Hal Ketchum, who passed away recently, had a wonderful debut album in 1991 called Past the Point of Rescue. I sought out the album after seeing the video for Ketchum’s song “Small Town Saturday Night.” It was a catchy tune with a cute video. I would fall in love with the entire album, but really fell for one of the most heartbreaking songs I’ve ever heard, “I Miss My Mary.”
The opening stanza of the song reveals how wonderful of a songwriter Hal Ketchum could be. It sets the story of a man leaving his wife and baby.
A threadbare alibi…..a lifetime full of promise,
Fell from my Mary’s eyes as she saw the screen door swing;
The baby never woke……he lay cradled in her trembling;
He lay safe and never knowing what my leavin would bring.
In this video from the Texas Music Preservation Project, Ketchum reveals that the song is based on a true story. While traveling with Jerry Jeff Walker, he met a man named “Chief” who told him the story of leaving his Mary. And, as Ketchum explains, once he got that nugget of a story and got back home, he couldn’t write the song fast enough.
Ketchum died on November 23, 2020 from complications related to dementia. His career was interrupted more than once due to health issues, including a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. But he created some wonderful music even if he never again achieved the popular success of his debut album. Rest in peace.
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