Blessed (Lucinda Williams album)
Blessed is the 10th studio album by American singer-songwriter Lucinda Williams, released on March 1, 2011, by Lost Highway Records. The album debuted at No. 15 on the Billboard 200.[1]
| Blessed | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 1, 2011 | |||
| Studio | Capitol Studios, Los Angeles | |||
| Genre | Americana, folk rock, alternative country, heartland rock | |||
| Label | Lost Highway | |||
| Producer | Don Was, Eric Liljestrand, Tom Overby | |||
| Lucinda Williams chronology | ||||
| ||||
A critical and commercial success, the album earned Williams a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Americana Album in 2012. The track "Kiss Like Your Kiss" originally appeared in the HBO series True Blood, and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media the previous year.
Music and lyrics
The album features guest appearances by Elvis Costello and Matthew Sweet.[2] "Buttercup" was released to radio and digital outlets as the first single.
Critical reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 7.4⁄10[3] |
| Metacritic | 79/100[4] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [5] |
| Los Angeles Times | [6] |
| Robert Christgau | B+[7] |
| Spin | [8] |
Blessed was met with widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 79, based on 24 reviews.[4] AllMusic wrote "Blessed is Williams' most focused recording since World Without Tears; it stands with it and her 1988 self-titled Rough Trade as one of her finest recordings to date. Its shift in lyric focus is amplified by the care and detail in the album's production and crackling energy. By deliberately shifting to a harder-edged roots rock sonic palette, Blessed moves Williams music down the road from the dead-end Americana ghetto without compromising her qualities as a songwriter or performer".[9] The Los Angeles Times called it "one of the best albums she’s ever released".[6]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Lucinda Williams.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Buttercup" | 3:50 |
| 2. | "I Don't Know How You're Livin'" | 5:00 |
| 3. | "Copenhagen" | 4:30 |
| 4. | "Born to Be Loved" | 4:38 |
| 5. | "Seeing Black" | 5:14 |
| 6. | "Soldier's Song" | 6:09 |
| 7. | "Blessed" | 5:48 |
| 8. | "Sweet Love" | 3:33 |
| 9. | "Ugly Truth" | 4:22 |
| 10. | "Convince Me" | 5:45 |
| 11. | "Awakening" | 6:25 |
| 12. | "Kiss Like Your Kiss" | 3:51 |
| Total length: | 59:05 | |
Blessed deluxe version
All tracks are written by Lucinda Williams.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Buttercup" | 3:50 |
| 2. | "I Don't Know How You're Livin'" | 5:00 |
| 3. | "Copenhagen" | 4:30 |
| 4. | "Born to Be Loved" | 4:38 |
| 5. | "Seeing Black" | 5:14 |
| 6. | "Soldier's Song" | 6:09 |
| 7. | "Blessed" | 5:48 |
| 8. | "Sweet Love" | 3:33 |
| 9. | "Ugly Truth" | 4:22 |
| 10. | "Convince Me" | 5:45 |
| 11. | "Awakening" | 6:25 |
| 12. | "Kiss Like Your Kiss" | 3:51 |
| Total length: | 59:05 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Buttercup" | 4:01 |
| 2. | "I Don't Know How You're Livin'" | 5:12 |
| 3. | "Copenhagen" | 3:27 |
| 4. | "Born To Be Loved" | 3:06 |
| 5. | "Seeing Black" | 3:44 |
| 6. | "Soldier's Song" | 5:37 |
| 7. | "Blessed" | 3:23 |
| 8. | "Sweet Love" | 2:30 |
| 9. | "Ugly Truth" | 4:07 |
| 10. | "Convince Me" | 3:49 |
| 11. | "Awakening" | 3:40 |
| 12. | "Kiss Like Your Kiss" | 2:32 |
| Total length: | 45:08 | |
Personnel
- Lucinda Williams – acoustic guitar, lead vocals, background vocals
- Nathan Barr – cello
- Elvis Costello – electric guitar
- Rami Jaffee – accordion, Hammond organ, piano
- Greg Leisz – 12-string guitar, electric guitar, pedal steel guitar
- Val McCallum – electric guitar, national steel guitar, slide guitar
- Butch Norton – drums, percussion
- David Sutton – bass guitar, upright bass
- Matthew Sweet – background vocals
Charts
| Chart (1998) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[10] | 63 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Charts)[11] | 40 |
| Swedish Albums Chart[12] | 15 |
| UK Albums Chart[13] | 55 |
| US Billboard 200[1] | 15 |
| US Rock Albums (Billboard)[14] | 4 |
References
- "Billboard 200 > Lucinda Williams". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
- "Blessed - Lucinda Williams". AllMusic. 2011-03-11. Retrieved 2012-01-16.
- "Blessed by Lucinda Williams reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
- "Reviews for Blessed by Lucinda Williams". Metacritic. Retrieved October 2, 2021.
- Allmusic review
- L.A. Times review
- Robert Christgau review Archived May 15, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- Spin review
- Blessed - AllMusic review
- "Lucinda Williams chart history". imgur.com. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
- "Dutch Charts > Lucinda Williams". Dutch Album Top 100. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
- "Swedish Charts > Lucinda Williams". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
- "Official Charts > Lucinda Williams". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
- "Billboard Top Rock Albums > Lucinda Williams". Billboard. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
External links
- Blessed at Discogs (list of releases)
- Lucinda Williams Official Website