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Lucinda Williams — Changed the Locks
Album: Lucinda Williams
Avg rating:
6.2

Your rating:
Total ratings: 986









Released: 1988
Length: 3:41
Plays (last 30 days): 2
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I changed the lock on my front door
So you can't see me anymore
And you can't come inside my house
And you can't lie down on my couch
I changed the lock on my front door

I changed the number on my phone
So you can't call me up at home
And you can't say those things to me
That make me fall down on my knees
I changed the number on my phone

I changed the kind of car I drive
So you can't see me when I go by
And you can't chase me up the street
And you can't knock me off of my feet
I changed the kind of car I drive

I changed the kind of clothes I wear
So you can't find me anywhere
And you can't spot me in a crowd
And you can't call my name out loud
I changed the kind of clothes I wear

I changed the tracks underneath the train
So you can't find me again
And you can't trace my path
And you can't hear my laugh
I changed the tracks underneath the train

I changed the name of this town
So you can't follow me down
And you can't touch me like before
And you can't make me want you more
I changed the name of this town

I changed the lock on my front door
I changed the number on my phone
I changed the kind of car I drive
I changed the kind of clothes I wear

I changed the tracks underneath the train
I changed the name of this town
I changed the name of this town
I changed the name of this town
Comments (85)add comment
 debraburnham wrote:
this got me through a very bad relationship a few years ago, turned up loud, driving across the country, singing along at the top of my lungs
 
Thanks for posting this.  Schools the snipers living in a bubble how one's perspective on a song depends on whether one is oneself immersed in what is being described.
 
Nor am I impressed by their nonexistent capacity for empathy in not recognizing the cathartic value of a song that registers 5 x 5 (military sense) on what someone is experiencing at that moment.  Zeppelin's album Presence got me through a very rough time a long, long time ago, especially Nobody's Fault But Mine and Tea For One.  I remember both the experience and the music as vividly as if it all happened yesterday.
Posted 1 month ago by bluwaterschooner    [ Reply ]
A restraining order might have been less trouble in the long run.
Posted 9 months ago by Jakethemuss    [ Reply ]
Currently struggling how I ever thought this was worth a 3.  
Posted 9 months ago by Alastair    [ Reply ]
this got me through a very bad relationship a few years ago, turned up loud, driving across the country, singing along at the top of my lungs
Posted 1 year ago by debraburnham    [ Reply ]
i think she might not like him much anymore. just a feeling
Posted 1 year ago by jpfueler    [ Reply ]
lucinda is outstanding…
Posted 1 year ago by tm    [ Reply ]
Just finished listening to her read her autobiography. Helpful, since so much of what she writes about happened in her world. Like so many woman musicians, she didn't get the respect or path she deserved.
Plus, I grew up in Lake Charles, so I get it.
Posted 1 year ago by Steely_D    [ Reply ]
This song desperately needs a chorus.
Posted 1 year ago by ladron    [ Reply ]
i love tom petty's version.
Posted 1 year ago by lily34    [ Reply ]
I like Lucinda Williams but this song gets pretty grating after awhile, it's a plodding number with a drawling voice that goes on and on.
Posted 1 year ago by timmus    [ Reply ]
i changed the track i'm playing now
Posted 1 year ago by LinThizzy    [ Reply ]
 teadye wrote:

Time to turn RP off. The single most untalented performer in the playlist. I have never heard this particular song but could smell Lucinda a mile away. Oh well! Must be the fake-o Southern accent and off key pseudo country whine... Nothing worse than someone "putting on" country IMHO. I put down tools and climbed down off a ladder just to turn her off and write this complaint....



Poor guy, it must be oh so tiring standing on a ladder all day so you can look down on everyone.
Posted 1 year ago by ebanzai    [ Reply ]
.........
ugh, every time she comes on RP
yes! Please change the locks!!
Posted 1 year ago by Michaeljcovel    [ Reply ]
 Alastair wrote:


Because it's bloody awful?


I don’t think it is at all
Posted 2 years ago by jp33442    [ Reply ]
 jp33442 wrote:

Why is this song not an 8 or above??



