New York ? The impish image of Tracy Chapman on the cover of her new CD tells no secrets.

It’s only in meeting her face-to-face, where the flecks of gray in her dreadlocks are visible, does it hit you that it’s been 14 years since Chapman’s attention-grabbing debut.

On the strengths of songs like “Fast Car” and “Talking ‘Bout a Revolution,” Chapman had an instant hit album a rare feat, then and now, for the introspective songwriting that dominates her work.

The commercial success, duplicated with the 1996 hit “Give Me One Reason,” has benefits beyond the obvious financial ones.

“Having a record that does so well gave me the freedom that I feel like I exercise now in making music that I like, that I might not otherwise be able to make, at least not with a record company like this,” said Chapman, 38.

Her latest disc, “Let it Rain,” was released this week on Elektra Records. It is exactly what one would expect from a Tracy Chapman album mostly quiet, sincere, non-trendy ruminations on love and relationships.

There’s no overriding theme, although Chapman jokes that with the songs like “Let it Rain” and “Another Sun,” plus a lyrical reference to “the wind on my face,” she should promote her music on The Weather Channel.

The subdued music and a cut like “Happy,” where the narrator is anything but, won’t do anything to change a dour image. But there is variety: the single, “You’re the One,” is a playful take on the common theme of falling in love with someone your friends say is no good for you.

Chapman recorded the album this summer in San Francisco, where she lives, and co-produced it with John Parish.