Red Molly is a folk trio consisting of Laurie MacAllister (vocals, guitar, … Read Full Bio ↴Red Molly is a folk trio consisting of Laurie MacAllister (vocals, guitar, banjo), Abbie Gardner (vocals, guitar, Dobro, lap steel guitar), and Carolann Solebello (vocals, guitar, precision acoustic bass, mandolin). They perform original works composed by each of the group members, as well as covers of other songwriters including Hank Williams, Gillian Welch and Ryan Adams. Their fans are known as Redheads.

Red Molly was formed late one night at the 2004 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival. Abbie, Carolann, and Laurie, solo singer/songwriters, were the last ones left at a song circle. They liked the way they sounded together and decided to form a band. The name Red Molly is taken from a character in the Richard Thompson song "1952 Vincent Black Lightning."

On June 15, 2010 Red Molly announced that Carolann Solebello would be leaving the group and replaced by Molly Venter. On July 24 Solebello announced to the crowd at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival it was her last show with the band and concluded: "I know about 75% of you by face, and I wanted my last show to be with my friends here at Falcon Ridge, not at some small club in some country I didn't know anybody." Solebello continues to perform as a solo artist and released her third solo album "Threshold", in June 2011.

Molly Venter's debut with the trio was on August 6, 2010 at the Lunenburg Folk Festival.

Their career started to take off in 2006. They were the top vote getters in the 2006 Falcon Ridge Folk Festival Emerging Artist Showcase. WUMB in Boston named them Top New Artist of the Year and picked their Album Never Been to Vegas one of their Top 10 Albums of 2006. They appeared in John Platt's Under the Radar series in New York a showcase for up and coming musicians.

In 2007 they toured with Pat Wictor and Ellis, the other winners of the Falcon Ridge Emerging Artist showcase, on the Falcon Ridge Preview tour and performed with them in the Most Wanted Song Swap at the Festival itself.

In 2010 they have played Merlefest and have been invited back to the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival as a headliner.

Their album "Love and Other Tragedies" reached number 15 on the Americana Charts on June 30, 2008.

Their next album "James" reached #4 on the Americana charts in May of 2010 and # 1 on the Folk DJ chart.

The recording, "The Red Album", the group's second since the departure of founding member Carolann Solebello, is their freshest and edgiest to date. After immersing themselves in songwriting, the Mollies made a conscious decision to record more original songs than on any previous album, making their choice of specific covers all the more significant. With their arsenal of new songs and select favorites at hand (including a very long-awaited cover of the song that is their namesake) "1952 Vincent Black Lightning", the band traveled to Nashville to work with producer Ken Coomer (drummer for Uncle Tupelo and Wilco), and the result is a darkly percussive, wildly cool, and powerfully different collection of songs than you'd expect from a ladylike folk trio.

"The Red Album", realized on May 27, 2014, was featured in USA Today and CMT Edge. It spent 16 weeks on the Americana Radio Top 40 chart, reaching #10, and it was #1 on the Folk DJ Radio Chart for all of 2014.

A 6-song EP, "One for All & All for One," was released in 2018.

Does My Ring Burn Your Finger
Red Molly Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

When I gave you my heart
It was not what you wanted
Now the walls say your name
And the pictures are haunted
Does my ring burn your finger
Did my love weigh you down?
Was the promise too much to keep around?

I remember your words and I can't keep from cryin
I could never believe that your kisses were lyin
Was there something from the past
Buried in a shallow grave?
Did you think that it was too far gone to save?

Please tell me baby
Please tell me now
You say that I should just go on
Now please tell me how

Now it's just me and the night and I'm so broken hearted
I just wait in the dark here for my dearly departed
Did my ring burn your finger?
Did my love weigh you down?

Was the promise too much to keep around?
-Huseyin Cirpan-

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Red Molly's "Does My Ring Burn Your Finger" appear to be about heartbreak and the aftermath of a failed relationship. The first line implies that the singer gave their heart to someone who did not want it; this led to a situation where the singer is left with memories of this person ("the walls say your name / And the pictures are haunted").

The chorus, "Does my ring burn your finger / Did my love weigh you down? / Was the promise too much to keep around?" seems to suggest that the singer is questioning the reason for the breakup. Did the relationship fail because the other person was not committed enough to keep the promise of love and devotion? Was the ring a burden the other person could not handle? Was the singer too demanding in their expectations?

The second verse further explores the singer's emotions after the breakup ("I remember your words and I can't keep from cryin / I could never believe that your kisses were lyin"). The singer seems to be struggling with the idea that their former partner might have had a hidden agenda or was not honest in their feelings. The final lines of the song ("Now it's just me and the night and I'm so broken hearted / I just wait in the dark here for my dearly departed") indicate that the singer is left alone and heartbroken.

Overall, the lyrics to "Does My Ring Burn Your Finger" suggest a deep emotional pain and a sense of betrayal by someone the singer cared deeply about. The questions in the chorus speak to the confusion and hurt that often come after a failed relationship.

Line by Line Meaning

When I gave you my heart
When I gave you my love

It was not what you wanted
It was not what you desired

Now the walls say your name
The walls remind me of you

And the pictures are haunted
And the pictures of us bring me pain

Does my ring burn your finger
Is it a burden for you to wear my ring?

Did my love weigh you down?
Did my love become too heavy for you?

Was the promise too much to keep around?
Was the commitment too difficult for you to maintain?

I remember your words and I can't keep from cryin
I can't help but cry when I remember the things you said

I could never believe that your kisses were lyin
I never thought that your affection was insincere

Was there something from the past
Was there something that happened before?

Buried in a shallow grave?
That was forgotten or ignored?