it! Superb track!
Naamah
I am into heavy black metal but Lucinda Williams is magickal. Just saying.
Lana Kruczynski
Same here
The New Plague Band
LUCIFERIA AETERNUS11218 ive been playing blackened death metal for 25 years. Lucinda williams is one of my favorite song writers. The later record's arent quite as powerful as her first 5 records, but its still great. Essence is one hell of a deep and painful record ro me. I paid tribute to bus to baton rouge in one of my own songs. SDBM hasnt got shit on the places LW's words can take you
takearight
Bought this album ten yrs ago.. fascinating genius music.First song I ever heard of hers was “righteously”..
Just Boo
Adult rock at its best.
comfortabley glum
Keep this in your set list Lucinda...gonna see you in a few weeks