Press Quotes

“Dar Williams has a catalogue deep enough in quality and quantity to qualify her as one of her generation’s finest singer-songwriters. Hummingbird Highway follows the thread of her previous works, full of songs that are melodically gorgeous and lyrically graceful.”

– NO DEPRESSION

Dar Williams has built a reputation on turning everyday details into something luminous, and her new album Hummingbird Highway (out now on Righteous Babe Records) continues that tradition. The record takes its title from the sensation of speeding through life – moments of beauty, flashes of risk, and fleeting glimpses that pass in an instant.

– AMERICAN SONGWRITER

“…She continues to be an effervescent become of songwriting talent who sings from the heart and carries the listener on beautiful audio journeys.”

– ROCK N REEL - RNR (UK)

“Musically, the song (Hummingbird Highway) gallops along with a medium-tempo beat that almost sounds like the fluttering of a bird while Williams’ vocals glide right along with soulful warmth. There is a feeling of freedom, reflection, and celebration that comes from the rich timeless lyrics and soaring harmonies. For Williams, the song marks an exciting addition to a catalog that is already quite impressive.”

– GLIDE MAGAZINE

“…She’s absolutely masterful at mixing multiple threads of commentary and musical styles into a single song with layers of messages and stories and acoustics. Hummingbird Highway showcases that talent.”

– TWANGVILLE

“Williams, one of folk music’s most cherished gifts, titled her newest LP Hummingbird Highway…another impressive offering from someone whose heart first journeyed to music long ago and whose emotional vigilance and poetic vigor seems to only intensify with age.”

–THE BLUEGRASS SITUATION

“With a collection of high quality albums to her name Williams’ consistency is remarkable and the latest album “Hummingbird Highway ”displays all the same qualities that we have come to expect over the years, with subject matter that covers the environment, spiritualism, the human condition and social justice, as well as the staples such as familial relationships and all the aspects of love. As you would expect from a writer and a teacher of songwriting, her albums contain some wonderfully literate and articulate writing.”

– AMERICANA UK

“Hummingbird Highway (Righteous Babe) is an elegantly assembled patchwork of richly rendered vignettes depicting a life in motion – whethere she’s riffing on the life of a touring musician or assessing the blur of modern life in general.”

– MAGNET

“Hummingbird Highway is classic Dar Williams, a fresh supply of drink from the ever-flowing spring, exemplifying all of the strong points that make her music enjoyable in all its words and ways. “

– POPMATTERS

“Her first new studio recording in four years, “Hummingbird Highway” ranks with the best of her musical work, from “Mortal City” through “Promised Land.” An amazing and varied sonic experience, ranging from the contemporary Americana of the title track to the stunning pop of “All is Come Undone,” the jazzy bossa nova of “Tu Sais Le Printemps,” the raucous rockabilly of Williams cover of “I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight,” and the exuberant “Maryland, Maryland,” this is a harmonic highway worth traveling repeatedly.”

– OUT SOUTH FLORIDA

“Olive Tree” closed captivatingly. Dar’s ability to perpetuate an expressive sound with rolling piano notes, an earthly Clara Kennedy cello that contrasts with the percussive drive, is superb. Other artists don’t dive this deeply. Their minds aren’t as proficient as their fingers. It may just be one of the year’s best.”

– AMERICANA HIGHWAYS

“…HUMMINGBIRD HIGHWAY is another fine chapter in Dar Williams’ attempt to make sense of the world we currently live in,, and it should be given the fullest attention, from start to finish, that it richly deserves.”

– LONESOME HIGHWAY

“Williams is one of our greatest poet-singers, and “Hummingbird Highway” shows that she remains among the best possible guides on this journey together we call life.”

– READ JUNK

“Her voice continues to deepen, but she’s lost none of the playfulness that has long made her a genuine treasure. The empathy of this collection, notable even among her own catalog, feels particularly needed right now.”

– COUNTRY UNIVERSE

“Williams is a fine storyteller and she has the voice to give every reading here plenty of gravitas.”

– ANTI MUSIC

“Dar Williams has embraced change and found paths to allow her to continue moving forward. Hummingbird Highway encourages the same for her listeners. It is a beautiful album.”

– FERVOR COULEE

“It’s not Trump but the likes of Williams who are the seeds to truly make America great again.”

– FATEA UK

“Building community and family seems paramount in her art and beyond and by approaching and opting for Righteous Babe Records, she has continued that trend.”

– NEW JERSEY STAGE

“The styles are disparate, yet matched by Williams’ knack for crafting intricate narratives with rich storytelling that give you plenty to contemplate without weighing you down…On Hummingbird Highway, all of these elements blend together to make a cohesive, compelling whole.”

– ON REPEAT RECORDS

“It does not take long to realize, while speaking with Dar Williams that you are engaging with a thoughtful, deep thinking, beautifully creative and highly intelligent individual, who cares passionately about the world in which she lives…Dar Williams is a talented singer, songwriter and musician and that goes without saying, but she also has the ability to curate feelings of her audience, of the common folk and meet us where we are and to express in a Pete Seeger sort of way, with gentleness, in kindness, but with strength what needs to be said. Perhaps she is the female Pete Seeger of this generation.”

– RIVETING RIFFS

“Elevated folk composed for open arms, kind hearts and fertile minds, “Highway,” weds Dar’s warm, nurturing voice to incandescent settings with Williams dishing often forgotten history through nature-based mythology. From lively funeral tunes to battered traveling songs and jazzy café chansons, the album’s sophisticated, rowdy and disarmingly charming feast serves sweet and savory brainstorms alongside home-cooked comfort and topical conversation.”

– JOHN NOYD SUBSTACK