In a word, wow! On the day her newest album ‘Trouble & Love’ was released, Mary Gauthier performed at the Extended Play Sessions of Alternate Root TV.

Mary Gauthier

Mary is a Nashville-based writer (her description) whose songs have helped her work through painful experiences.

She played alone this night, just Mary and her well-loved 1952 Gibson guitar.

Mary

All of Mary’s songs have a story behind them, particularly on this new release. Listening to the album, hearing the songs in order, I felt her go through the process of losing love and moving toward a better place.

Mary

Her style is country-folk (or should I call it Americana or alt-country), but the genre is not what makes Mary’s songs important. It is that the songs get into your heart and soul; they make you ache for her and rejoice in her.

Mary

One of the songs she played is new and called ‘Iraq’. Mary and three other songwriters spent a couple of days with fifteen combat veterans in what she described as a life-changing event. All I will say about the song – which I hope will be on an album of the songs created that day – is that the veteran who co-wrote the song said, ‘My enemy wasn’t Iraq.’ Thinking about it tugs at my heart.

Mary

Mary had great rapport with the audience. After she sang ‘When A Woman Goes Cold’ she quipped that the men in the audience probably had experienced that. Every one of them nodded in agreement.

Mary

The Q&A segment with Mary was especially emotional. Mary wears her heart on her sleeve, so to speak, and doesn’t hesitate to tell how she honestly felt about something. She is open with her story – which I will not repeat in detail here, other than to say she was in foster care, had an addiction problem, was a chef, and has had great love along with great heartache.

Mary

Mary describes herself as a writer, currently expressing herself mostly through song but also in short stories. She would like to write books as well. I have no doubt she will do that.

Mary has been many places, figuratively and literally.

Mary’s well-traveled guitar case

I am sure there are many more songs inside Mary, aching to be released, and I look forward to hearing more of her.