Summary:This two-disc set culled from live performances in San Francisco focuses mainly on material from the singer-songwriter's two most recent albums.
Record Label:Lost Highway
Genre(s): Rock, Singer-Songwriter, Live, Alt-Country
Live at the Fillmore showcases her raw wound of a voice and the rough edges of her band in all their unvarnished glory, as the music cuts across conventional categories of country, blues, folk, rock (and rap) to strike a distinctly personal chord.
By the time we get to the end of disc two, the broad strokes have coalesced into something quite remarkable; as Williams searches through the nooks and crannies of her songs, you sense she's discovering things that she didn't expect to find, and it's a tremendous thing to hear.
Her vocals, even on talking-blues songs like "Sweet Side" and "Righteously", reveal a woman living through all the messy frustration and unalleviated desire she's singing about.
Considering that Fillmore isn’t drawn from a single show, it’s baffling as to why the slower numbers are bunched together and the more exhilarating songs pushed nearly an hour into the listening experience. As a result, the album falls somewhere between Thin Lizzy and Zeppelin on the double live barometer.
The twenty-two-song collection suffers from bloat, uneven pacing and an overabundance of tunes from 2003's World Without Tears. But it's still an effective summary of Williams' career as a prophet of, as she puts it, "all that's alarming, raw and exposed."
Excellent. But, for the budget minded, I would recommend the Austin City Limits DVD from her 1998 show over this double set. The CD Excellent. But, for the budget minded, I would recommend the Austin City Limits DVD from her 1998 show over this double set. The CD highlights what a great experience she is live. And as far as pacing and the 'good songs' goes I disagree with the corporate radio friendly reviewers above. Placing the rockers in the middle, with the ballads as bookends is perfect for Lucinda and not the most commerically tried and true thing to do but that's what makes her great. Most of her best songs these days are the slow ballads anyway, not the rockers. At first, I was disappointed that it didn't rock more because that is what I saw and heard in Newport in 2004. But as I listened to it I realized how amazing her most recent material is even compared to her old 'classics.' I never thought I she would ever top her classic material from the 80's and 90's. But 'World Without Tears' is by universal critical acclaim better than 'Car Wheels' & 'Sweet Old World' and possibly her 1988 self titled classic. These songs are much better, lyrically, poetically, and structurally. I even like this band better than the old band. This band is dirtier and rocks harder than the clean and twangy sound from the days of the Austin City Limits show and Car Wheels in 1998. If you can afford both the DVD and CD it's worth the splurge. They represent two very different artistic periods for Lucinda. Neither period better than the other, both are great. Otherwise, get the DVD now and put the CDs on your wish list.…Expand
The best live albums offer new insight into an artist and their music, and this album does exactly that. Compare this live album to other The best live albums offer new insight into an artist and their music, and this album does exactly that. Compare this live album to other live albums from other artists, not to studio albums. This is excellent insight into arguably the greatest singer-songwriter of the last 20 years. Her highwater mark as far as creativity and erfort so far was her last album, "World Without Tears", not "Car Wheels" as someone else has posted. Easily some of her most creative, poignant work to date. "Car Wheels" was excellent, her self titled and "Sweet Old World" as well but thank god she didn't bore us with the same old same old and rely on her tried and true hits like the geezer rockers of today do. That is a rip off, my friends. Many songs from Lucinda's "Essense" CD are featured here too. Essense is excellent, but may be the least excellent of her five releases. That said, it is also extremely underrated. If you want to experience today's "always improving and moving on to something new" Lucinda Williams (rather than the 1998 Austin City Limits DVD) and do not want to go for the bootlegs, then this is the next best thing.…Collapse
This is without a doubt one of the great live cds to come out in some time. True Lucinda draws a lot of the music from World Without Tears, This is without a doubt one of the great live cds to come out in some time. True Lucinda draws a lot of the music from World Without Tears, it's only natural as that was the cd she was touring for when Live at the Filmore was recorded. Yes I would have liked her to have included more from Car Wheels, and her self titled album, but that being said, this is a really REALLY good CD. The music starts out with some of her slower, mellower material lulling the listener into a melancholic state of mind similar to that which one might expect from downing a bottle of cough syrup. But things quickly heat up by the end of the first disk, and really get smoking on disk 2, starting with Pineola right through to Real Live Bleeding Fingers etc. with the highlight of the whole cd sandwiched inbetween with an unbelievable version of Joy where Lucinda with her incredible vocals leaves no doubt in the listeners mind that she is going to find her Joy in Slidedale, West Memphis, or right there at the Filmore no matter the cost - the song is topped off with the incredible guitar work of Doug Pettibone. The intensity doesn't stop there either and keeps going right through the last notes of Words Fell. This is a very good cd and well worth the $14 I shelled out for it.…Expand
Her high water mark was "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road" and there's been a slow but measureable decline since then. And now, depressingly, Her high water mark was "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road" and there's been a slow but measureable decline since then. And now, depressingly, there's vocal affectation and by times over-the-top singing. Relax and revisit the muse.…Expand
