Lucinda Williams

Little Honey (Lost Highway)

By Noreen Sobczyk
Published: October 27th, 2008 | 9:00am

You have to be happy for 55-year-old kick-ass troubadour Lucinda Williams when she sings about the man “behind an electric guitar“ with whom she fell in love on single, “Real Love”; it’s undoubtedly an “ear worm” that you’ll find yourself humming hours later. Unfortunately — to these ears — it sounds a bit too much like a Southern-fried rock song from the '70s, and the addition of backing vocals by Susanna Hoffs and Matthew Sweet seems an underused afterthought. “Plan To Marry” is a smooth ode to love, extolling its virtues in a world where little else seems worth the struggle. “Tears Of Joy” is modern blues á la latter day Clapton, and “Knowing” is an easy listening love song with guitar parts that twist, tumble, and land softly like ringlets of hair let down in an intimate moment. The irony here is these love songs are less successful than the rest of Little Honey.

“Circles and X’s” is a return to classic form. The simple structure of homespun “Well Well Well” provides a spotlight for Williams’ clever turn of phrase — which she applies again to the old adage on “If Wishes Were Horses.” The female counterpart to Slim Harpo’s “King Bee,” entitled “Honey Bee,” is a charming, rollicking rocker; while “Little Rock Star,” in opposition, is a moving open letter to an amalgamation of modern music and pop culture celebrities who seem to be losing the plot — the backing vocals soar and the music crescendos while the percussion punctuates the point. Similar in tone, “Rarity” is an expression of respect and appreciation for a musician who never made it big. This song makes use of horns (new to Williams) and they accent beautifully, but are oddly reminiscent of Beck’s “Frontin’ On Debra"; the lyrics are protective and appreciative of their subject, while scathing toward the music industry. This song — if none prior to this album — make apparent the poetic genealogy inherited from Williams' father.

The less-is-more ethic returns for the duet “Jailhouse Tears” where the iconic voice of Elvis Costello plays the jailed jerk lover of Williams — they exchange excuses and barbs respectively as they weave a tale in the tradition of a classic country duet. “Heaven Blues” is a comfortable amalgamation of blues, mountain music, spiritual, and a traditional chain gang song, complete with the sound of railroad spikes. Williams blends these genres seamlessly, showing us that working within the framework of a myriad of genres that differ — but have tradition in common — she is almost unparalleled by her contemporaries. So effective is Williams’ well-traveled voice and experienced but earnest spirit that she even makes the album’s closer — a cover of AC/DC’s “It's A Long Way To The Top” — sound profound. She is the matriarch winking knowingly as she sings to her audience, male counterparts and musical ladies-in-waiting.

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