Crazy Mary

Foriginal Sin

This is probably somewhere on here but what was the relationship between PJ and Victoria Williams? 

Spiritual_Chaos

Williams was destined to be a songwriter’s songwriter, deeply beloved by her peers but unlikely to break terribly far into the mainstream. It was a medical diagnosis (multiple sclerosis) that brought her the most attention, but ended up doing some good for the music world. Her plight—a working musician who nonetheless couldn’t afford to get sick—led to the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, which provides money for ailing musicians. The foundation launched with the release of Sweet Relief: A Benefit For Victoria Williams, which features some bigger-name artists covering her songs, including Lou Reed, Evan Dando, Soul Asylum, and The Jayhawks. But the most enduring version on the record is Pearl Jam’s “Crazy Mary,” which not coincidentally is one of Williams’ most affecting songs. It sounds awfully different when sung in her warbly vibrato versus Eddie Vedder’s baritone, but the sentiment is chilling and powerful when either one sings it: It’s the story of a poor, unhinged woman that the narrator sees on the outskirts of town.

Pap

boobooliscious

The other day, after being on the wall for years, it finally clicked with my daughter why I have a No Loitering sign hanging amongst my PJ posters.

Foriginal Sin

boobooliscious said:

The other day, after being on the wall for years, it finally clicked with my daughter why I have a No Loitering sign hanging amongst my PJ posters.

I was literally looking for a No Loitering sign last night when I thought about why they covered the song. Thanks for the info. 

Pap

Does anyone have a picture of that pink balloon with Crazy Mary written on it (request at PJ shows around 2006)?

PB11041

I realize Victoria is not everybody's cup of tea, but for those who do enjoy her and are possibly interested, this is a really great live album from her 1995 tour (there was another released just last year)

2-feign-reluctance

Spiritual_Chaos said:

Williams was destined to be a songwriter’s songwriter, deeply beloved by her peers but unlikely to break terribly far into the mainstream. It was a medical diagnosis (multiple sclerosis) that brought her the most attention, but ended up doing some good for the music world. Her plight—a working musician who nonetheless couldn’t afford to get sick—led to the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund, which provides money for ailing musicians. The foundation launched with the release of Sweet Relief: A Benefit For Victoria Williams, which features some bigger-name artists covering her songs, including Lou Reed, Evan Dando, Soul Asylum, and The Jayhawks. But the most enduring version on the record is Pearl Jam’s “Crazy Mary,” which not coincidentally is one of Williams’ most affecting songs. It sounds awfully different when sung in her warbly vibrato versus Eddie Vedder’s baritone, but the sentiment is chilling and powerful when either one sings it: It’s the story of a poor, unhinged woman that the narrator sees on the outskirts of town.

Citation?

ceska

Spiritual_Chaos said:

 But the most enduring version on the record is Pearl Jam’s “Crazy Mary,”

Summer of Drugs is pretty enduring too - it's been a regular in Soul Asylum's setlists since the 1990s, and still is these days