ONE OF BookPage's MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2021
ONE OF The Bluegrass Situation's 16 SUMMER READS
"Gauthier has moved on from being the patient to being the healer using her craft to help others... fascinating." —Houston Press
"A songwriter who dares to confront the dark places in her soul... Goes deep" —The Advocate
"Reads like an intensely personal diary that’s also full of songwriting inspiration and tips." —Boston Globe
"I sobbed like a small baby reading Mary’s new book. I want to underline every page and send a copy to everyone I know...[SAVED BY A SONG] will be your true north for navigating life’s difficult moments." —Cindy Howes, FolkAlly.com
“Think Anne Lamott meets Julia Cameron meets Patti Smith… Anyone who can still write from the heart about writing from the heart after being in the music business as long as Gauthier has is the real deal. Her book invites seasoned artists to deeper authenticity, new artists to deeper craft and all readers to deeper self-reflection." —BookPage
"Compelling... Gauthier has never been the kind of writer to shy away from difficult subjects...It’s no surprise that her book expresses the same level of candor." —Nashville Scene
"A songwriter who dares to confront the dark places in her soul... Goes deep" —The Advocate
"Thoroughly revelatory." —Bay Area Reporter
"[An] intimate, riveting memoir...Her lyrics dig deeply into the human condition." —Library Journal
"Unveils how a master managed many of her most memorable pieces, like a magician revealing all of her tricks....A powerful memoir." —Kirkus (Starred)
“Mary’s songwriting speaks to the tender aspects of our humanness. Her vignettes span the emotional landscape, and leave us feeling deeply seen and understood. We need her voice in times like these more than we ever have.” —Brandi Carlile
"Bravely illustrates the artistry and redemptive power of creativity...If you’re needing a glimmer of hope... pick up Saved By A Song." —Grateful Web
"Mary Gauthier has come through her own long dark night of the soul knowing, as she says in one of her songs, we could all use a little mercy. It seems to me we could all use a whole lot more of Mary too." —Emmylou Harris
“I remember exactly where I was the first time I heard a Mary Gauthier tune. That’s the kind of songwriter she is.“ —Sarah Silverman
“A thoughtful meditation by one of the finest practitioners around on what makes a song matter and the hard lessons she's learned...This is a treasure of a book as well as a love letter to songs and songwriters and the people who listen to them.” —Booklist (Starred)
“A treatise on making art.” —BUST
"Beautiful, often ragged, song and verse from a high place.” —Robert Plant
"Anyone familiar with the brilliant songs of lesbian singer/songwriter Mary Gauthier won’t be at all surprised to learn that she also has an undeniable gift for writing prose. Her first book, Saved By a Song... is as personal and revealing as her music." —OutSmart Magazine
★ 2021-05-12
An acclaimed singer/songwriter digs soulfully into her craft.
A great song can capture time and place, conjure elaborate fictions, and convey deep, emotional truths. This collection unveils how a master managed many of her most memorable pieces, like a magician revealing all of her tricks. It’s no surprise that Gauthier (b. 1962), best known for the moving folk songs of Mercy Now and her concept album about her adoption, The Foundling, is an authoritative writer. Though the details of her life that inform her stunningly straightforward song “I Drink” are interesting to read, knowing them doesn’t really magnify the song’s impact once you’ve heard it. However, when the author shows her editing process for the song, making the symbolism stronger and switching points of view, it’s a lesson that’s hard to forget. Gauthier brings that sharp honesty to a variety of songs and the topics that inspired them, whether it was her decision to leave the restaurant business to become a songwriter, her knack of picking the wrong women for relationships, or losing friends to the AIDS crisis. She also brings it to the artistic process. “Storytellers have power; they are not voiceless victims,” writes the author. “In a song we are given the authority to be the writer of the story instead of the paper it is written on.” She explains how she uses that authority to help military veterans take control of their experiences and turn them into something useful by helping them express themselves as songwriters. “There is something sacred in the electricity that surges between song and songwriter,” writes Gauthier. “Lightning rod in hand, I follow flashes of ideas and inspiration. My work is to be a receiver.” She does that work well as a songwriter and now as an author.
A powerful memoir that says as much about Gauthier and her eventful, trailblazing life as it does about her music.
