Mary (Supergrass song)

Last updated

"Mary"
Supergrass-MaryCover.jpg
Single by Supergrass
from the album Supergrass
B-side "Mary (Live at Lamacq)"
Released22 November 1999 (1999-11-22) [1]
Studio Sawmills, Ridge Farm
Genre Britpop, rock, pop
Length4:02
Label Parlophone
Songwriter(s) Supergrass, Rob Coombes
Producer(s) Supergrass, John Cornfield
Supergrass singles chronology
"Moving"
(1999)
"Mary"
(1999)
"Never Done Nothing Like That Before"
(2002)
Alternative Cover
Supergrass MaryAlt.PNG
CD 2 single cover

"Mary" was the third and final single from the Britpop band Supergrass' eponymous third album. Released in November 1999, it reached number 36 on the UK Singles Chart. [2] [3] This was the last Supergrass single to be released on cassette.

Contents

Chord progression and lead guitar breaks

Mary is written in the key of Cm. The verses and chorus both employ the same chord progression of G♯-F-Cm, with guitarist Gaz Coombes utilising single string lead breaks on the 5th (A) string with an E-bow. It is worth noting that the opening chord progression of the song bears some similarities to Carl Orff's Carmina Burana.

Track listing

CD1CDRS6531/ TCTCR6531

  1. "Mary" (4:02)
  2. "Pumping on Your Stereo (Live at Peel Acres)" (3:12)
  3. "Strange Ones (Live at Peel Acres)" (3:57)

CD2CDR6531

  1. "Mary (Live at Lamacq)" (4:12)
  2. "Richard III (Live at Peel Acres)" (3:29)
  3. "Sun Hits the Sky (Live at Peel Acres)" (4:44)

LTD. ED. Silver 7"R6531

  1. "Mary" (4:02)
  2. "Mary (Live at Lamacq)" (4:12)

Album Artwork

The single features a photo of a stone angel statue at night, whilst the 2nd CD of the CD release shows a similarly crafted stone statue of a man in daylight.

Music video

Conceived as an homage to the Hammer Horror films from the 1950s, the accompanying music video features three moderately scary scenes, always corresponding to the song's "falsetto screaming" chorus: a room with books flying off the shelves and objects exploding because of poltergeist, a housewife vomiting blood in front of her family (including two children) and a girl drowning in a bathtub while blood spouts from the sink. The video was banned from television due to being "too frightening". [4] [5] An edited version was released, replacing the aforementioned scary scenes with pictures of onions.

Related Research Articles

Supergrass English rock band

Supergrass are an English rock band formed in 1993 in Oxford. The band consists of brothers Gaz and Rob Coombes (keyboards), Mick Quinn and Danny Goffey.

<i>I Should Coco</i> 1995 studio album by Supergrass

I Should Coco is the debut studio album by English alternative rock band Supergrass, released on 15 May 1995 by Parlophone. Supergrass were formed in 1993 by Gaz Coombes, Mick Quinn and Danny Goffey and they released their debut single from the album, "Caught by the Fuzz", in May 1995 on the small independent local label Backbeat Records and was re-released with Parlophone. The title of the album is cockney rhyming slang for "I should think so".

<i>Supergrass</i> (album) 1999 studio album by Supergrass

Supergrass is the third album by the English alternative rock band Supergrass. It was released in the UK on 20 September 1999 and reached #3. It is often referred to as "the X-ray album", due to the picture on the sleeve. In Australia a free CD was included with some live tracks.

Gaz Coombes English singer-songwriter

Gaz Coombes is an English musician and singer-songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the English alternative rock band Supergrass. He first entered the music scene aged sixteen as the lead singer of the band The Jennifers which featured Supergrass bandmate Danny Goffey.

Danny Goffey Musical artist

Daniel Robert Goffey is an English musician and singer-songwriter, best known as the drummer and backing vocalist for Supergrass. He briefly toured with Babyshambles in 2010, following their drummer's departure.

St. Petersburg (song) 2005 single by Supergrass

"St. Petersburg" is a song from British rock band Supergrass' fifth studio album, Road to Rouen (2005). It was released on 8 August 2005, as the first single from the album, and charted at number 22 on the UK Singles Chart, and was their final hit in the top 40. Borkur Sigthorsson directed the song's music video.

Low C (song) 2005 single by Supergrass

Low C” is a song from British rock band Supergrass’ fifth studio album, Road to Rouen (2005). It was released on 24 October 2005 as the second single from the album and peaked at number #52 in the United Kingdom, lasting only the one week on the UK Singles Chart.

Pumping on Your Stereo 1999 single by Supergrass

"Pumping on Your Stereo" is a song by Supergrass, released as their first single from their self-titled third album (1999) on 24 May 1999. The single reached No. 11 on the UK Singles Chart and in New Zealand. It also peaked at No. 13 on the Canadian RPM Top 30 Rock Report in May 2000. In October 2011, NME placed it at No. 124 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".

Caught by the Fuzz 1994 single by Supergrass

"Caught by the Fuzz" is the first single by Britpop band Supergrass.

