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Lucinda Williams — 2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten
Album: Car Wheels on a Gravel Road
Avg rating:
6.9

Your rating:
Total ratings: 2654








Released: 1998
Length: 4:27
Plays (last 30 days): 4
You can't depend on anything really
There's no promises there's no point
There's no good there's no bad
In this dirty little joint
No dope smoking no beer sold after 12 o'clock
Rosedale Mississippi Magic City Juke Joint
Mr Johnson sings over in a corner by the bar
Sold his soul to the devil so he can play guitar
Too cool to be forgotten
Hey hey too cool to be for gotten
Man running thru the grass outside
Says he wants to take up serpents
Says he will drink the deadly thing
And it will not hurt him
House rule no exceptions
No bad language no gambling no fighting
Sorry no credit don't ask
Bathroom wall reads is God the answer YES
Too cool to be forgotten
Hey hey too cool to be forgotten
June bug vs hurricane
June bug vs hurricane
Hey hey

I had a lover
I thought he was mine
Thought I'd always be his valentine
Leaning agianst the railing of a Lake Charles bridge
Overlooking the river leaning over the edge
He asked me baby would you jump into the water with me
I told him no way baby that's your own death you see
Too cool to be forgotten
Hey hey too cool to be forgotten
June bug vs hurricane
June bug vs hurricane
Hey hey
Comments (257)add comment
 coloradojohn wrote:

This can still bring tears to my eyes... So many things come to mind... Discovering Lucinda, hearing her on KBCO Studio-C while I was going through an Aztec-surgery divorce, seeing her a couple years later at Boulder Theater, WOW...and all the things the world and I have seen since then...and seeing her do an unforgettable in-home Covid-era concert jam on NPR.com... She is so ESSENTIAL to me...

I always loved reading your posts, you always have great stories.  I can understand your appreciation of Miss Lucinda. She just exudes desire, sensuality, longing, & obsession so well.  I have this album after hearing her on WYEP in the day. She writes so well. I'll have to watch for her to come around.  

 erwinphoto wrote:

A pathetic attempt to sound oh so cool....



Just like your post?
A pathetic attempt to sound oh so cool....
I keep hearing Sweet Jane, covered by Cowboy Junkies? Dunno. But the guitar riff keeps sending me into that memory.
This is such a great album.
 easmann wrote:
See what's written on the wall, upper left (Junebug vs Hurricane 2-Kool 2-be 4 gotten):
June Bug vs. Hurricane

The song was inspired by the above photo, from a collection: 

Here's a nice article about the song:
Song of the Day #1,375: ‘2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten’ – Lucinda Williams


I have Juke Joint. I toured the Delta. Most jukes are gone. Oh to be a fly on those walls on a Fri, Sat night.
 radioparadise9 wrote:

It wouldn't take  long for your brain to come out of your ears ....
Or blow it out of his nostrils.

The first Lucinda Williams song I've heard that is above a 3. This one is a solid 5. I know she's an RP darling. Funny thing is I love artists that LOVE her, just not her, for some reason.
 easmann wrote:
See what's written on the wall, upper left (Junebug vs Hurricane 2-Kool 2-be 4 gotten):
June Bug vs. Hurricane

The song was inspired by the above photo, from a collection: 

Here's a nice article about the song:
Song of the Day #1,375: ‘2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten’ – Lucinda Williams
Thanks for that link. Interesting site.

Another great song from a talented singer
this girl rocks my boat big time!
Best concert I have had the luck of attending in Edmonton.
Doug Pettibone on guitar,  magic.
This can still bring tears to my eyes... So many things come to mind... Discovering Lucinda, hearing her on KBCO Studio-C while I was going through an Aztec-surgery divorce, seeing her a couple years later at Boulder Theater, WOW...and all the things the world and I have seen since then...and seeing her do an unforgettable in-home Covid-era concert jam on NPR.com... She is so ESSENTIAL to me...
Lucinda and Steve Earle… this is one of my favorite Lucinda albums
Thanks for the Steve Earl tidbit. I did not know that!
 grhorn wrote:

i'm not gonna tell ya what i rated this song
it's a secret


IMHO the album as a whole is really good.
 I wish I could dry your tears
10
This album was produced by Steve Earle with help from E-Streeter Roy Bittan. Just FYI.
Fantastic... impression of Eliza Gilkyson!
 Matt_Maurer wrote:
Too whiney for my taste. 3/10.
 
i'm not gonna tell ya what i rated this song
it's a secret
 tulfan wrote:
Tortuous
 
This song is about a turtle?
This whole album is too Cool to be 4 Gotten...thanks RP..
Too whiney for my taste. 3/10.
 hansotten wrote:
all her titles are boring repeating same songover and over
 Think of her as you might think of port. A little port after a fine meal is excellent. A barrel of port - too much. Everything in moderation. ;)

One of the best country / folk  rock albums of 1998. Lucinda has a very sweet voice 
all her titles are boring repeating same songover and over
saw here this past summer, absolute best show I've been to!
She presented this entire album, as part of an ongoing tour, in Oakland recently. Lucinda Williams definitely gives you the complete package. Closed with Keep on Rockin' by Neil Young. I had seen her at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass in a brief (45 minutes) set, but she and her band put on a great show. At times it seems as if she emphasizes the Louisiana/Mississippi/Texas drawl a bit, but she's the boss in a concert!
Terrific . We saw her last night 29 July '19 in Brighton,UK. All of the album with explanations. This song is prompted from a book photographs of old juke joints (can't remember the author). A lot of these words were on the walls of the pictured huts.
 sronis wrote:
I simply can't listen to this bulls&%* anymore. my brain is coming out of my ears... Just by the stupid title one can understand how sucko-barfo this song is gonna be...


 
It wouldn't take  long for your brain to come out of your ears ....
 tulfan wrote:
Tortuous
 
Well, at least it's not torturous for you.
OK I suppose.
Great album!  "June bug vs hurricane"...  Lucinda can write a song.
Gritty & smooth at the same time
Outstanding track from an outstanding album.
Outstanding album
This is the song that got me into Lucinda. Thanks to RP years ago!
 LaurieinTucson wrote:
Love this woman's music, and that album title is the greatest

 
Yes, although I strongly believe that she'd have wanted it to be "oyster shell road" because that's all we had back in those days. Tons of bright white oyster shells poured on top of the grass or dirt to make a driveway, because they were plentiful and cheap.

 
Image result for Lake Charles Calcasieu bridge

 

 twoplain2sea wrote:
I need a mondegreen for June bug vs hurricane
Hey hey

 
junebug vs hurricane, it's life
Sounds like Bill Frisell on guitar.
 jimtyrrell wrote:
 Sorry man. Saw her 6 months ago, one the best shows in years for an old hippie. Her band blew the house down. The governor had to call in the guard. 8

 
I meant "When she wrote good songs."
 nutrod42 wrote:
When she was good. Great album.

  Sorry man. Saw her 6 months ago, one the best shows in years for an old hippie. Her band blew the house down. The governor had to call in the guard. 8


When she was good. Great album.
I need a mondegreen for June bug vs hurricane
Hey hey
a great song, from her masterpiece
Love this woman's music, and that album title is the greatest
Incredible, how her voice just drips with the vibes of Louisiana and Mississippi...How well I remember how cool it was to discover her, at the turn of the Millennium, just as my marriage was burning up on re-entry to the changed old USA... First heard her "Train Wreck" on KCBO's Studio C 2000 collection, right when it came out, back when that was still a decent radio station, and didn't really know this stellar record until I was in Tokyo and it was often played here on RP. Then I dove right into all her stuff. I saw her at the great Boulder Theater on vacation here a year or two later, and — wow — she and her band are REALLY SOMETHING TO SEE! and by the way, her latest double album has some very juicy tracks; her voice is as sorrowfully nuanced as ever, and wicked guitar hooks abound...
 Businessgypsy wrote:
Maybe not true for everyone, but if you grew up in south Louisiana, traveled many gravel roads, and entertained death thoughts on the old Lake Charles Calcasieu bridge this incredible collection probably captures your soul. If you don't get the accent, you really ought to think about traveling more often, and getting off the main roads when you do.
 
LaGrange gator here. You speak the truth.

