10,000 Maniacs have gone through a variety of musicians throughout the history of the band. Here is a partial list of the past, present, and touring musicians:
Jerry Augustyniak - Jerry has been the drummer of 10,000 Maniacs since 1983. He's also played with the bands The Stains, Only Humen, League of Blind Women, The Michael Lee Jackson Band, Buffalo Rising, The Damn Straights, etc. He has been the band's main backing vocalist since 1994.
Rob Buck - Rob was the lead guitar player from 1981 to 1999. He co-wrote many of the band's most popular songs. Rob died December 19, 2000 of liver failure at the age of 42.
Duane Calhoun - Duane played lead guitar for 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 while Rob Buck was officially in the band, but not performing with them.
Chet Cardinale - Chet was an early drummer for the band. He left to pursue a career in acupuncture.
Jim Colavito - Jim played saxophone with the band in 1981.
Dennis Drew - Dennis has been the keyboard player in the band since 1981. He's also played with The Mighty Wallop!, where he co-wrote much of the band's material, played keyboards, and had lead and harmony vocal duties.
Jeff Erickson - Jeff took over lead guitar after his friend and guitar teacher Rob Buck died, beginning by playing a short set during the band's only 2001 appearance. The first time he played with the band was December 12, 1998 on the song "These Are Days", while Buck was away from the band. Jeff was a lead singer/guitar player in the short-lived band The Mighty Wallop!.
Tim Edborg - Tim played drums with 10,000 Maniacs in 1981.
Morgan Fichter - Morgan was a touring musician with the band in 1992-1993, playing violin and singing backing vocals. She's also played with Camper Van Beethoven and Phish among others.
Jim Foti - Jim was the studio drummer for the band's 1982 EP Human Conflict Number Five.
Steve Gustafson - Steve has been the band's bass player since 1981. He has also been one of the band's backing vocalists in their live performances since 1994. He was also the bass player in The Mighty Wallop!.
Debbie Heverly - Debbie played piano with the band in 1981.
Michael Lee Jackson - Michael replaced Rob Buck as the touring lead guitar player on December 11, 1998 and stayed in that spot until the summer of 1999, when Buck returned. Michael has played in Animal Planet and The Michael Lee Jackson Band.
Amanda Kramer - Amanda was a touring musician with 10,000 Maniacs in 1992 and 1993 as a second keyboard player, also lending her harmony vocals to some of the songs. Occasionally, she'd back Rob up on guitar, picking up an acoustic on several songs. She was formerly the Keyboardist for the 80's New Wave band Information Society
John Lombardo - John, the band's rhythm guitar player and occasional odd vocalist, co-wrote most of the early Maniacs songs, but left the band in 1986, right before the band "made it big." He returned in 1994 with his duo partner Mary Ramsey, and picked up right where he left off by writing and shaping the band's music. He left the band again in 2002 after the first rehearsal before the "hits" tour.
Natalie Merchant - Natalie was the voice of 10,000 Maniacs from 1981 until she decided to embark on a solo career in 1993. In her later years with the band, she played piano as well.
Terry Newhouse - Born February 19, 1957 in Corry, Pennsylvania, Terry was a keyboard player and vocalist in the band "Still Life", which was the band's name before they began calling themselves "10,000 Maniacs." At one time, she was married to Rob Buck. Newhouse died June 8, 2005 at WCA Hospital in Jamestown, New York at the age of 48.
Mary Ramsey - Mary opened up shows with John Lombardo as John & Mary in 1990 and would play viola and sing backing vocals with the band on a few songs in 1990-1991. She a touring musician with the band in 1992-1993, playing viola and singing backing vocals. When Natalie Merchant left the band in 1993, Mary replaced her on lead vocals and added the viola as a main instrument of the band, starting with live shows in 1994 and continuing on until 2001. Oskar Saville replaced her as lead singer in 2002, but Mary agreed to become a touring musician with the band in 2006, singing backing vocals and playing viola on select songs. Mary agreed to be the lead singer for the band again for their final show of 2007 after Oskar Saville left the band.
Oskar Saville - Oskar took over lead vocals from Mary Ramsey in 2002. She occasionally plays acoustic guitar during live performances. May 8, 2003 was her first live performance with the band. During the song "Stockton Gala Days", she pulled the band's webmaster (at the time) Adam Zeitz on stage to share lead vocals. Oskar was the former lead singer of Rubygrass and also has a solo career. She left the band in late Summer, 2007 and was replaced by the woman she replaced, Mary Ramsey.
Gold Rush Brides
10000 Maniacs Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Pass the lone church spire.
Pass the talking wire from where to who knows?
There's no way to divide the beauty of the sky from the wild western plains.
Where a man could drift, in legendary myth, by roaming over spaces.
The land was free and the price was right.
Dakota on the wall is a white-robed woman, broad yet maidenly.
I see Indians that crawl through this mural that recalls our history.
Who were the homestead wives?
Who were the gold rush brides?
Does anybody know?
Do their works survive their yellow fever lives in the pages they wrote?
The land was free, yet it cost their lives.
In miner's lust for gold.
A family's house was bought and sold, piece by piece.
A widow staked her claim on a dollar and his name, so painfully.
In letters mailed back home her Eastern sisters they would moan
as they would read accounts of madness, childbirth, loneliness and grief.
The lyrics in 10,000 Maniacs' song "Gold Rush Brides" explore the history and struggles of women in the American West, specifically Homestead Wives and Gold Rush Brides. The song begins by describing the wild western terrain and how a man could roam freely over the vast spaces. The lyrics seem to suggest that there is a certain beauty in the simplicity of the prairie roads and the empty sky, but there is also a sense of isolation and disconnect.
As the lyrics continue, we see a mural of a white-robed woman on the wall, Dakota, who symbolizes the strength and power of these women in a male-dominated society. The lyrics ask us to consider who these women were, the Homestead Wives and Gold Rush Brides, and if their works survive in the pages they wrote. The haunting refrain of "the land was free, yet it cost their lives" speaks to the sacrifices these women made in carving out a life for themselves and their families.
The last portion of the lyrics talks about the harsh realities of the gold rush era, how families were torn apart as a result of greed, and how women were left to fend for themselves in a hostile and dangerous environment. The lyrics suggest that even though their stories may have been lost to history, their struggles and sacrifices live on.
Line by Line Meaning
Follow the typical signs, the hand-painted lines, down prairie roads.
Let's follow the usual signs and hand-painted lines, down the roads leading to the open grasslands.
Pass the lone church spire.
We pass by a single church steeple rising from the small town.
Pass the talking wire from where to who knows?
We pass by a telephone wire traveling to who knows where.
There's no way to divide the beauty of the sky from the wild western plains.
It's impossible to separate the stunning sky from the vast, untamed prairies of the American West.
Where a man could drift, in legendary myth, by roaming over spaces.
Here, a man could roam aimlessly, freely, and become a legend.
The land was free and the price was right.
The land was free for the taking, and the price was just right.
Dakota on the wall is a white-robed woman, broad yet maidenly.
On the wall is a painting of a woman named Dakota, beautifully strong yet still very youthful.
Such power in her hand as she hails the wagon man's family.
She greets the wagon-man's family with great strength and grace in her hand.
I see Indians that crawl through this mural that recalls our history.
I see the depiction of Native Americans crawling through the painting which pays tribute to our shared history.
Who were the homestead wives?
Who were the women who lived on homesteads, trying to build a new life for themselves and their families?
Who were the gold rush brides?
Who were the women who traveled west to marry prospectors during the gold rush?
Does anybody know?
Does anyone truly know the struggles and hardships these women faced?
Do their works survive their yellow fever lives in the pages they wrote?
Did these women's written works survive their short, disease-filled lives on the frontier?
The land was free, yet it cost their lives.
Though the land was free for the taking, it took the lives of many women who tried to tame it.
In miner's lust for gold.
In the miners' unbridled desire for gold.
A family's house was bought and sold, piece by piece.
Families were forced to sell off their homes, bit by bit.
A widow staked her claim on a dollar and his name, so painfully.
One widow was left with only a dollar and her late husband's name, painfully trying to make something of it.
In letters mailed back home her Eastern sisters they would moan.
Her sisters back East read her letters and just felt sorrow and sadness.
As they would read accounts of madness, childbirth, loneliness and grief.
These letters exposed accounts of mental instability, childbirth troubles, loneliness, and grief.
Lyrics © WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Written by: NATALIE A MERCHANT, ROBERT BUCK
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind