Gig Review: Lucinda Williams - Ritz, Manchester. Sunday 22nd January 2023

From the perils of physical affliction, a determined and gracious Lucinda Williams digs deep into an already well harvested fertile cavernous soul to refine and re-shape a song delivery that epitomises a musical calling. This is an artist teetering on the edge of a poetic fault line where accomplished musicianship chaperones the words that define the art of southern sentiment. Security of status and stature is in place, but you never totally shake off the chains of vulnerability. Her music touches, moves and instigates a sense of awe. 

Movement slips into a metaphorical state toying with the depth of her brimming catalogue. The juxtaposition of ease and struggle could emanate from a lyric sheet, not a visual demeanour. Lucinda Williams enters the calendar year of a significant anniversary with an air of fermented maturity. For a perfect portrayal of her artistic wealth, any vantage point from the floor or balcony of a storied Manchester venue captured the essence. You could say 'Essence' was the crowning moment of a near-two hour stint in the limelight. Fundamentally, high spots remain firmly anchored in the personal domain and folks departing the Ritz could share hours internally debating the multitude of moments an artist radiated luminous shivers. 

'Lake Charles' sways between a literal existence and a nostalgic calling. For years it has pinpointed a crossover of injecting personal memories into a landscape harsh in reality yet eulogised in song. This evening Doug Pettibone swaps elegant guitar for ethereal pedal steel to help steer our senses down the Louisiana highway. The mystique of this place is etched in Lucinda Williams' musical DNA.

To enhance the personal interaction ensued from a plateau of gratitude, you are allowed to wobble from a slice of local wit when thousands of miles from home. Not quite grasping that the 'Big Black Train' in Manchester goes to 'Leeds' added an innocent charm. No doubt a wry grin was afforded this alternative interpretation. 

If there had been a more uplifting ending to a Lucinda Williams concert with the protagonist edging to the front of stage rallying a communal cry to adulate 'Rockin' in the Free World', then the sight would have been ultra special. The sign off here echoed chimes of sincere emotion and the fulcrum of seizing the moment. Lucinda Willians worships well, almost astutely as those who worship her.

On a literal footing, the Buick 6 of Butch Norton (drums), David Sutton (bass), Stuart Mathis (guitar) and Doug Pettibone (guitar and occasional pedal steel), executed their supporting role with heaps of expected class. Compensating the guitar-free Lucinda Williams enforced by stroke recovery was akin to fitting the final jigsaw piece. Adversity presents opportunity and these guys share the ease of shelling peas.

The conundrum exposed by support act LA Edwards scratched the head. They did absolutely nothing wrong in holding court for a forty-five minute opening slot that flew by. Yet an understandably bit-part  effect trailed at the end of the show when shadowed by a maestro hitting career defining live proportions. Maybe their day will come in a less claustrophobic setting where there is more space for an undoubted talented take on American folk rock to leave a a greater imprint. 

To state this show was Lucinda Williams career defining in a live setting may be unsubstantiated. Yet the personal journey from Leamington Spa 2009 through Birmingham 2013 and 2019 arriving at Manchester 2023 inks the pages of a story of progression. That 2019 show was unanimously anointed gig of the year. Good luck to those following in her 2023 footsteps after a spellbinding performance that eclipsed the precedent. 

You felt Lucinda Williams defined her craft in finding the place where the spirit meets the bone. Surpassing that in these duly formative years portrays an artist ascending to a level where creatives pine and the rest of us marvel.