Lucinda Williams

Having already reduced the wait between albums — after a six-year gap between 1992’s Sweet Old World and her Grammy-winning Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, she returned with Essence a mere three years later — singer/songwriter Lucinda Williams now borders on prolific. She’s written nearly a dozen songs for her seventh solo album, due later in 2002. Her voice remains as passionate as it was on her 1979 debut, Ramblin’ on My Mind, which included her gritty interpretations of Memphis Minnie and Robert Johnson tunes. She slides from gravelly growls to steely reserve, moving as easily as a bottleneck against guitar strings. Even more impressive are her lyrics, which have evolved from serviceable storytelling to frighteningly frank autobiographical works. Touring with only a four-member backing band and confining herself to midsized venues, Williams, still burning with unfailing intensity, remains in touch with her scrappy small-club origins. Listening to her now, you’d think she never left.