June 2, 2004

BY BOBBY REED

Extraordinary artistic talent can result from the combination of genetics and environment.

Lucinda Williams is one of the nation's most acclaimed songwriters. Her father, Miller Williams, is one of the nation's most acclaimed poets. Friday evening at the Art Institute of Chicago, these artists will give a rare collaborative performance in a show presented by the Poetry Center of Chicago.

The organic nature of Lucinda's rootsy music is illustrated by the fact that her three Grammy Awards have come in the categories for country, rock and contemporary folk. She is currently selecting and mixing tracks for her eighth disc, which will be a live album on the Lost Highway label.

Miller, who wrote the inaugural poem, "Of History and Hope," for President Bill Clinton's second inauguration ceremony, is the author, editor or translator of 30 books. He is currently writing a textbook on the form and theory of poetry. His book of collected poems, Some Jazz a While (University of Illinois Press, $21.95), has been praised for its sophisticated use of everyday language.

LUCINDA WILLIAMS AND MILLER WILLIAMS When: 7 p.m. Friday; doors open at 5:30 p.m. Where: Rubloff Auditorium, Art Institute of Chicago, 111 S. Michigan Tickets: $35 ($20 for Poetry Center members) Call: (866) 468-3401, or visit www.ticketweb.com LUCINDA'S LYRIC I wanna watch the ocean bend The edges of the sun then I wanna get swallowed up in An ocean of love -- Lucinda Williams, "Ventura''

Lucinda and Miller have shared the stage publicly on only a handful of occasions. "This will be like a songwriters' in-the-round show,'' Lucinda said recently from her home in Los Angeles, "except that he reads a poem, I sing a song, and then he reads a poem. We go back and forth like that. I end up talking more about a song than I would if I were doing a concert.''

During her young adulthood, Lucinda was steeped in a world of creative expression. "There were always a lot of other poets at the house,'' she recalled. "We'd have writers over and sit around and have drinks. My dad would often read a new poem that he'd just written, and I would sing some songs. That was a fairly regular thing. I got feedback, which is of utmost importance when you're learning. I had this immediate, intelligent audience. Plus, I spent a lot of time sitting around just listening, observing and absorbing things through a kind of osmosis.''

These informal gatherings took place in Fayetteville, Ark., where Miller was a professor of English and foreign languages at the University of Arkansas. After 34 years as a faculty member there, Miller recently retired. During a phone interview last week, Miller discussed some of the changes he has seen in contemporary literature.

"There is a sort of poetry being written and published today that I have some difficulty with,'' he observed. "It is afflicted with what is generally referred to as obscurantism. It's hard to figure out exactly what's going on in the poem. Some of those who write such poetry say that you're not supposed to understand it -- you're supposed to feel it.

"My biggest problem with it is that it's easy. A drunk or a 3-year-old can be hard to understand. But what is difficult, challenging and fruitful is to be clear and mysterious at the same time. If a woman in an elevator says, 'Excuse me, but I need you,' [then] you know exactly what she said, but you don't know exactly what she means. That gives life to language.''

In November, Miller will participate in the opening celebration for the Clinton Presidential Center in Little Rock, Ark. Miller will read "Of History and Hope'' during the ceremonies.

In connection with Lucinda and Miller's Chicago performance, the Poetry Center will hold a benefit reception Friday night. Miller will also conduct a poetry workshop at 2 p.m. Saturday For information, call Shirley Stephenson at (312) 629-9171, or visit www.poetrycenter.org.

Bobby Reed is a local free-lance writer who covers country music for the Sun-Times.