Mercy Now - Dark Publications

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Editorial Reviews:

Amazon.com
A spark of redemption illuminates even the darker songs on Mercy Now, the fourth album by Mary Gauthier (pronounced "go-shay"). The influence of her native Louisiana pervades her Southern Gothic songcraft, which first won an audience in the folk clubs of Boston. After a series of releases on independent labels, her Lost Highway debut seems destined to expand that audience significantly. Within her mature, weather-beaten artistry, Dylanesque metaphysics go to Mardi Gras on "Wheel Inside the Wheel"; the naked emotion and eye for detail of "Your Sister Cried" and "Empty Spaces" conjure comparisons with Lucinda Williams; and the plainspoken "I Drink" and "Drop in a Bucket" have the bittersweet bite of the best of John Prine. The spare arrangements of producer/guitarist Gurf Morlix, punctuated by cello, organ, and harmonica, give the material plenty of room to breathe. Gauthier's vocals are half-spoken, half-sung, and all soul. --Don McLeese

Customer Reviews: Read 34 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

"Just say she's a rhymer, and rhymers get restless" March 12, 2005
67 out of 71 found this review helpful

I am probably the last person you would expect to be enthusiastic over what is billed as a 'country' album. Whatever that is. But, for some reason, I've heard 'Mercy Now' four times in the past five days, and if country music always sounded like that song, I would be listening to a whole lot more of it. I would call Gauthier's work country/folk and the in name for that definition seems to be Southern Gothic, a genre name that doesn't make a whole lot sense to me. But the songs on this album, they make sense to me, as they would to anyone who loves carefully crafted, gritty lyrics.

Yes, these are often dark songs. Yet somehow the upbeat peeks through almost unexpectedly. Mercy Now and Prayer Without Words are good examples of that. In other words, they may be sad, but they aren't hopeless, and that little bit of a hook will grab you every time. There is a subtle spirituality here as well - listen to Wheel Inside The Wheel, for example:

Souls ain't born, souls don't die
Soul ain't made of earth, ain't made of water, ain't made of sky
So, ride the flaming circle, wind the golden reel
And roll on, brother, in the wheel inside the wheel

This is interesting work, even if, at its heart it is still about broken relationships, human disasters, being down and out, etc. And there is intelligence behind the lyrics, and a real artistry behind the songs. Give it a listen and you'll see what I mean.

Gauthier has a true Southern whiskey voice, complete with edgy whine. And yet it is capable of a surprising number of colors, from really down and out to gently caring, and oh yes, just a dash of pointed sarcasm. I Drink is a masterpiece of the latter. In an interview, Gauthier mentioned that she often rewrites a song several hundred times, and this level of craftsmanship shows everywhere.

This will probably be my one and only country album, but it is surely one I'll listen to often.

5 out of 5 stars

Spur of the Moment Pick and Glad I Did February 19, 2005
22 out of 30 found this review helpful

I picked this up yesterday having never heard of Mary Gauthier. I was hooked after listening to a couple of cuts. This isn't your average country album. It does start off a little dark but gets lighter as it goes on. Her music tells a story thats missing from alot of today's artists. If you're looking for something a little different, pick this cd up today.

3 out of 5 stars

GrownUpMusic.com recommended! June 27, 2005
11 out of 13 found this review helpful

Folk singer/songwriter Mary Gauthier is Poet Laureate for White Trash America. With her downbeat singing style and unapologetic odes to drinking, heartbreak and t.v. dinners, she may very well be the most honest, expressive and talented songwriter to hit rock bottom and write about it since Johnny Cash was released from Folson Prison. The first track opens with this lyric: "It's a cheap hotel. The heat pipes hiss. The bathroom's down the hall. And it smells like piss." It's a song about love: love in Gauthier's world. But in her talented hands, despair has never sounded so romantic. Even though just about every song has a downbeat topic, Gauthier's matter-of-fact delivery leads to humor when you least expect it. "Fish swim. Birds fly. Daddies yell. Mamas cry. Old men sit and think. I drink." Producer Gurf Morlix sets the scene with gentle acoustic guitars, dirge-like drums, and wailing petal steels and fiddles. It's the music of last calls in dingy corner bars all across America. All that's missing is the clink of glasses, the hum of neon and the scattering of billiard balls.

5 out of 5 stars

Getting better all the time. February 16, 2005
9 out of 10 found this review helpful

If you thought her last album "Filth & Fire" was good, you won't be disappointed with this one. The opening track has shades of Leonard Cohen but it does lighten up (a little!) from there on. Almost all my favourite recent albums share the same producer, the ubiquitous Gurf Morlix.

Great lyrics and a variety of musical influences from Harlan Howard to Lucinda Williams. After four playings, I cannot name a single weak track on this superb album.

Please visit us in Ireland soon, Mary.

5 out of 5 stars

perfection February 20, 2005
6 out of 9 found this review helpful

There is not one thing to criticize about this album----songwriting, production, musicianship are flawless. The emotional impact on me has been overwhelming. Every track is a gem with a sublime balance of restraint and poignancy. In 2004 my favorite CD was released late in the year. In 2005 it appears to have arrived early. Trust me, Mercy Now is really great. P.S. Although the Hammond B3 removes this album from being "pure" country, I think it enhanced the sound in a most positive way.

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