The Posies began as a set of informal home recordings by Stringfellow and Auer, but soon became a full-fledged band. Those early demos were released as the album Failure (1988). Mike Musburger and Rick Roberts joined soon after, allowing the band to play its first live shows in Seattle and Bellingham. The four then moved into a house in Seattle's University District. The band's first full album was their major-label début Dear 23 (1990). It was produced by John Leckie and features lush orchestrations for the songwriters' literate, clever, melodic pop with occasional hard-hitting guitars.
The Posies' guitars hit even harder on their third and fourth albums, 1993's Frosting On The Beater and 1996's Amazing Disgrace. These two albums are the band's most succesful and are still widely regarded as classics in indie rock and 'power pop'.
The band's rhythm section underwent many changes over the years. During the recording of 'Frosting', Roberts left and was replaced by Dave Fox. During the 1994 European tour, Musberger left (new bassist: Joe Howard a.k.a. Joe Skyward), whole Brian Young took over on drums
The 'Amazing Disgrace line-up' also recorded album #5, Success (1998), which failed commercially. The Posies went on hiatus while the members concentrated on outside projects, including solo albums (Stringfellow, Auer) and projects such as Lucky Me, Skyward and Chariot, while Brian Young played drums in Fountains of Wayne. From 1997 to 2001, there was only sporadic Posies activity, although two live albums saw the light of day: an 'electric' one (Alive Before The Iceberg, 1999) and an 'acoustic' one (In Case You Didn't Feel Like Plugging In, 2000).
After a satisfying tour as a duo, Auer and Stringfellow brought the band back to active service, now with Darius Minwalla on drums and Matt Harris on bass. The new line-up recorded and released the studio albums Every Kind Of Light (2005) and the particularly well-received Blood/Candy (2010).
From 1993 onwards, Auer and Stringfellow also joined Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens as band members of 'power pop' legends Big Star, playing on many tours as well as the Big Star studio album, In Space (2005).
The years 2010-2016 were a particularly dark time for The Posies. Ayer and Stringfellow's association with Big Star came to an abrupt end when Alex Chilton died in 2010. The Posies' 2014 incarnation included Darius Minwalla on drums and Joe Skyward on bass, but disaster would strike: on May 21, 2015, Darius Minwalla died suddenly in his home in Vancouver, from unknown causes. On March 26th 2016, Joe Skyward passed away after a battle with cancer.
The Posies, however, re-emerged with a new album (their 8th), Solid States, set for an April 2016 release.
Suddenly Mary
The Posies Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Were not I weary I would have caught her
I watched for a moment and scrambled in
after
Words of disownment were drowned out with
laughter
I awoke from a peaceful sleep and found
Aesop used to make me weep but now I'm
part of Mary's fable
Suddenly Mary fell in the water
I found myself married to somebody's
daughter
"Loving," she told me
"Is a question of bravery"
But when she started to hold me
It was closer to slavery
I got up for a bite to eat and found my
clothes inside the icebox
I used to stand on my own two feet but
now I sit when my new wife talks
Suddenly Mary fell in the water
She floated away with the ring that I
bought her
She had convinced me that I was a failure
I burned all my clothing and found a new
tailor
Suddenly Mary (repeat)
Suddenly Mary's fine (repeat)
The Posies's "Suddenly Mary" is a song about a man who falls deeply in love with a woman named Mary, who seems to have a very powerful hold over him. The song begins with Mary falling into the water and the singer scrambling to save her. However, he didn't do it in time, and as she drowned, she let out a laugh that drowned out his words of disownment. This suggests that he felt responsible for what happened to her, and felt as though he was to blame for her death.
As the song continues, we can see that the singer is now married to somebody's daughter, who is most likely Mary. She tells him that "loving is a question of bravery", but as soon as she starts to hold him, he feels trapped and likening it with slavery. He feels as though he's lost his sense of self, and as he goes to eat he finds his clothes inside the icebox. This could mean that he feels as though he's lost too much control over his life, and his possessions no longer belong to him.
The song ends with Mary floating away with the ring that he bought her. By this point, the singer feels as though he's hit rock bottom, and in an act of catharsis, he burns all his clothing and seeks out a new tailor. The repetition of "Suddenly Mary" and "Suddenly Mary's fine" suggests that he's come to terms with the loss of Mary and has moved on, but it's also possible that he's still struggling to come to terms with what happened.
Line by Line Meaning
Suddenly Mary fell in the water
Mary had a sudden mishap and fell into the water
Were not I weary I would have caught her
If I wasn't tired, I would have saved her from falling
I watched for a moment and scrambled in after
I waited for some time before jumping in to save her
Words of disownment were drowned out with laughter
The negative words were ignored, and everyone laughed at something else
I awoke from a peaceful sleep and found my clothes under the table
I woke up from my restful sleep, and my clothes were kept under the table
Aesop used to make me weep but now I'm part of Mary's fable
I used to cry because of Aesop's fables, but now I'm a part of Mary's story
I found myself married to somebody's daughter
I ended up marrying someone's daughter
"Loving," she told me "Is a question of bravery"
She said that love requires courage
But when she started to hold me it was closer to slavery
She didn't let me have my freedom and controlled me like a slave
I got up for a bite to eat and found my clothes inside the icebox
I stood up to eat something and saw my clothes inside the refrigerator
I used to stand on my own two feet but now I sit when my new wife talks
I used to be independent, but now I have to sit and listen to my new wife
She floated away with the ring that I bought her
Mary took the ring that I gave her and moved away
She had convinced me that I was a failure
Mary made me believe that I was unsuccessful
I burned all my clothing and found a new tailor
I destroyed all of my clothes and got a new tailor
Suddenly Mary (repeat)
Mary's name is repeated to emphasize her suddenness
Suddenly Mary's fine (repeat)
Mary's name is repeated to indicate that she's okay now
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JONATHAN PAUL AUER, KEN STRINGFELLOW
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind