Good Souls Better Angels

Good Souls Better Angels is the 14th studio album by American singer-songwriter Lucinda Williams, released on April 24, 2020, by Highway 20 Records and Thirty Tigers.

Good Souls Better Angels
Studio album by Lucinda Williams
Released	April 24, 2020 (2020-04-24)
Recorded	September–November 2019[1]
Studio	Room and Board Studio, Nashville, Tennessee
Genre	Americana, Heartland rock
Length	59:49
Language	English
Label	Highway 20 Thirty Tigers
Producer	Ray Kennedy Tom Overby Lucinda Williams
Lucinda Williams chronology
Vanished Gardens (2018) Good Souls Better Angels (2020) Stories from a Rock n Roll Heart (2023)

Announced in February 2020, the album was preceded by the track "Man Without a Soul", a critique of Donald Trump,^[2] which earned Williams a Grammy Award nomination for Best American Roots Song.^[3] The album received widespread critical acclaim, and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Americana Album.^[3]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	8.1⁄10[4]
Metacritic	84⁄100[5]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[6]
American Songwriter	[7]
Exclaim!	8⁄10[8]
The Irish Times	[9]
Mojo	[10]
Pitchfork	8.0⁄10[11]
Q	[12]
Uncut	[13]
Rolling Stone	[14]
Tom Hull	A−[15]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, Good Souls Better Angels received "universal acclaim" based on a weighted average score of 84 out of 100 from 17 critic scores.^[5] AnyDecentMusic? sums up critical consensus as an 8.1 out of 10, with 19 reviews.^[4] Joe Breen of The Irish Times gave the release five out of five stars, writing that it "punch[es] with a dark, almost biblical vengeance but also, importantly, balance vitriol with solace, hellfire with a hand in need" and praising its timely lyrics.^[9] In American Songwriter, Hal Horowitz gave the release 4.5 out of five stars, writing that it is arguably her most intense album, ending his review: "By the end of the hour, you'll be wiped out. This is a devastatingly in your face, take no prisoners presentation from Williams and her band that will leave most serious listeners shattered and perhaps shaking. Few albums connect with this much pure emotional fury, let alone those from artists well into their 60s."^[7] Dan Nailen of Inlander writes that this album has Williams' most direct lyrics but suffers from several songs having the same tempo.^[16]

Accolades for Good Souls Better Angels

Publication	Accolade	Rank	Ref.
Mojo	Top 75 Albums of 2020	38	[17]
Paste	Paste's 25 Best Albums of 2020 – Mid-Year	14	[18]
Pitchfork	The 35 Best Rock Albums of 2020	*	[19]
Rolling Stone	Best Albums of 2020	47	[20]
Star Tribune	Bream's 10 Best Albums	7	[21]

Award nominations for Good Souls Better Angels

Year	Award	Nominated work	Category	Result	Ref.
2021	Grammy Awards	Good Souls Better Angels	Best Americana Album	Nominated	[3]
		"Man Without a Soul"	Best American Roots Song	Nominated

Track listing

All songs written by Tom Overby and Lucinda Williams, except where noted.^[22]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"You Can't Rule Me"	Memphis Minnie (adaptation from the original composition)	4:02
2.	"Bad News Blues"		4:37
3.	"Man Without a Soul"		5:31
4.	"Big Black Train"		5:28
5.	"Wakin' Up"	Williams	4:44
6.	"Pray the Devil Back to Hell"		5:38
7.	"Shadows & Doubts"		6:01
8.	"When the Way Gets Dark"		3:27
9.	"Bone of Contention"	Williams	4:05
10.	"Down Past the Bottom"	Greg Garing	3:21
11.	"Big Rotator"		5:20
12.	"Good Souls"		7:35
Total length:			59:49

Personnel

• Lucinda Williams – acoustic and electric guitar, vocals, production
• Mark T. Jordan – organ on "Big Black Train" and "Shadows & Doubts"
• Ray Kennedy – mixing, production
• Brian Lucey – mastering
• Stuart Mathis – guitar, violin
• Butch Norton – drums, percussion
• Tom Overby – production
• David Sutton – bass guitar

Charts

Chart performance for Good Souls Better Angels

Chart (2020)	Peak
Australian Albums (ARIA)[23]	59
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[24]	24
French Albums (SNEP)[25]	197
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[26]	33
Scottish Albums (OCC)[27]	3
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[28]	21
UK Albums (OCC)[29]	30
UK Americana Albums (OCC)[30]	1
UK Jazz & Blues Albums (OCC)[31]	1
US Billboard 200[32]	144
US Folk Albums (Billboard)[33]	3
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[34]	20
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[35]	21

See also

• List of 2020 albums