Gary Marks “I Guess It Never Stops”
Americana Highways brings you this video premiere of Gary Marks’ song “I Guess It Never Stops” from his forthcoming album Crossroads, which is set for release April 18. The album was produced by Gary Marks; engineered by Marianne Zuhorski at Alpha Omega Studios in San Francisco; mixed by Moira Marquis and Gary Marks; and mastered by Ian Fait.
“I Guess It Never Stops” is Stef Burns on lead acoustic guitar and Gary Marks on guitar solo, 12-string guitar, drums and synths; and Tony Saunders on bass.
Americana Highways: “I Guess It Never Stops” captures a sense of cyclical destruction — environmental, political, and cultural — but the song itself feels buoyant and almost hopeful. How did you approach pairing those heavier themes with such a groovy, uplifting musical feel?
Gary Marks: My voice is strong and a bit rough, which matches the lyric’s intent. And the blues element is historically always a bit intense and rebellious, culturally. So I think that counters the buoyancy of the rhythm.
But equally important for me is a rule I have for myself. I call it emotional counterpoint. Sometimes, not always, a sad melody feels a bit over the top with sad lyrics. And happy music sounds a bit overly happy with happy lyrics. So the idea of emotional counterpoint using “I Guess It Never Stops” as an example, is that I would not naturally want to create happy lyrics to a rockin’ blues song like that, because it too often will lose power rather than increase it…. I hope that makes sense!
AH: You sing “We’ve been recalled to Eden but somehow Eden’s not the same.” That line feels both biblical and contemporary. What does “Eden” represent to you in the context of the song?
GM: I am cynically pointing to the biblical reference of Eden, yes. Basically I’m saying God has had enough with this little human experiment of His, and He or She is calling everyone back to Eden to start over…. but…. while we were screwing up the modern world, we screwed up Eden too… chopped it down, carried it off in trains…. so…. here we are.
AH: The lyrics point to systems of power — boardrooms, classrooms, even families — where cycles repeat themselves. When you wrote “I Guess It Never Stops,” were you reflecting on specific moments in history, or more on patterns you’ve watched repeat over your five decades as a songwriter?
GM: Actually, I’m writing from my own experience in school, with the government standardizing textbooks, including history books. And looking into the motivations of big companies we were supposed to trust…. trusting them to take care of loyal workers, and loyal consumers, and protecting the environment we all share…. And of course, fathers expect their children not to repeat the same mistakes they’ve made, expecting their children to do better. It’s about as likely to happen as humans living up to God’s standards. It’s all very holographic in a way.
This video was created by Skylar Marks.
With a psychedelic / world rhythm undertone that sounds like like Gary got Mickey Hart on board, this song stays grounded in earthiness.
Find more details and information here on his website: https://www.garymarksmusic.com/