This song immediately throws me back to that rural, humid, organic place that I couldn't stand. Weirdly, that's a good memory.
She Kills It
See what's written on the wall, upper left (Junebug vs Hurricane 2-Kool 2-be 4 gotten):
June Bug vs. Hurricane

The song was inspired by the above photo, from a collection: 

Here's a nice article about the song:
Song of the Day #1,375: ‘2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten’ – Lucinda Williams
Nice song... but the title seems more like an early 90's Prince title.
Her rough, gritty voice is perfect for this, and quite pleasing in general.
 Lazarus wrote:


Everybody in my church loves this cool song...
 

 

Kool song indeed!
 rdo wrote:

Have I ever said you have great taste in music?

 
Have you ever noticed it's just a drone auto-pasting in the same comment over and over? I bet it's not even in a hotel room.
long time no hear!!!! {#Dance}
 Groogrux69 wrote:

Me too.
 

Everybody in my church loves this cool song...
 
 rdo wrote:
This song title seems to come from the texting age, yet written in 1998:  2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten.  This song is very nice.
 

It's what kids were writing in each other's high school yearbooks long before cell phones appeared.

Love Lucinda.  That was a hell of an album.
 
I just like Lucinda. Smoky, cool, understated, and poetic.
How about playing songs from Sweet Old World or Essence? Play the sings with Bo ramsey on guitar.
"Baby, sweet baby, I wanna feel your breath
Even though you like to flirt with death Baby, sweet baby, can't get enough
Please come find me and help me get f——-d up"

Ooooh man, does she sing these lyrics in a seductive way.


More Lucinda! So glad to hear her on RP
Love Lucinda Williams. Entire album is great. 
is the title from The Artist Formerly Known As....Lucinda?
Long live the goddess Ms. Lucinda Williams
Been caught trying to emulate this guitar tone once or twice...
 fredriley wrote:

2 bad 2b hurd. F*ckin' long, innit?

 

Riley-Fred you are a true bore!

says,

the world-jury,

through their first officer,

STINGRAY


 marmelock wrote:
This whole album is 'Godlike'.
 

True - very true!

Too cool to be forgotten!


 marmelock wrote:
This whole album is 'Godlike'.
 

I agree
LOVE YOU, LUCI...!
This whole album is 'Godlike'.
 romeotuma wrote:

Everybody in my hotel room loves this cool song...


 
 
Have I ever said you have great taste in music?
I like this insecure girlish voice too..
Lucinda sits unchallanged at the Pinnacle of Cool...{#Clap}     {#Notworthy}
 MLavender wrote:
My favorite artist is Bob Dylan, so I'm clearly okay with less than beautiful voices.  And I like some of Lucinda's stuff (I own this album, for example), but alas, her voice does detract.
 



She has a perfectly lovely voice. There's clearly a double-standard with respect to women singers; if their voice isn't "lovely" then they can't sing well. Clearly this expectation isn't the same with male singers, most of whom rely on their ability to approximate notes rather then sing them clearly. Of course I'm talking about the stuff we hear on RP as my sample.
 romeotuma wrote:

Everybody in my hotel room loves this cool song...


 
 
Me too.
My favorite artist is Bob Dylan, so I'm clearly okay with less than beautiful voices.  And I like some of Lucinda's stuff (I own this album, for example), but alas, her voice does detract.
 sronis wrote:

I simply can't listen to this bulls&%* anymore. my brain is coming out of my ears... Just by the stupid title one can understand how sucko-barfo this song is gonna be...


 
{#Lol}

I simply can't listen to this bulls&%* anymore. my brain is coming out of my ears... Just by the stupid title one can understand how sucko-barfo this song is gonna be...


This song title seems to come from the texting age, yet written in 1998:  2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten.  This song is very nice.


Gotta say this song and "Righteously" really work for me.
{#Hearteyes}Find me a cooler groove than she creates in this song...rock's destination...arrived 
 Jeff09 wrote:
Well, and evocatively, put, B.  You got a talent...
Thanks, please tell my editor! Caught Lucinda in a small venue (House of Blues New Orleans) show a few weeks back. She does not front, not an ounce. Pure soul pours out of every pore, and that ragged voice flows like molten iron. Her new guitar player was a bit long on technique and short on raw meat, but CC Adcock came out for the encore to show him how it's done. A national treasure.

