11/1/2005

Billy Hutchinson

With Mary’s move to Yellow Dog Records her profile has gone from obscure ragtime lady to being given a showcased release replete with star guests. “Bywater Dance” has great keyboards from no less than Jon Cleary, Henry Butler & Amasa Miller; with acoustic guitar maestro Woody Mann playing second guitar on one outing. Mary doesn’t sound as academic as she has in the past mostly due to her collaborators, and a fuller augmented band. Mary by all accounts had a ball recording across the hall from Dr. John in an area of New Orleans in May called Bywater. If all this album has done has reacquainted me with the music of Geeshie Wiley it has done its job. I guess why I like Wiley’s “Last Kind Word Blues” is because of its rare contrast to the music of Skip James. Mary’s albums have never shied from introducing less familiar instruments & arrangements, which thankfully livens up our listening experiences. Where as Mary’s, “Ragtime Gal” was more of a solo vision, this release is a broader & meatier affair. Previous to this coming out, on paper combining this crisp ‘n’ clean acoustic guitar maestro with New Orleans laid back session guys, wouldn’t have sounded a logical move – but thank God for someone’s vision I say! A standout album of 2005, here’s fingers crossed in that Mary’s music will be heard by a far greater number of music fans. As a footnote, it was Michael Roach that introduced Mary & Paul Geremia to England, and I feel he deserves credit & support also.