Because it's bloody awful?
Posted 2 years ago by Alastair    [ Reply ]
Why is this song not an 8 or above??
Posted 2 years ago by jp33442    [ Reply ]
 LinThizzy wrote:

locks pick easy



she sounds drunk singing
Posted 2 years ago by LinThizzy    [ Reply ]
locks pick easy
Posted 2 years ago by LinThizzy    [ Reply ]
"Here's all these obsessive-compulsive things I'm doing to move past you in my life, plus a song about you."
Posted 2 years ago by timmus    [ Reply ]
You tell him, Lucinda! Solid 8.
Posted 2 years ago by Tjerome    [ Reply ]
An interesting thematic follow-up to "Pretty Woman", and a very nice song in its own right.
Posted 2 years ago by zair99    [ Reply ]
I'd change the name o' RP
to lose the imbeciles out heeeya
who dig and dig on Pink Floyd
and everything else is but a Void
Posted 2 years ago by thewiseking    [ Reply ]
lots of haters in the years here.  You should see Lucinda live and you might change your minds.  Talented song writer and soulful singer, great backup band too.  
Posted 2 years ago by carmelmik    [ Reply ]
The lyrics provide ample evidence her ex made the right decision!  I enjoy a lot of Lucinda, but this one can't end soon enough.  Maybe it hits too close to home? :-)
Posted 2 years ago by jayhamiljr    [ Reply ]
I had never heard of Lucinda before listening to RP and, frankly, ignorance was bliss. 
Posted 2 years ago by Alastair    [ Reply ]
Dirge
Posted 2 years ago by BonzoWiltsUK    [ Reply ]
Not a Lucinda fan. Every song of hers I hear on RP is just . . . meh.
Posted 2 years ago by acolt    [ Reply ]
 Leslie wrote:
kaupmees wrote:This song is from one of her older CDs (the eponymous album) which came out in 1998


I'm not familiar with her older CDs, but this one is from Lucinda Williams
Posted 2 years ago by ibribe    [ Reply ]
don't mess with a woman who's got the power to change the name of this town...
Posted 2 years ago by lynn01    [ Reply ]
LUCINDA ROCKS!
Posted 3 years ago by Btravelen    [ Reply ]
Stripped and simple - great!  Honest with wry humor.
Posted 3 years ago by aonley    [ Reply ]
Oh what we must go through to shake a stalker!  Sing it Lucinda!
Posted 3 years ago by pigtail    [ Reply ]
 Coppertop wrote:
teadye wrote: Most probably the MOST uneducated comment I've heard yet. No. Wait. It IS the MOST uneducated comment I've heard.


@ teadye: maybe get into your pickup and pop in a Lynyrd Skynyrd casette?

Great song. She weaves the tale indirectly how desperate the guy made her.  And if she did put on an accent to punch the point about maybe how she sees good ole boys, well, it worked.
Go girl !!
Posted 3 years ago by rob0101    [ Reply ]
My wife asked 'who told this guy he could sing' for the preceding Blues Traveller track, and I'm afraid Lucinda has just trumped (in all senses) that for this household. Shame - I like most of her work, but have a hard time justifying that to 'er indoors with this one. 
Posted 3 years ago by kbs    [ Reply ]
 Ihatethissong wrote:
yeah well I gave it a 10
and RP ain't going to stop playing it no matter how much you whine
and yeah I said ain't so bite it
 
wavering at 8, now its a 10.
Posted 3 years ago by islanduo    [ Reply ]
Not so good...EH?
Posted 4 years ago by Rockit9    [ Reply ]
 carlos65 wrote:
Poor vocal, but doesn't she sound young on this. I think she got better as she got older. 
 

She has the kind of voice that just works with the music perfectly.  
Posted 4 years ago by khardog145    [ Reply ]
angry chick. 
Posted 4 years ago by dougalbumski    [ Reply ]
Hey! What's my ex wife doin out here?
Posted 4 years ago by thewiseking    [ Reply ]
Gah! This is horrible!
Posted 4 years ago by Ahnyer_Keester    [ Reply ]
Lucinda is awesome.
Posted 4 years ago by jelgator    [ Reply ]
I'm glad later versions improved this good song because this one is painful.
Posted 4 years ago by jimtyrrell    [ Reply ]
 teadye wrote:
Time to turn RP off. The single most untalented performer in the playlist. I have never heard this particular song but could smell Lucinda a mile away. Oh well! Must be the fake-o Southern accent and off key pseudo country whine... Nothing worse than someone "putting on" country IMHO. I put down tools and climbed down off a ladder just to turn her off and write this complaint....
 

Posted 4 years ago by tigerstrongdesigns324    [ Reply ]
 bobcouch wrote:
It sounds like maybe she should just move.
 

