As the name suggests, World’s Gone Wrong is a protest album.
The title track is about a blue-collar couple navigating daily struggles while watching injustice in disbelief wondering what to do. Their resolve to live on to fight another day shines through in the final verse – “She holds him tight and softly smiles, says ‘baby let’s put on some Miles and dance barefoot across the tiles, and forget our troubles for a while.’ Everybody knows the world’s gone wrong.” That message of strength is echoed on Freedom Speaks, where she encourages people to shed their apathy.
We’ve Come too Far to Turn Around, a duet with Norah Jones, reminds us that we’ve always had to stand up to gain and preserve our freedom. The opening, and closing stanza says, “we are weary of these trials. Of tribulations we are tired, but we’ve come too far to turn around” suggesting that there’s more to lose if we don’t stand strong now.
Mavis Staples joins Williams on a Bob Marley tune – So Much Trouble in the World – another track that not only defines the problem, but compels us to act by giving a little of ourselves.
The message of World’s Gone Wrong is delivered with Williams’ signature rootsy rock style and her rough soulful drawl. Providing a nice counterpoint to Williams’ gravelly voice is an up-and-coming country singer, Brittney Spencer — whose work includes vocals on Beyonce's Cowboy Carter.
As we absorb news and navigate social media in this era, it’s easy to get bogged down and feel helpless. On World’s Gone Wrong, Lucinda Williams reflects how many people are feeling. But instead of just pointing out what’s wrong, she reminds us to not lose hope, to care for each other, and to stand up for change.
We’ll be diving into World’s Gone Wrong over the next few months on Open Air. Listen weekdays 9am-3pm on JPR’s Rhythm and News Service.
