Pop Music Review : Rickie Lee Jones Scores With a Return to the Basics

There may be a lesson here.

At a time when there is so much obsession with technology in pop music, two of our most valued artists have found new levels of character and depth in their own work by returning to basics.

Johnny Cash comes closer than he has in 20 years to capturing the essence of his soul-stirring music in his new “American Recordings” album, which simply features his voice and guitar recorded in a producer’s living room.

And Rickie Lee Jones exhibited an intimacy and grace on Friday at the Wadsworth Theater in a solo acoustic concert that was so enthralling you felt at times you were hearing her music and message for the first time.

The timing couldn’t have been better for Jones, whose attire (a flannel shirt over a red sun dress) was as informal as the staging.

Despite continued critical support, Jones hasn’t been a major pop chart contender for years--and the danger is that many potential fans could begin to dismiss her as a narrow cult artist whose best days are behind her.

Friday’s concert--part of a heralded U.S. tour--ridiculed that contention.

If anything, Jones is a more confident and complete artist now than in the late ‘70s, when she arrived on the scene with a series of dazzling tunes whose poetic imagination and streetwise swagger led to comparisons with everyone from Joni Mitchell to Tom Waits.

That early material, including “Chuck E.’s in Love” and “Last Chance Texaco,” was in generous supply at the Wadsworth, where Jones alternated between piano and guitar. But the new arrangements downplayed many of the exotic blues and jazz textures that once competed with the words for your attention.

In stripping the songs down, Jones used her voice, which can move effortlessly from shades of sweet innocence to numbing heartache, to find fresh, revealing edges in the tunes.

For all the emphasis on the early material, however, the songs that most defined the comforting tone of Friday’s concert were “Running From Mercy” and “Stewart’s Coat,” both from Jones’ latest album, 1993’s “Traffic From Paradise.”

“Love is a healing thing,” she sang in “Coat” with a voice so wistful that the song sounded like the prayer of someone who can testify to the line’s truth, yet has been touched enough by sadness to never lose track of love’s wonder.

In a pop world where many of our most gripping singer-songwriters help illuminate moments of darkness and doubt, Jones’ commanding performance demonstrated why more than ever she is one of our most inspiring beacons.