A sullen Lucinda Williams sulked through a sodden set Wednesday at the Botanic Gardens. Photos by Lewis Cooper.
Angered by dampened sound at the neighborhood venue, missed her typically charming spark in an overwhelmingly mellow display at on Wednesday. Touring in support of her 10th album, “Little Honey,” the venerable singer-songwriter shuffled along a decidedly melancholy path, barely packing any punch.
Slowing her mighty backing band, Buick 6, to a grinding crawl, Williams dribbled out her brand of twangy, often achingly mournful alt-country in carefully meted, three-minute doses. A dash of rock-a-billy got the show started, but not enough to deliver any flavor. The indignant “People Talkin’” off her 2003 “World Without Tears” — with the line “living is full of misery and pain” — reverted Williams back to the ragged, raspy suffering ways that had long lent the sorrowful singer her gravitas.
That reversion is a regression. Recently married and cemented in her legendary status, the 56-year-old Williams’ latest album is an upbeat, rock-n-roll sound and a marked departure from her typically heavy-hearted narrative. Well, Wednesday brought back her blues. Maybe it was the rain. “Steal Your Love” was flat. The breaking-up hurts ballad “Over Time,” which she recorded once with Willie Nelson in a mean, woeful rendition, was even more dormant despite the admirable efforts of Buick 6’s Chet Lyster on pedal steel and David Sutton on stand-up bass.
Buick 6 seemed ready to head back to the honky-tonk all night long and ditch the prima donna fronting their tight, edgy band. The four-top opened the show with a delicious instrumental set that included a rambling, dazzling sample of several Led Zeppelin tunes. Lyster and guitarist Eric Schermeuhorn absolutely shred together with a unified sound that mirrors any of the great blues partnerships of history.
Williams tried to steer away from the ambling country, but “Blue” off her utterly beautiful 2001 “Essence” album, was so tediously mellow, she failed to amble far enough. Her lugubrious “Drunken Angel” and rending “Pineola,” a shattering story of a friend’s suicide, saw Williams almost conjure some emotion.
Her “Real Love,” a celebratory cut off her latest release that details her new-found romantic giddiness, was brief and punk-esque but quickly devolved as Williams went on a brief tirade about the stage’s sound, wondering why bands are even invited to the Botanic Gardens if they have to keep such a tight rein on their sound. “Itap like trying to run with a sprained ankle” she whimpered.
Shaking off her funk, her growling “Honey Bee” and soul-centric “Joy” worked to elevate the crowd, but then, alas, the rain came heavy and her attempt to save the show stumbled.
The first offering of her encore, she made sure to enunciate, was a traditional blues song called “Disgusted.” The sentiment was likely shared as hundreds began packing up their Botanic Garden picnic baskets and scurrying. Sadly for them, the next two songs revived the Williams we adore.
A sensual and sultry “Righteously” was saucy enough to encourage all kinds of wine-fueled PDA as the rain slowed to a mist and Lyster and Schermeuhorn traded stirring riffs. Then came the kicker: a stellar rendition of AC/DC’s “Itap a Long Way to the Top” with Williams gathering all her might for the most heartfelt line of the night: “You think itap easy doing one night stands in a rock-and-roll band?”
Jason Blevins is a strange dancer, but that has never stopped him.
Lewis Cooper is a Denver freelance photographer and regular contributor to Reverb. See more of his work .
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