Yeah right? An awful lot of changing things in her environment, may as well. Or, she might just change her thought patterns and keep all her stuff!
Posted 5 years ago by MrStatenIsle    [ Reply ]
It sounds like maybe she should just move.
Posted 5 years ago by bobcouch    [ Reply ]
Too repetitive for my ears.  PSD.  Chrissie Hynde she's not.

edit:  Followed by "Middle of the Road"...  shows how it should be done.
Posted 5 years ago by DaidyBoy    [ Reply ]
Poor vocal, but doesn't she sound young on this. I think she got better as she got older. 
Posted 5 years ago by carlos65    [ Reply ]
Great song, but Lucinda isn't quite pulling it off vocally. I think she got better at using her voice as time went on.
Posted 5 years ago by nutrod42    [ Reply ]
CHANGE the song... Baaad!
Posted 5 years ago by Rockit9    [ Reply ]
 easmann wrote:
The "Live @ The Fillmore" version is more raucous and is superior I think. An obviously polarizing song from a polarizing artist and I like it very much.

 
Totally agree with this.  Studio recordings of Lucinda dont show her real talent... the first time I heard the double CD set of The Fillmore concert, I was sold on her awesome ability to perform.     'Got my mojo workin' now!'
Posted 5 years ago by slickdh    [ Reply ]
I love(d) Lucinda until she burned her voice out (same thing we all partook in in the 80's -- well most of us) but once her voice was gone I just could not stand to hear her.

And this song in particular really grates me the wrong way.  One of the top ten 100 songs I leap across the room to turn  down.  

Sorry Lucinda.
Posted 5 years ago by Randomax    [ Reply ]
Here I am complimenting easmann again, this time for taking the time to type out the full lyrics of the song - which will stay with me
like a poem
(as I've stated elsewhere in my comment on Lyle Lovett — The Road To Ensenada ).

While I just don't dig her singing them, the lyrics are haunting and beautiful. I'd like to hear someone else having a shot at them. I don't know who. Maybe Chrissie Hynde, maybe Janis Joplin... I know, I know, but she'd do them justice...

