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Water to Drink
Studio album by
Victoria Williams
Released2000
Label Atlantic
ProducerVictoria Williams, J. C. Hopkins
Victoria Williams chronology
Musings of a Creek Dipper
(1998) 		Water to Drink
(2000) 		Sings Some Ol' Songs
(2002)

Water to Drink is an album by the American musician Victoria Williams, released in 2000. [1] [2] She had originally intended to record an album of standards, but was discouraged by Atlantic Records. [3] Williams promoted the album by touring with Lou Reed. [4]

Production

Produced by Williams and J. C. Hopkins, the album was recorded mostly at Williams's home studio, in Joshua Tree. [5] [6] The title track was written by Antônio Carlos Jobim. [7] Williams used a kalimba on some of the tracks. [8] Van Dyke Parks composed the string parts for some songs. [8] Greg Leisz played pedal steel on the album; David Piltch played bass. [9] [10] Mark Olson, Williams's then-husband, sang on "Joy of Love". [11] Petra Haden sang and played violin on several tracks. [12] "Junk" employs a Mellotron; "Gladys and Lucy" a horn section. [13] [14]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic [7]
The Atlanta ConstitutionB+ [15]
Birmingham Post [16]
Entertainment WeeklyB [17]
The Gazette [18]
Los Angeles Times [19]
Orange County RegisterB+ [14]
Rolling Stone [20]
Spin8/10 [9]

Entertainment Weekly noted that "Williams has a strange, little-girl voice that channels big emotions and annoys small-minded quirkophobes." [17] The Atlanta Constitution wrote that Williams has "tamed the wilder edges of her oddball compositions so that her shambling country-gospel-pop sound has steeped into something you might call homespun jazz." [15] Spin praised Haden's "shimmering backing vocals." [9] Rolling Stone concluded: "Both homespun and hymnlike, the songs on Water to Drink are the fullest expression yet of Williams' cockeyed genius." [20]

The Los Angeles Times opined that Williams "is among the least jaded contemporary songwriters, a chronicler of the incidental moments that transform the prosaic into the transcendent." [19] The Hartford Courant determined that "her cutesy turn on 'Claude' has her sounding like a nails-on-chalkboard version of Carol Channing." [11] The Gazette called Water to Drink "a crazy quilt of musical styles all stitched together with waif-like vocals." [18] The Irish Times determined that, "at her best her music evokes the richness of southern American rural culture, intimate reflections packaged in delightful light folksy melodies." [21]

AllMusic wrote that "the constraints of performing another composer's songs tone down the blur of her ideas, giving her space where she can spread out and share her immense talent." [7]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Grandma's Hat Pin" 
2."Gladys and Lucy" 
3." Water to Drink" 
4."Light the Lamp Freddie" 
5."Claude" 
6."Joy of Love" 
7." Until the Real Thing Comes Along" 
8."Lagniappe" 
9."Junk" 
10."Little Bird" 
11." Young at Heart" 
12."Little Bit of Love" 

References

  1. ^ "Reviews". Music Week. Aug 5, 2000. p. 8.
  2. ^ Thrills, Adrian (11 Aug 2000). "Victoria Williams: Water to Drink". Daily Mail. p. 48.
  3. ^ Derdeyn, Stuart (1 June 2000). "Sweet relief after illness for Williams". The Province. p. B23.
  4. ^ Bream, Jon (11 June 2000). "Pop Music". Star Tribune. p. 6F.
  5. ^ Himes, Geoffrey (13 Oct 2000). "She sings three jazz standards...". The Washington Post. p. WW14.
  6. ^ Shuster, Fred (27 Aug 2000). "The Accidental Tourist". Los Angeles Daily News. p. L3.
  7. ^ a b c "Water to Drink Review by Stacia Proefrock". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 December 2023.
  8. ^ a b Bessman, Jim (Jun 24, 2000). "Williams' 'Drink' mixes standards, new songs on Atlantic". Billboard. Vol. 112, no. 26. p. 14.
  9. ^ a b c Smith, RJ (Sep 2000). "Reviews". Spin. Vol. 16, no. 9. pp. 186, 188.
  10. ^ Krewen, Nick (17 Aug 2000). "Great Storytelling". Waterloo Region Record. p. D6.
  11. ^ a b Catlin, Roger (17 Aug 2000). "Victoria Williams' Expanding Styles". Calendar. Hartford Courant. p. 6.
  12. ^ Underwood, Bob (15 Sep 2000). "Recordings on Review". Go!. Dayton Daily News. p. 25.
  13. ^ Everett-Green, Robert (31 Aug 2000). "Vulnerable survivor makes singing look easy". The Globe and Mail. p. R4.
  14. ^ a b Wener, Ben (August 11, 2000). "Sound Check". Orange County Register. p. F52.
  15. ^ a b Drennen, Eileen M. (3 Aug 2000). "Pop/Rock". The Atlanta Constitution. p. F8.
  16. ^ "Victoria Williams Water to Drink". National. Birmingham Post. 2 Sep 2000. p. 6.
  17. ^ a b Brunner, Rob (Jul 14, 2000). "Water to Drink". Entertainment Weekly. No. 549. p. 78.
  18. ^ a b Lamey, Mary (24 Aug 2000). "Roots". The Gazette. p. D13.
  19. ^ a b Weingarten, Marc (11 Aug 2000). "Record Rack". Los Angeles Times. p. F27.
  20. ^ a b Berger, Arion (Aug 31, 2000). "Water to Drink". Rolling Stone. No. 848. p. 76.
  21. ^ Breen, Joe (16 Sep 2000). "Roots". Weekend. The Irish Times. p. 72.
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