Marion Walsh A few words with Marion Walsh. Marion sings and plays guitar, and when the need arises, a little piano, harmonica and mandolin.
Leicester Bangs: Tell us a little about yourself. Marion: I was raised in Owings Mills, Maryland a lot of years ago, and I’m still growing up, currently while living in Vancouver, Canada.
The one thing I have always been sure of, my entire life, is that I want to sing, need to sing, have to sing. Everything else is full of surprises, changeable and mysterious, and I usually find myself bumbling along. But not when I sing. I don't bumble when I sing!
LB: How did you start out making music? Marion: I was surrounded by music as a child. My father and (much older) brother were very involved in various singing groups and they held rehearsals at our house, all during my childhood. They both sang in men's acappella groups. I used to sit at the top of steps in my nightgown, a wide-eyed elementary school girl, and listen to the various parts practicing; basses in the kitchen, baritones in the front hall, first tenors in the den, second tenors in the dining room, and so forth. I could sing all the parts separately. When they all got together and sang all the parts at once, it was thrilling to my young ears!
LB: Who did you grow up listening to and how do they influence what you’re doing now? Marion: In addition to the aforementioned acappella groups, I listened to a lot of singer-songwriters. James Taylor, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Cat Stevens, were some favorites. They influenced me in many ways. For one, I quit piano lessons which I started when I was 7 or 8 years old, and switched to guitar when I was a teenager.
I always liked that I could hear the words when they sang… and not only could I hear them, but I could understand them. I never felt like the words were too complicated for me. I like to think my songs are that way, too: easy to hear, easy to understand, no great mystery lying beneath what the listener hears the first time around.
LB: Tell us about your latest release. Marion: Last summer, I had the great privilege of being with my father during his last days. "Song for My Father" came from that experience. It is a deeply personal song, yet it's also universal, because so many people can relate to the experience of losing a loved one.
LB: Do you get out and play your music live, and if so, what can an audience expect at one of your shows? Marion: I do play live, a few times a year. Most of my live shows in the past two years have been house concerts… smaller, more intimate shows held at someone's home. Often I share the night with another musician or two. An audience can expect an up-close and personal evening of acoustic music, with a little bit of talking, but not too much. Sometimes the song tells its own story, and I don't want to interfere with that by first telling the song and then singing it!
LB: What aspects of playing and recording music do you most enjoy? Marion: I LOVE being in the studio! I love the precision of it, and the intensity of it, and I don't mind doing the same thing over and over again until it's just right. I love layering harmony parts over each other. Few things give me greater pleasure than singing harmonies… and I love bringing in other musicians and hearing what they do in the studio. I love the whole studio experience.
LB: Where can people find (and buy) your music? Marion: My website, Reverbnation, CD Baby and iTunes (links top left and below).