 Businessgypsy wrote:
Every soul in a high wind and a light rain on a motorcycle at midnight has, involuntarily. It's a creepy, high arcing, narrow steel spider of a nightmare structure, festooned (at least at one time) with ornaments of crossed flintlock pistols on the stiles to commemorate the exploits of pirate/patriot Jean LaFitte.

Built under the administration of Governor Earl K. Long, brother of the Kingfish Huey P. Long himself, it has an unstable, acrophobic draw that will pull you against your will to peer over the 135 foot railing to the muddy water below.

I avoid it if at all possible.


 
Well, and evocatively, put, B.  You got a talent...

Saw her at the Orange Peel in March of this year - she opened with this one and did a great job. She must have not done it in awhile because she had to keep looking at the words.
Great song!
 Businessgypsy wrote:
One of the greatest recordings of all time.
Maybe not true for everyone, but if you grew up in south Louisiana, traveled many gravel roads, and entertained death thoughts on the old Lake Charles Calcasieu bridge this incredible collection probably captures your soul. If you don't get the accent, you really ought to think about traveling more often, and getting off the main roads when you do.


 

yes, that's right

Forgot just HOW GOOD this song is. Lucinda in transition but still dead, cold on.  UK, you're just not going to get this. That's OK. Just refrain from being an ass please.

 tulfan wrote:
Tortuous
 
tor·tu·ous. adj ˈtȯrch-wəs, ˈtȯr-chə-. Definition of TORTUOUS. 1. : marked by repeated twists, bends, or turns : winding tortuous path>

I know that she's kinda important in this world and from this song, at least, I kinda get why. But it's still not my thing.
 tulfan wrote:
Tortuous
 
2 bad 2b hurd. F*ckin' long, innit?

Tortuous
johnjconn wrote:
Who hasn't entertained death thoughts on the old Lake Charles Calcasieu bridge...
Every soul in a high wind and a light rain on a motorcycle at midnight has, involuntarily. It's a creepy, high arcing, narrow steel spider of a nightmare structure, festooned (at least at one time) with ornaments of crossed flintlock pistols on the stiles to commemorate the exploits of pirate/patriot Jean LaFitte.

Built under the administration of Governor Earl K. Long, brother of the Kingfish Huey P. Long himself, it has an unstable, acrophobic draw that will pull you against your will to peer over the 135 foot railing to the muddy water below.

I avoid it if at all possible.


Everything I love about Lucinda is in this song.  Just might be my favorite.
One of the greatest recordings of all time.
Maybe not true for everyone, but if you grew up in south Louisiana, traveled many gravel roads, and entertained death thoughts on the old Lake Charles Calcasieu bridge this incredible collection probably captures your soul. If you don't get the accent, you really ought to think about traveling more often, and getting off the main roads when you do.


Coolest voice in business!
always
Artists I know in Real Life get 9's.  No exceptions!
 cc_rider wrote:


Not everyone knows 'zactly what that accent is. It's called 'Texas Stoned', aka 'Austin'.

c.
 

I call it "Drunkard" or "Barfly"...either one.

{#Smile}
 Frater_Kork wrote:

For once I concur. This entire album is tripe with an exception for "Can't Let Go" (In My Opinion)
 
This entire album is composed of 8's, 9's, and 10's.  Lucinda could do no wrong on this one.  Sublime.
 Randomax wrote:
I believe it's a purposeful throwback to school when sayings like "2 kool 4ever", etc. were the fun norm.

 
Well, this was released in 1998...

I believe it's a purposeful throwback to school when sayings like "2 kool 4ever", etc. were the fun norm.

 rtrudeau wrote:

Somebody with that user name commenting on the use of numerals in a song title makes me full of ironic glee.
 
I do appreciate the irony, but I use the numbers because I find the handle AgentOrange is always either taken or blocked. And I've been using this handle since the September That Never Ended, so it's not like I'm a latecomer to it. Did Lucinda Williams run out of letters at the printers'?


 Ag3nt0rang3 wrote:
"2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten"

Was this song written by Prince?
 
