Others will disagree. For whatever reason people either love or hate this woman and her work.I present my case for loving her.Lucinda Williams is brutally honest. She discards the phony roles women are forced to assume by our society and says what she really means and feels, damn the consequences. You know the routine: Women don’t cuss, do drugs, get angry, think about sex, and certainly can’t enjoy having it. They wear pink and they don’t fart—ever. But we all know they do. Lucinda pulls off the mask and lets us know what it’s really like to be a woman in this world.She demands more out of life, not only for herself but other women out there. All of that and more, passionate kisses… You took my joy; I want it back… Some women speak of women’s liberation. Lucinda lives it.She delivers her songs with a native twang true to her Louisiana roots. By her own admission she was not gifted with the greatest of voices, but she sings with passion and an almost feline ferocity, like some angry lioness on the prowl. Nothing is held back in a Lucinda Williams’ song.She’s not content to follow some man around kowtowing. She knows well her own worth, the power she wields.  She is branded as a perfectionist and a control freak by many who have worked with her. All I have to say is this; if she is the one in control, then she does a hell of a job. She’s been making good music now for over twenty years; perhaps she has earned the right to do things her way.Car Wheels on a Gravel Road  is my favorite album produced by a female artist and I also count it among my favorites of any artist regardless of sex. She had hell getting this thing hatched, going through a long list of collaborators, among them Gurf Morlix, Steve Earle, and Rick Rubin. Say what you want about the methods she used—the resulting cd is as close to perfect as it gets in this world.Her latest, Live at the Fillmore , is a double cd. Some of the songs don’t sound as good as I have heard them elsewhere, but it is the most extensive collection of her better works, old and new.One of her best offerings is not a cd at all, but instead a DVD capturing a performance she did on Austin City Limits. Band members change over time, as do people. For whatever reason, this performance is one we are unlikely to ever see reproduced again and is a must see for anyone that loves her music. Not only she, but the whole band was smoking that night.I hear talk of a new cd in the works, and those that have caught one of her recent live shows say she is playing six or seven new songs to be contained on the album. It’s supposed to be good stuff. I missed my chance to hear her at the Austin City Limits Music Festival due to the massive evacuation of people from Louisiana and East Texas and my duties as the manager of a horse facility, but I look forward to seeing her the next time she comes around. I am told she too is participating in efforts to help those affected by the hurricanes.Here is a link to her web site: (http://www.lucindawilliams.com/index.html) And to her page at Lonestarmusic.com. All hail to the queen of Americana music—Lucinda Williams.--------------------About the Author - Don Henry Ford, Jr.When Don's not writing books he lends out his talent to Americana Roots to put together great articles like this. If you've enjoyed what you read, then pick up Don's latest book Contrabando: Confessions of a Drug Smuggling Cowboy at your local bookstore or online at Cinco Puntos Press.