Strawberry Heritage's lingering single "Sweet Marie," from new album "Light Magic"

 

The latest single from Strawberry Heritage, "Sweet Marie," is a tender ode to a beloved strung together with images of past summers and gentle questions about how best to love. 

Strawberry Heritage is the songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer John Hanson, and this single is fresh off his newly released studio album Light Magic, a collection of songs that invites the listener into a contemplative musical space with lyrics that evoke both honest reckoning with shadows and playful delight in the light.

 

The harmony of this ode hovers so close to the lead vocal that it sometimes stands perfectly balanced, giving the impression that the two voices are singing directly to each other. The simple musical accompaniment works not to distract from the lingering melody that rings out a dreamy, mesmerizing gait, and moves to a crest where the harmony steps into the spotlight on the turn of the chorus. It mirrors musically the beautiful exchange of positions between two lovers depicted in the lyrics: "You're surrounded by your confidence / keeps me on my feet. / And if there's something I can do in your defense / You know I'd throw my jacket down for you."

In just a couple of listens, this song found its way into my heart, and a permanent place in my mind’s catalogue. "Sweet Marie" is the perfect soundscape for summer love past, present, and future.

-Audra Kubat

 

 

Featured photo: Joshua Skinner