Williams just sound almost like she didn't write this herself - she can't bring those words to life. Maybe it's just me.
Posted 8 years ago by fedtho    [ Reply ]
I love this song!!!!  Gets me feelin good!  Love it!
Posted 9 years ago by Miliz    [ Reply ]
The (YouTube: Changed The Locks), Live @ The Fillmore version is more raucous and is superior I think. An obviously polarizing song from a polarizing artist and I like it very much.
Posted 9 years ago by easmann    [ Reply ]
Admit it, all you haters, Lucinda can do no wrong.
Posted 17 years ago by xkolibuul    [ Reply ]
strick wrote:
Normally, I can tolerate her, maybe even like some of her stuff...but this is godawful !!!!
I wouldn't go quite that far, but it's definitely unpleasant, IMO.
Posted 17 years ago by winter    [ Reply ]
teadye wrote:
Time to turn RP off. The single most untalented performer in the playlist. I have never heard this particular song but could smell Lucinda a mile away. Oh well! Must be the fake-o Southern accent and off key pseudo country whine... Nothing worse than someone "putting on" country IMHO. I put down tools and climbed down off a ladder just to turn her off and write this complaint....
Most probably the MOST uneducated comment I've heard yet. No. Wait. It IS the MOST uneducated comment I've heard.
Posted 19 years ago by Coppertop    [ Reply ]
Horrible. White trash without the pathos.
Posted 19 years ago by Johnny_Truant    [ Reply ]
Wow, lots of negative comments on this one. Gee, I kind of liked it myself...">
Posted 19 years ago by rrowdies    [ Reply ]
tg3k wrote:
Nope. Doesn't work at all for me. Plodding, repetitive, somewhat out of tune, with all of 2 chords in the progression.
Plodding! That's the word I was looking for.......
Posted 19 years ago by handyrae    [ Reply ]
bostonbeerguy wrote:
I remember this being a much more uptempo tune. Is there another version of it?
There is; a version by Tom Petty on the "She's The One" soundtrack. It is leaps and bounds more enjoyable.
Posted 19 years ago by MrSpaz    [ Reply ]
And I changed the channel.
Posted 19 years ago by Death_to_Clear_Channel    [ Reply ]
teadye wrote:
Time to turn RP off. The single most untalented performer in the playlist. I have never heard this particular song but could smell Lucinda a mile away. Oh well! Must be the fake-o Southern accent and off key pseudo country whine... Nothing worse than someone "putting on" country IMHO. I put down tools and climbed down off a ladder just to turn her off and write this complaint....
Posted 19 years ago by strick    [ Reply ]
teadye wrote:
... Must be the fake-o Southern accent and off key pseudo country whine... Nothing worse than someone "putting on" country IMHO....
Well, it seems to work for Dwight!
Posted 19 years ago by hideglue    [ Reply ]
Not terrible, but Tom Petty does it so much better.
Posted 19 years ago by JonnyNismo    [ Reply ]
Normally, I can tolerate her, maybe even like some of her stuff...but this is godawful !!!!
Posted 19 years ago by strick    [ Reply ]
Time to turn RP off. The single most untalented performer in the playlist. I have never heard this particular song but could smell Lucinda a mile away. Oh well! Must be the fake-o Southern accent and off key pseudo country whine... Nothing worse than someone "putting on" country IMHO. I put down tools and climbed down off a ladder just to turn her off and write this complaint....
Posted 19 years ago by teadye    [ Reply ]
Kurt_from_La_Qui wrote:
HEY! an accepted upload!
Thanks Kurt for the upload. Made me come in from the kithen to see who was playing. A 9.
Posted 19 years ago by Malc    [ Reply ]
I changed the station on the radio So I don't have to hear this song no mo' Ok, sorry. Couldn't resist. Just don't much care for her voice. Saw her live once (she was opening for the Jayhawks, who were amazing) and she was just *sloppy* -- all over the place pitch-wise. (Which, admittedly, might be a "styling", but it's one that doesn't do anything for me.)
Posted 19 years ago by ginathelintqueen    [ Reply ]
kaupmees wrote:
I like the lyrics. Thanks for the new Lucinda :nodhead: And this is my first first comment. Too bad it's not that insightful, but hey.
This song is from one of her older CDs (the eponymous album) which came out in 1998
Posted 19 years ago by Leslie    [ Reply ]
Nope. Doesn't work at all for me. Plodding, repetitive, somewhat out of tune, with all of 2 chords in the progression. She could be singing the best lyrics known to man, and it wouldn't change any of the above. I like a fair number of Lucinda's songs, but this piece isn't one of them. :roll:
Posted 19 years ago by tg3k    [ Reply ]
Well... So much for getting the lyrics together... Wish she had found some music to go/with. :(
Posted 19 years ago by diane    [ Reply ]
I remember this being a much more uptempo tune. Is there another version of it?
Posted 19 years ago by bostonbeerguy    [ Reply ]
What CD is this on? (Or did she change the name? LOL!)
Posted 19 years ago by Pyro    [ Reply ]
jerseygirl wrote:
can't stand this woman. she is so fucking pretenious!! yuck.
kettle to pot, "You are black!" oh, and that's pretenTious....
Posted 19 years ago by Pyro    [ Reply ]
anniebear wrote:
Lucinda Williams R O C K S!!!!! Frelling fantastic artist! God damn she is one powerful artist! LoveloveloveLOVE her!
Ditto.
Posted 19 years ago by steeler    [ Reply ]
Lucinda Williams R O C K S!!!!! Frelling fantastic artist! God damn she is one powerful artist! LoveloveloveLOVE her!
Posted 19 years ago by anniebear    [ Reply ]
can't stand this woman. she is so fucking pretenious!! yuck.
Posted 19 years ago by jerseygirl    [ Reply ]
BGGA wrote:
Nope, I still don't like her, even if she is covering Tom Petty.
You have that a bit backwards.
Posted 19 years ago by Art_Carnage    [ Reply ]
Nope, I still don't like her, even if she is covering Tom Petty.
Posted 19 years ago by BGGA    [ Reply ]
I like LW, but Tom Petty did a MUCH better job on this, even if she wrote it.
Posted 19 years ago by FlatCat    [ Reply ]
kaupmees wrote:
I like the lyrics. Thanks for the new Lucinda :nodhead: And this is my first first comment. Too bad it's not that insightful, but hey.
Wow, I was about to say, "isn't this a Tom Petty song," but All Music tells me it's actually a Lucinda Williams song, I've just never heard her doing it before...nice.
Posted 19 years ago by BoFiS    [ Reply ]
No wonder she can't find her "Joy"! :P
Posted 19 years ago by Kagin    [ Reply ]
HEY! an accepted upload!
Posted 19 years ago by KurtfromLaQuinta    [ Reply ]
I like the lyrics. Thanks for the new Lucinda :nodhead: And this is my first first comment. Too bad it's not that insightful, but hey.
Posted 19 years ago by kaupmees    [ Reply ]