Trinomials: Mary Lou Lord

Mary Lou Lord: I Figured You Out

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Mary Lou Lord's rise to semi-fame in the Boston-based grunge scene of the mid-nineties never flagged as high as Juliana Hatfield or the Lemonheads, other-coast Kill Rock Stars labelmates Sleater-Kinney and The Decemberists, or other of her performing peers from that era, but she's always been my favorite anti-folker, whose coverage of Richard Thompson and Shawn Colvin finds periodic placement on my coverblog. This song is not technically a cover, but it is an Elliott Smith composition, one which he decided not to record himself; its bitter cynicism reflects the lyrical sensibility they shared, and her shattered innocence is perfect for the part, even as the strum and production call directly to his studio work.

Hers may nonetheless be a well-recognized name in the indie world, in no small part for collaborations with doomed musicians Kurt Cobain and Smith himself, for her inclusion on several mid-nineties covers albums paying tribute to John Lennon, Van Halen, and Saturday Morning Cartoons, and for the use of her Daniel Johnston cover in a Target ad campaign. But to me, this particular trinomial will always be the girl in the Park St. Station, her delicate busker's voice and gentle punk rocker's attitude echoing through the brick caverns as the trains rush through.

Richard Thompson Covers: Beeswing

Mary Lou Lord: Beeswing

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1952 Vincent Black Lightning and Beeswing both stand out on the Richard Thompson albums on which they originally appeared as acoustic ballads amidst mostly electric full-band songs. Mary Lou Lord covers both on her solo acoustic album Live City Sounds, but with very different results. She pushes her delivery of Vincent Black Lightning, and instead of sounding passionate, it sounds strident and forced. But Lord’s version of Beeswing is another matter. She sings this one with a restraint that perfectly conveys the sense of fragility that Thompson wrote about. The song seems to be set in modern times, but the female protagonist might as well be a gypsy girl from an old English folk song. Lord sings, “She was a rare thing/ Fine as a beeswing”, and you utterly believe her. The romance in the song must end, and Lord adds to her version some tolling chords at the end that bring out this sense of finality perfectly.

Name-Droppers: His N.D. World

Mary Lou Lord: His N.D. World

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After seeing Anne's post, I just had to post this one.

No Depression was a magazine that charted the rise of alt-country music in the late '90s to such an extent that its name is one of the many alternate appellations for the genre. Mary Lou Lord cleverly reworked her song "His Indie World" into "His N.D. World", thus affording her the chance to name-drop a couple dozen more artists.

This version of the song was recorded at KGSR, a excellent radio station in Austin, Texas, and was released on one of their annual Broadcasts charity collections. Every single one of them is highly recommended, and they usually sell out quickly.

Name-Droppers: His Indie World

Mary Lou Lord: His Indie World

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I was reminded of this song after reading and listening to Susan's submission of the Todd Snider track. This is another song that consists almost entirely of lists of artists. In this one's case, it's a song about how she doesn't feel like she fits into a guy's life because his life is just one long reference to the indie rock bands he loves, and she'd rather sit around listening to "Joni, Nick, Neil and Bob". The references are used so familiarly at times that they're merely first names that only an avid music fan would be able to get the reference right away.

The song was released on her first EP which came out in 1995 and the references are to the indie music of that era. It's an adorable little two minute guitar-and-girl ditty that always makes me smile.