By SoDak
Thumbing through some records in the late 1980s, I stumbled across Prairie in the Sky by Mary McCaslin. I did not know anything about the singer, but the cover was intriguing. Falling somewhere between country and folk, the music was very calming, giving me a sense of comfort. McCaslin’s voice was gentle. It was both hopeful and plaintive; it was beautiful, yet haunting. This was especially the case with her cover of “Ghost Riders in the Sky.” Upon hearing “Prairie in the Sky,” I wept. To this day, I am incredibly moved every time I hear the song. It is filled with romantic images of riding a roan across the country, through the tall grasses on the plains. The inclusion of the French horn on this folk song is mesmerizing, adding an interesting emotional hook. The strings are very subtle and tender.
In the 1990s, I was fortunate enough to see Mary McCaslin play a concert, with Eric Andersen, in Denver. This was shortly after her record Broken Promises was released. I sat in the dark captivated by her strumming and picking the guitar, while singing songs from her recent record, as well as most of those on Things We Said Today, a best of collection. The songs about friends, love, and broken hearts fit perfectly well with the outlaw and western tunes, which sometimes addressed concerns about pollution and urban sprawl.
Over the last thirty years, my wife and I continue to listen to Things We Said Today. It used to be a regular listen, when we were playing cards. More often, we listen to it while on a road trip. The songs on this record are now woven with memories of driving through stands of giant trees on the way to trailheads in Sequoia National Park a couple years ago. We carried the songs, as Mary’s voice was echoing in our heads, as we hiked through the tall ferns under the giant sequoias, marveling at their beauty. On that day, it felt like we were dancing with the world.
McCaslin died October 2, 2022. I wish I would have seen her perform one more time, like when she played at the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, Nevada. I should have made the drive to make it happen. I really wanted to hear her sing “Young Westley” and “Prairie in the Sky” again. Fortunately, she recorded a wonderful series of records that continue to resonate with me.
