Just to see Margo Price with a smile and having a relaxed conversation from her Nashville-area home was a gift this morning (June 13), not to mention the fact that the talk was with Anthony Mason of “CBS This Morning.” In less than a decade, the 37-year-old Illinois-born singer-songwriter has established herself as a refreshing, truthful, and irrepressible force in Country Music.
Country music is built on “three chords and the truth” as Harlan Howard superbly described, but for Margo Price, the brutal truth of COVID-19 hit home with a vengeance.
This morning, she can talk with some welcome relief about the state of her husband, guitarist, Jeremy Ivey, as being “more like himself” as she relates his siege with the virus. The singer’s gratitude for his first steps to recovery and for their family shows in her countenance.
Margo Price was set to release her much-anticipated third album, “That's How Rumors Get Started,” this spring, but considering the current situation of the pandemic and her personal concerns, the date has been postponed to mid-July.
Still, Price was a vision in red for a soulful and delectable three-song set for “Saturday Sessions” this morning. The performance was perfect to whet the appetites of Margo's many devotees while they count the weeks until the release date.
Feeling ‘terrified’ became truth for Margo Price
Already, the nation is reeling from the repercussions of “opening up” before being practically or consciously ready to deal with day-to-day life in the time of a pandemic. 22 states in the US report significant spikes in new COVID cases since most restrictions began to be eased in May.
While much focus has been turned to when and how the music industry, like entertainment as a whole, can return, Margo Price confesses she was “pretty terrified” to see the toll taken by the illness on her beloved husband.
“He was in a worse state than I'd ever seen him in my whole life,” the wife and mother relate regarding Jeremy.
“He got thin and frail, and he was sleeping 12 to 14 hours a day,” she elaborates. Considering that his health turnaround has only started this week, the delay for “That's How Rumors Get Started” is more than understandable. Nonetheless, Margo commiserated with her fans’ yearning for live shows by releasing her “Perfectly Imperfect at the Ryman” series, and the nostalgia was a mutual feast.
Even the aggravating things make Margo Price long for the live stage
“It takes you right back there, to the feeling of screaming in the audience,” Margo Price hopes for those revisiting the shows recorded in 2018. Like so many of her musical cohorts, she misses “going to shows, going on stage, being on tour,” and even one more unexpected element for any traveling musician.
“I even miss airports,” Price confesses. “I never thought I'd say that.”
Her total of 70 days in quarantine didn't come without added blessings. As she was caring for Jeremy, Margo Price “got to see every milestone” for almost 1-year-old Ramona, affirming that “they really do change every day.” She also savored the time that she never planned for with her nine-year-old son, Judah. Words will start coming out with velocity soon for the toddler daughter, and her mommy's words and songs are sure to come back to her in the dearest way for any parent, from her child's mouth.
A different mood for Margo Price
Margo Price stomped her way into the music world with “Midwest Farmers Daughter” on Jack White's Third Man Records in 2016.
Her long skirts and cowboy boots hearkened back to the early days of Loretta Lynn and the courage of her subjects and sometimes hard-drinking songs paid homage, too. Her follow-up collection, “All-American Made” in 2017 rapidly garnered its place as one of the best albums of the decade, daring to take on pay disparity for women and the debacle in political leadership.
Although Margo Price contends that she hasn't “figured out how to promote an album in a pandemic,” her third album has her same gutsy attitude and rural-girl grit and heart, with much more lively beats and riffs to take the messages for a ride. “That's How Rumors Get Started” is co-produced with Sturgill Simpson, and the friend connection contributes a deeper calming tone.
It was a very playful touch for Margo Price to walk out with her favorite guitar onto her spacious porch for “Letting Me Go,” while the members of her band, the Pricetags, came to their stoops to do their part. The infectious tune of a ne'er-do-well lover lingers in the head as much as the dog on the keyboard player’s steps.
Bob Dylan’s “Things Have Changed” shines with soulful spite is the centerpiece of the morning set. Groove and heartache come through in the Oscar-winning song, and Margo Price is like a gypsy queen floating and shaking her tambourine. This is no mere rendition-- she owns this Dylan ode.
“Drifter “ is the last offering on the “Saturday Sessions” set, but the longing song that opens with “I have no nation/I have no sign” will only rile the fervor in the nation Margo Price fans.
No one knows exactly when she nor any other artist will blaze onstage as in days before, but July 10 is not far away, and she and her third album are well worth the wait. Keep the lights lifted high.
