Mary Gauthier – Reckoning
There’s a little vocal treatment on the opening tune “Alcohol & Adderall,” but it’s applied liberally & doesn’t interfere much with the warmth of Mary Gauthier’s voice. The music & lyrics are interlaced with expertise & experience in the tradition of past material from folky voices such as Cris Williamson & Ruthann Friedman. More intense is the lightly picked acoustic guitar of “Heaven,” with striking vocal relevance. It’s folk music in spirit, but it isn’t folky. A haunting, sure-fingered acoustic & sensitive tune with well-conceived lyrics. Not too much melodrama, no over-emoting or trivial passages. Ms. Gauthier understands the essence of her music & how to convey it. It’s a nicely distinguished performance.
Whereas “Judgement Day” is sung in the aggressive tone of the late Phil Ochs. A little ounce of drama, but no radicalism like Joan Baez. Mary provides a vocal application with a well-articulated & aggressive showing. At times, the intonation is similar to the late Townes van Zandt; the instrumentation is sophisticated & gripping.
Produced by Neilson Hubbard & Dylan Alldredge in Nashville, TN, with one track produced by Mark Hallman in Austin, TX, the 9 tunes of Reckoning (Drops Sept 25/Soundly/Thirty Tigers/In the Black Records/) are basically spare, featuring Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Mary Gauthier (vocals/guitar/harmonica/bgv), Michele Gazich (viola on “Some Times”) & Cole Hubbard (harmonica on “Judgement Day”).
Closer to a cool rock edginess & wailing harmonica, the title track “Reckoning” is exuberant, mannered & has the potency & message sharpness that Buffy Saint-Marie’s “The Priests of the Golden Bull” possessed. An exceptional cut. Well sung & amazing, since little from an entire band contributed. It has all the meat, muscle, & gristle that makes the main course tasty.
Mary provides good song narratives, as she did with her great “Mercy Now” a few years back. This collection with soul-baring tales is fortified by her expertise. Some songs will have lyrics that not everyone will agree with. But that’s usually the domain of folk artists. Mary keeps it under a calm assemblage without any radical seasoning.
The music on this set is good, as sincere as an artist can be & fortunately Mary is mostly concentrated on her music & voice. The pontificating is at a minimum. The production is fine & the beauty of her songs is always evident & entertaining.
Highlights – “Alcohol & Adderall,” “Heaven,” “Judgement Day,” “Reckoning,” “Black Ice” & “I Thought I Heard A Train.”
B&W image courtesy of Mary’s website. A 4-page lyrics insert is included. CD @ Amazon & https://www.marygauthier.com/ & https://alleyesmedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/MaryGauthier_RECKONING-_PR_FINAL.pdf