I’m a big fan of beautiful female voices, in and out of music. When it comes to female vocalists in the music world, though, my unquestioned favorite is someone most people aren’t familiar with: Former October Project lead singer, now solo artist, Mary Fahl.
My wife and I were fortunate enough to see Mary perform live twice. On both occasions, it was a small venue, seating 60-70 people. On both occasions, Mary and her husband stuck around after the show, signing albums and chatting with the people in attendance. Mary is as sweet, friendly, and outgoing as she is talented. In fact, on the second occasion, we took one of our daughters along; she was 25 at the time, and on meeting Mary after the show, burst out, “I grew up listening to you!”
Mary replied with a big smile. “Oh, you were an October Project baby!” She was.
Mary has an amazing voice, and from what I understand, it’s all through her own effort; she has no formal training in music. Whether she’s with a band in New York’s Mauch Chunk Opera House or alone on a stage with an acoustic guitar, she’s a wonder.
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With great difficulty in compiling this list, I narrowed it down to six songs – two from her October Project tenure, and four from her solo career. Ask me tomorrow, and I may name six others. But here, now, are these.
With October Project:
Return to Me (1994): From the band’s first album, released in 1993 and titled simply “October Project,” this song was released as a single in 1994. This song was my first exposure to Mary, and her voice, even at that young age (with her blonde hair dyed a determined, ‘90s, Goth-girl black), was remarkable. I never grow tired of this one.
Bury My Lovely (1994): It’s often claimed, but I’ve never confirmed, that this song is about the survivor of an abusive childhood. Some of the lyrics would seem to confirm this:Cover the madness
Cover the fear
No one will ever
Know you were here
A figure in the hallway light
Returning like a ghost
Something that was left behind
Something like a child's mind
Maybe? It’s a lovely song, regardless of the interpretations.
Solo:
The Station (2003): This song comes to us from Mary’s first solo album, “The Other Side of Time.” It’s a haunting tune, one that Mary only performs with a full band. It’s a great song – two people meeting in an abandoned train station, a man and a woman, and they clearly have a history together; it’s hard to tell from the lyrics if it’s a happy one.
In her face he
Looks for traces
Of the woman he once knew
Not forgetting
Past regretting
Hidden hours and hotel rooms
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Going Home (2003): This one’s the opening theme from the epic Ted Turner Civil War film “Gods and Generals,” based on the Jeffrey Shaara book of the same name. When you know the movie focused primarily on the careers of two men in the first years of the Civil War, General Stonewall Jackson and General (then, Colonel) Joshua Chamberlain, then the tone of the song and the lyrics all make a great deal of sense. That is, after all, what soldiers in war look forward to most – going home.
Be My Hero (2014): From her “Live at the Mauch Chunk Opera House” album, in this song you really get a feel for what Mary Fahl is capable of. Her voice has always been amazingly powerful, all the more so when you meet her in person and find she’s actually on the petite and slender side. But in this one, she really lets her voice out, and I bet, live, the closing bars really filled up that opera house.Ruby Tuesday (2022): This one’s from her album “Can't Get it out of My Head.” You may remember this song as a Rolling Stones hit, but Mary puts her own unique take on it. She does a fair amount of classic rock covers, including the entire Pink Floyd album “The Dark Side of the Moon,” in her album of the same name. It’s fun, to me at least, to hear Mary’s take on songs I grew up listening to.
I imagine some of you have heard of Mary Fahl or seen her work here and there. If you have, drop your favorites in the comments. If you haven’t, well, check out her YouTube channel, listen to a few more songs, and then, again, drop your favorites in the comments. Mary rates the listen.