Mansize Rooster 1995 single by Supergrass

"Mansize Rooster" is a song by Supergrass, released as the second single from their debut album I Should Coco. It reached number 20 in the UK Singles Chart, remaining on the chart for three weeks. Like its predecessor "Caught by the Fuzz", "Mansize Rooster" was originally limited to 500 copies as a 7-inch vinyl-only, Backbeat Records release, although pressings are believed to have been made since. The B-side remained to be "Sitting Up Straight", but the songs sound slightly different and have different runtimes to their present-day versions. The Backbeat vinyl it was primarily issued on was also green. The song is used in the movie Casper: A Spirited Beginning and is included in its soundtrack.

Going Out 1996 single by Supergrass

"Going Out" was the first single to be taken from In It for the Money, the second album by Britpop band Supergrass. It was released on 26 February 1996, more than a year before the album, and reached five on the UK Singles Chart and number 20 on the Irish Singles Chart. The song was apparently originally written in the key of E, because the engine of Supergrass' tour bus would tick at that same musical pitch.

Richard III (song) 1997 single by Supergrass

"Richard III" is a song by English rock band Supergrass. It was the second single to be released from In It for the Money, the band's second album. The single was preceded by "Going Out", which was released over a year before. "Richard III" was released in March 1997 and reached number two on the UK Singles Chart on 6 April, their highest placing since "Alright"/"Time" in 1995. The song also reached number 21 in Iceland and number 30 in Ireland.

Late in the Day 1997 single by Supergrass

"Late in the Day" was the fourth and final single from Britpop band Supergrass' second studio album, In It for the Money (1997). It was released in October 1997 and reached number 18 on the UK Singles Chart. The song also charted in Iceland, peaking at number 32 in November 1997. The two CD releases of the single have the same photo as their cover but the colours of one have been reversed on the second one.

Grace (Supergrass song) 2002 single by Supergrass

"Grace" is a song by Britpop band Supergrass. It was the second single to be taken from Life on Other Planets (2002), the band's fourth studio album. It was released on 16 September 2002 and reached number 13 on the UK Singles Chart. Unlike the previous single, "Never Done Nothing Like That Before", a vinyl-only release, it was released on all major formats.

Rush Hour Soul (song) 2003 single by Supergrass

"Rush Hour Soul" is a song by the Britpop band Supergrass. It was the fourth and final single from their fourth album Life On Other Planets. The single failed to chart in the US, and was outside the Top 75 in the UK upon its release in August 2003, but this was probably because it was released around ten months after Life On Other Planets.

Kiss of Life (Supergrass song) 2004 single by Supergrass

"Kiss of Life" is a song by English rock band Supergrass. It was released as a single from the compilation album Supergrass Is 10. It was a new song recorded for the compilation and was released on 24 May 2004, reaching number 23 on the UK Singles Chart. B-side "We Dream of This" was built around "Kiss of Life" played backwards. CD2 was an Enhanced CD with the video for "Kiss of Life" and "Rob's Guide to Responsible Flying", a small section of footage from the Supergrass Is 10 documentary, showing keyboard player Rob Coombes smoking illegally in an aeroplane toilet.

Supergrass discography Musical recordings from English rock band Supergrass

The discography of Supergrass, an English alternative rock band, consists of six studio albums, three extended plays, two compilation albums, 26 singles and 24 music videos. They were formed in 1993 by Gaz Coombes, Mick Quinn and Danny Goffey. Rising to prominence during the Britpop era in the mid-1990s with their single "Alright", they were joined by Rob Coombes in 2002 (keyboards) until their demise on 11 June 2010.

Diamond Hoo Ha Man 2008 single by Supergrass

"Diamond Hoo Ha Man" is a song by British rock band Supergrass. The single was first played live at Guilfest 2007 in Guildford, England, and this live version was then released as a free download via the band's website. It is the first official single from the band's sixth album, Diamond Hoo Ha, and was released on 14 January 2008 as a vinyl-only single, limited to 1,500 copies, thus limiting its chances of charting, which it failed to do. An instrumental version of the song was recorded by Biff Hyman for the Duke Diamond and Friends: Glange Fever Motion Picture Soundtrack.

Bad Blood (Supergrass song) 2008 single by Supergrass

"Bad Blood" is the second single from British rock group Supergrass' sixth album, Diamond Hoo Ha. It was released on 17 March 2008, which was one week before the album's release date. The song is about a rough night out in Reykjavík, Iceland, as Gaz Coombes explains;

<i>Live on Other Planets</i> 2020 live album by Supergrass

Live on Other Planets is a double live album by Supergrass. Released on 27 November 2020, it consists of songs recorded during the band's reunion tour from earlier that year. Its title is a play on the band's fourth studio album, Life on Other Planets.

References

  1. "New Releases – For Week Starting 22 November, 1999: Singles" (PDF). Music Week . 20 November 1999. p. 29. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  2. The Strange Ones Supergrass Site
  3. Supergrass biography : beginnings, career, success Archived 24 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  4. "Supergrass' Video Nasty". Melody Maker 9 November 1999. Retrieved 31 May 2008.
  5. "The Gaz Coombes Project". NME 6 November 1999. Retrieved 31 May 2008.