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Lucinda Williams' unusually rich and lengthy concert at the Carolina Theatre on Sunday night could be attributed, in part, to a letter she'd received from someone in attendance named Roger.

He'd heard her song "Are You Alright?" (from her latest album, "West"), and it allowed him to finally make peace with a close friend's death during the Vietnam War many years ago. Williams had written the song about a prodigal real-life brother who periodically went missing, but like the best songs, it can speak to many individuals' situations. And so Roger sang it to his pal by his grave at Arlington Cemetery.

Williams was so moved by his story that she designed Sunday night's set list with him in mind. And what a show it was, running for more than two hours and ending at 11:45 p.m.

She began with a string of pensive, mournful ballads, progressed to more beat-heavy, rock-oriented material, and concluded with a clutch of antiwar songs by other songwriters.

Between songs, Williams spoke casually and candidly about a variety of subjects, from her songwriting (once Dylan-esque, now simpler) to her career and frame of mind (never better) to more topical issues such as "dirty politics" (Bush, et al.) and the need to legalize marijuana for medical use.

This show fell between five-night stands in Los Angeles and New York, where she performs a different album in its entirety each night and follows it with a set of old and new songs. No doubt the momentum from Los Angeles and anticipation of New York helped fuel her.

The Carolina Theatre crowd was warm and receptive, although it was disappointing that an artist of Williams' stature couldn't quite fill the intimate, 1,100-seat venue.

Williams strummed guitar and sang beautifully, all the while swaying to the beat. Plainly captivated by the magic she and her four-piece band conjured, she'd conclude each song -- even the saddest of them -- with a big grin.

There were too many high points to enumerate, but "Drunken Angel," "Unsuffer Me," "Joy" and, of course, "Are You Alright?" were especially memorable.

Williams must have been feeling nostalgic for the 1960s because she covered the Doors' "Riders On the Storm," Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth," Bob Dylan's "Masters of War" and a snippet of It's a Beautiful Day's "White Bird." She also performed a new song, "Honey Bee," which sounded like a punky Patti Smith homage.

Her final words to the audience: "Love, peace and revolution."