Lucinda Williams

“I found the love I’ve been looking for,” Lucinda Williams cries out on her newest album, “Little Honey.” And it shows. In the 10 albums she has released in the past 30 years—each one powerful in its own right—her country style has incorporated blues, rock, and folk elements, but never more so than on this record. As this album builds on the last nine, Williams demonstrates unprecedented maturity, unifying the contrasting elements of her eclectic style.

Williams, who has been rocking out since the 70s, has never fully committed to any one musical genre, refusing to be pegged as just a folk or country singer-songwriter. But “Little Honey” features a better blend of content than most of her discography, incorporating newfound joyful ideas and less petty subjects. Her famously raspy voice, stronger than ever on this album, dominates each song, be it a rocking tune or a sweet ballad.

Right from the start, “Real Love” features with an exciting guitar riff, reminiscent of the good old days of country music. Atypically celebrating the joys of “real love,” Williams excels in getting our hearts pumping and ready for the rest of the exciting tracks on the album. This contrasts with her 2007 release “West,” where she sings primarily of unrequited love and other hardships. In “Honey Bee,” another electrifying track, Williams is no sweetheart; “Now I’ve got your honey all over my tummy,” she sings. Apparently, she is not afraid to show us her dirty kind of loving.

Williams also gives us some straight-up blues songs like “Tears of Joy” and “Heaven Blues,” as well as some down-home country with “Well Well Well.” This track displays Williams’s husky voice in all its glory, with Charles Louvin on back-up vocals. In between the two genres stands “Jailhouse Tears,” a fantastic duet with Elvis Costello, during which they engage in a comic sing-song dialogue about their turbulent love. “I just went to the corner to get a cold six-pack,” Costello says. Williams replies with a rasp: “You’re a drunk, you’re a stoner, you never came back.”

Yet Williams’ penchant for composing meaningful and often melancholic music is in no way diminished. She sings tenderly on slower, more mellow songs like “Knowing” and “Plan to Marry,” demonstrating her talent to the fullest extent. The latter, a charming and stripped-down acoustic song, would be more appropriate in a coffeehouse in mid-winter than on this otherwise orchestrated country album. In the heartbreaking “If Wishes Were Horses,” she begs for forgiveness, crying her heart out in a wailing voice that elicits shivers.

“Rarity,” the longest song on the album, is depressing and painfully slow. Williams sings, “So you’re never going to be a big star,” which works well with album closer—and AC/DC cover—“It’s a Long Way to the Top.” Of course, the cover is bluesified, and the result is a chill yet upbeat tune worthy of a good pout of the lips and a bob of the head. Whether these last few songs are also autobiographical or not is debatable, but there is no doubt they’re a delightful listen.

“Little Honey” is a wonderful addition to Lucinda Williams’ discography. After 30 years in the business and three Grammys under her belt, she’s still got it. In fact, she’s got it more than ever. Her songs are more meaningful yet stay more upbeat than usual. The woman grows on you, and after a few listens, you’ll find that “real love” she’s talking about.