After recent events left me feeling a little, shall we say, agitated, I went searching for some cynical sounds to get me through Wednesday. What I found gave meaning to my gritted teeth: the singularly powerful Carla Bozulich careening through a nine-minute version of one of the greatest protest songs ever written — not to mention one of Dylan’s best songs, period. When Wednesday gave way to a cold, rainy Thursday, “Lonesome Roads” and the fabulous Willie Nelson cover “Blue Eyes Cryin’ in the Rain” were just the nudge of strained melancholy I needed. Now that Friday’s here, the woman who channels Patsy Cline, Janis Joplin, Tom Waits (there’s even a Waits cover here) and something nobody had heard until she wailed for herself, should help you make it through a long, lonely weekend. I know she’ll help me.
(P.S. There’s plenty more on her website from her many side projects — if you have the bandwidth, it’s worth your time.)