Thirty Tigers and Highway 20 have announced the release of a new Lucinda Williams album, ‘Good Souls Better Angels’ which is due out April 24th and which “unabashedly takes on some of the human, social and political issues of our day with her boldest and most direct album to date.” Following the release of ‘Man Without A Soul’, the first track to be taken from the forthcoming album, Williams has posted the album’s raw opener online today, ‘You Can’t Rule Me’ which you can listen to below.
In 2014 and 2015, Williams released two critically acclaimed double albums back to back with ‘Down Where The Spirit Meets The Bone’ and ‘The Ghosts Of Highway 20’, respectively. Both releases found her experimenting with arrangements, vocals, song structure and personal subject matter. On the new record, Williams changes course and chooses to forgo the personal and narrative-based songcraft that has become synonymous with her name and instead speaks to some of the injustices permeating our society. Songs deal with issues such as domestic abuse (‘Wakin’ Up’), the constant barrage of news (‘Bad News Blues’) the dangerous, quick to judge and convict aspects of social media (‘Shadows & Doubts’) and the haunting reality of the
‘Man Without A Soul’. Safe to say you won’t be cracking the album out at any birthday parties.
The album is backed by her longtime band, featuring Butch Norton (drums), Stuart Mathis (guitar) and David Sutton (bass), and was co-produced by Williams, husband Tom Overby and Ray Kennedy, who last worked with Williams on her 1998 landmark album ‘Car Wheels On A Gravel Road.’ Here is the tracklisting and those dates, including the contents of a mysterious vinyl version of it also on the way.
‘Good Souls Better Angels’ Tracklisting:
1. You Can’t Rule Me
2. Bad News Blues
3. Man Without a Soul
4. Big Black Train
5. Wakin’ Up
6. Pray the Devil Back to Hell
7. Shadows & Doubts
8. When the Way Gets Dark
9. Bone of Contention
10. Down Past the Bottom
11. Big Rotator
12. Good Souls
LP Only (Side D):
1. Bad News Blues (Acoustic Demo)
2. Pray the Devil Back to Hell (Acoustic Demo)
3. You Can’t Rule Me (Acoustic Demo)
4. Man Without a Soul (Acoustic Demo)
5. Wakin’ Up (Acoustic Demo)
Lucinda Williams UK and Ireland Dates 2020
Fri 14th Aug – IRELAND, DUBLIN, Vicar Street
Sat 15th Aug – BELFAST, Limelight 1
Sun 16th Aug – IRELAND, KILKENNY, St Canice’s Cathedral
Tues 18th Aug – WALLASEY, Floral Pavilion Theatre
Thurs 20th Aug – CAMBRIDGE, Junction
Sat 22nd Aug – GLANUSK PARK, Green Man Festival
