FOLKSINGER Dar Williams has played in a lot of venues and in a lot of
                     contexts, but on this Thursday morning, she's about do something new: Play a
                     short solo set for a meeting of execs of BMG. It's not as if she didn't have
                     enough swirling around her, what with an upcoming release, "The Green World"
                     (Razor & Tie); a national tour (which pulls into the Bottom Line Tuesday through
                     Thursday); daily rehearsals with her band; a folk festival gig in Edmonton,
                     Alberta. But, all that's normal. What's new and occasions her trip from the West
                     Village Bed and Breakfast to the multinational's midtown offices is that her new
                     recording, in stores Tuesday, is a priority release. Via constant touring, she's
                     built a solid fanbase. her 1997 recording "End of the Summer" sold exceptionally
                     well for an independent release, so the major is distributing the new one. And by
                     playing a few songs at the weekly meeting, Dar is expected to rally the marketing
                     troops. En route, in the cab, she spoke with freelancer Martin Johnson.

                     How does the "The Green World" differ from "End of the Summer"? It reflects
                     an ongoing process musically. I'm better able to realize in the studio the music I
                     hear in my head. You know, my theatrical background helps in this. There's a
                     tendency to want to use all the props because they are there, but really you only
                     really want to use the props that are appropriate to the play. You don't want to
                     use a mandolin and drum loops on every track just because they're available to
                     you.

                     You're working with a new producer, Stewart Lerman. Why him? I spoke with a
                     lot of different producers and he was the only one who didn't want to do the
                     typical thing: Bring in some studio cats and play. Often you have the songs here
                     and the musicians there, and the two never really meet.

                     It's like a parallel virtuosity.

                     What is the meaning of "The Green World"? It's a concept that goes back to
                     Elizabethan England. The Green World is the chaotic world. It's where you learn
                     things about yourself that you don't necessarily want to know, but you have to
                     go there. What you learn there enlivens the closed world, where you have control
                     of things.

                     You came up through the coffeehouse circuit. Is it still strong? Definitely. I think
                     in cities like Boston, Pittsburgh, Charlotte, there are picking parties and tip-jar
                     gigs. I lived in Cambridge for six years and used to do three or four open mics a
                     week. I think it's better, too. There isn't as much jealousy as there was a few
                     years ago. People aren't taking themselves quite so seriously.

                     You wrote a song on "End of the Summer" called "Teenagers, Kick Our Butts."
                     Do you feel that the music scene is tilted too much toward teenyboppers? No,
                     the people are the people, and as long as there is good distribution the right music
                     will find the right ears.

                     What's next beyond this recording and this tour? Is there a new "Cry Cry Cry"
                     [her side project with Lucy Kaplansky and Richard Shindell] in the works? No,
                     much as I loved "Cry Cry Cry," it really was never meant to be a touring project.
                     It was great, but it has run its course. After this album, I want to do a live
                     album. Then, I don't know. I had an epiphany the other day that I don't have the
                     road in my blood. I like where it's gotten me, though. If I wasn't carrying a
                     guitar, people might have thought I was just some girl going to a tennis lesson.