Mortal City

This 1996 album was a breakthrough of sorts for Dar Williams, moving her from the obscure folkie circuit to the obscure alternative singer-songwriter circuit.Mortal City comes closest to capturing her live show, and many of the songs here--"Iowa," "The Family," "The Christians and the Pagans"--have become live-set favorites. Like Williams herself, this disc is sentimental, sincere, and emotional; it's an album about growing up. When Williams titles a song "The Pointless, Yet Poignant Crisis of a Co-Ed," you know she's not writing fiction. She also could have called it "Catcher in the Rye," but that title was already taken.--Charles R. Cross

Dar Williams - Mortal City (CD NEW) Label: Razor & Tie Entertainment Format: CD Release Date: 25 Jan 1996 No. of Discs: 1 UPC: 793018282123 Album Tracks 1. As Cool As I Am 2. February 3. Iowa (Traveling III) 4. The Christians And The Pagans 5. This Was Pompeii 6. The Ocean 7. Family 8. The Pointless, Yet Poignant, Crisis Of A Co-Ed 9. The Blessings 10. Southern California Wants To Be Western New York 11. Mortal City