Somebody with that user name commenting on the use of numerals in a song title makes me full of ironic glee.


 wilcogirl11 wrote:
The_Enemy wrote:
I'm not sure that's an insult. Wreck is an easy 10. Sure, it was overplayed in its day and it's sappy but it has a visceral truthiness to it that's hard to resist. 2 Kool isn't bad. I give it a 7.
I think this person meant "truthfulness". Not everyone watches Jon Stewart.
 
holborne wrote:
Uh...do you know what "truthiness" is supposed to connote?
 
I think this person meant "truthfulness". Not everyone watches Jon Stewart.


I doubt that because  the adjective "visceral", used before "truthiness", reinforces the meaning of "truthiness" - truth that comes from the gut. I think The_Enemy meant to use that word.
 Excelsior wrote:
Puts the "S" in stoned, sodden, slurring, sucks...
 
For once I concur. This entire album is tripe with an exception for "Can't Let Go" (In My Opinion)
wilcogirl11 wrote:
The_Enemy wrote:
I'm not sure that's an insult. Wreck is an easy 10. Sure, it was overplayed in its day and it's sappy but it has a visceral truthiness to it that's hard to resist. 2 Kool isn't bad. I give it a 7.
I think this person meant "truthfulness". Not everyone watches Jon Stewart.


But everyone should . . . {#Wink}

BTW, I think truthiness is Steven Colbert's invention, though Jon may have had a hand in it . . .
 wilcogirl11 wrote:
The_Enemy wrote:
I'm not sure that's an insult. Wreck is an easy 10. Sure, it was overplayed in its day and it's sappy but it has a visceral truthiness to it that's hard to resist. 2 Kool isn't bad. I give it a 7.
I think this person meant "truthfulness". Not everyone watches Jon Stewart.

 
colbert.

The_Enemy wrote:
I'm not sure that's an insult. Wreck is an easy 10. Sure, it was overplayed in its day and it's sappy but it has a visceral truthiness to it that's hard to resist. 2 Kool isn't bad. I give it a 7.

 
holborne wrote:

Uh...do you know what "truthiness" is supposed to connote?

 
I think this person meant "truthfulness". Not everyone watches Jon Stewart.

Lucinda is just dusty, ground down and real.
 The_Enemy wrote:
I'm not sure that's an insult. Wreck is an easy 10. Sure, it was overplayed in its day and it's sappy but it has a visceral truthiness to it that's hard to resist. 2 Kool isn't bad. I give it a 7.
 
Uh...do you know what "truthiness" is supposed to connote?

I really love the production on this CD.  It was what introduced me to the world of Lucinda.  She is an amazing songwriter and performer.
steeler wrote:
Too cool, indeed. The emotions just drip off of her vocal stylings. She puts the "S" in sultry.
Puts the "S" in stoned, sodden, slurring, sucks...
oh, not her drivel again. Go away, Barfly....
Ag3nt0rang3 wrote:
"2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten" Was this song written by Prince?
Prince suggested the title via text message.
one of my favourite L.W. songs for sure.
Too cool, indeed. The emotions just drip off of her vocal stylings. She puts the "S" in sultry.
The goofy spelling of the title aside, this is my favorite cut from what I think is her best album. Listening to this I can imagine being in a hot Mississippi beer joint on a summer night. She is an acquired taste, but well worth the effort, because she's a great storyteller.
RadioDoc wrote:
And yet, you rate " The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald" a 10. Sorry if we don't take you seriously.
I'm not sure that's an insult. Wreck is an easy 10. Sure, it was overplayed in its day and it's sappy but it has a visceral truthiness to it that's hard to resist. 2 Kool isn't bad. I give it a 7.
Lucinda live is a great experience, she is the quintessential singer/songwriter and storyteller between songs. One surprise for me was how petite she is, this is a tiny woman with a big voice. Saw her last year in Buffalo and she rocked the place, too bad it was stadium seating and people couldn't really move around. For me, Essence is one of the great songs of all time, just a raw, aching, wanting song...
"2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten" Was this song written by Prince?
bhudevi wrote:
I really can't get into Lucinda. I know several people who otherwise have great musical taste, and LOVE her. I find her lyrics banal and her music unremarkable.
So would that be "great musical taste" in your opinion, or have you been officially anointed the universal arbiter of "great musical taste?" It must be delightful to be you and make prescient choices in your pop music likes and dislikes. I am envious.