“ ***** “Ms. Battiata has a fabulous voice and wraps it around some excellent lyrical content.” - Chris Smith, Country Music People magazine (UK), May 2018 |
“This is a gem of an album” – Bob Harris, Bob Harris Country, BBC Radio 2 |
Praise for The Heart, Regardless: -“Everything you most loved about Dolly and Rosanne is here, with heart-tugging hooks that snag like spurs.” – Andrew Darlington, RNR Magazine, UK (March/April) "Absolutely superb, isn't it?" - Whisperin’ Bob Harris, longtime and legendary deejay of Bob Harris Country, on the air on BBC Radio 2, May 3, 2018, after playing "Sun That I Can Count On," from The Heart, Regardless. "The album is The Heart, Regardless from Mary Battiata and her band, Little Pink. Very, very interesting woman -- some of the reviews of this album have been sensational, and it's interesting that the songs are so well-crafted. She's a former journalist, so I suppose it's not too surprising ... But this is a gem of an album. It’s the first time I’ve ever played them... For sure I’ll be playing more music from this album in future weeks.” - “Mary Battiata’s latest is no more and no less than a jewel of modern country.” – Dani Heyvaert, ROOTSTIME.BE (Belgium) - “Dark Country that hits the motherlode.” – Mike Davies, Fatea Records Magazine (UK) -“The arrangements do indeed incorporate a little twang a little folk and a little pop influence but you also get a sprinkling of delicious Bluegrass undertones, some haunting strings and the occasional nice fat funky bass line. That there are so many quality musicians in this studio band also adds to the overall enjoyment of this collection, all bar one written by the artiste herself. I will express a preference for some of the more up-tempo songs – Six Miles Out and 20 Words both floated my boat as did the very infectious Knockout Boy. The closing song is an absolute delight.” – Chris Smith, Country Music People, May 2018 - “She has made an unabashed Country album, and a great one at that.” – Charles Walston, The Hill Rag (Washington DC) - “This is a CD of real country music, brilliant and varied, and very much as one would like to hear it. The songs are at a high level … The unstoppable country ballad ‘Things You Say and Don’t Say’ alone would justify acquiring this CD, as would ‘Can’t Take My Mind Off You,’ an example of the best honky-tonk. Oh, and I forgot: Mary sings superbly.” – Sam Pierre, Le Cri du Coyote (France) - “One of the 20 other great honky-tonk albums that I tremendously enjoyed this year” - A. Michael Uhlmann, Honky Tonk Daily (Austin TX), in the coda to HTD’s list of Top Country Albums of 2017; others in the coda: Jason Isbell, Charley Pride, Lee Ann Womack, Marty Stuart and more] - “The space evoking ‘Remember This’ … is arguably the high point of the album as pedal steel, banjo and a moody drifting feel see Battiata on an emotion packed adventure to a place beyond the norm. Along with … the crackerjack back-roads country jewel ‘Can’t Take My Mind Off You’ (more excellent harmony vocals from Dudley Connell), and the gallop of ’20 Words,’ a machine-gun short tune that never stops for breath. The record, produced by Battiata and Dave Nachodsky, enjoys a great deal of instrumental depth, creativity and width over what is a more than generous 14 tracks.” – Maurice Hope, Flyinshoes Review (UK) - "I seriously like this album. For one thing, I am a sucker for country and Americana music that uses lots of minor chords. ... For another, the songs always maintain a nice beat/rhythm -- I connect more to songs like that. … [And] Mary's voice and Dudley Connell's harmony singing blend so nicely." - Steve Hoffman, Program Director, WOWD-LP 94.3 FM Takoma Park MD
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Mary Battiata & Little Pink is the ongoing alt-country, Country, Americana,twang-folk-pop project of singer-songwriter Mary Battiata (pronounced Baa-tea-ah-ta – it’s Italian). The band name is an homage to The Band’s Music From Big Pink. Other influences: Dolly Parton, Hank Williams, Hazel Dickens, George Jones, the Feelies, Aftermath and Flowers, to name a few.
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@ The Hamilton, Washington DC |
@ Opal Divine’s, Austin TX |
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@ Takoma Park Folk Festival, Takoma Park MD
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@ Hill Country LIVE, Washington, DC |
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Gladly Would We Anchor is the follow-up to Little Pink’s engaging debut, Cul-de-sac Cowgirl (Adult Swim/2001). Released in 2008, it features singer-songwriter Mary Battiata (“12 Songwriters You Should Hear” – Harp), at work with a band of standout musicians from Washington D.C.’s roots and jazz scenes, along with special guest Ben Peeler (the Mavericks, Shakira), and co-producer Philip Stevenson (Carnival of Souls, Quinine). “Absolutely brilliant. Frontwoman Mary Battiata and her rootsy Washington DC band evoke Richard and Linda Thompson at their most lyrical on this impeccably crafted, often haunting CD.” – Lucid Culture (NYC) “Mary Battiata sings like an angel, resembling, variously, Linda Thompson, Margo Timmins or Rosanne Cash. Yet She’s clearly wrestling with some devils on this, the follow-up to Little Pink’s 2001 debut. … Even her choice of a Bevis Frond cover, the scruffy, power-poppy ‘Stars Burn Out,’ reveals a deeply cynical streak. (It’s about our heroes and their declines.) Ultimately, though, Gladly Would We Anchor isn’t a downer, because by peering into the darkness, Battiata is wielding the illuminating rays of hope.” – Harp “Part twang, part folk, part pop, Battiata is not the most accessible of songwriters, but she’s all the more rewarding for that.” – 4-flower review, John Conquest, 3rd Coast Music (Austin TX) “Best Songwriters of 2008” – John Conquest, 3rd Coast Music, Austin TX “Songs that should keep listeners thinking – of Lucinda Williams and Rosanne Cash for starters, but mostly of how Battiata, in her own subtle, insinuating way, earns such comparisons.” – The Washington Post “Tinges of Folk, forays into Alt-Country” – Les Enfants Terribles (Washington, DC) |
“A shimmering roots rock pageant that shines with scuffed sophistication” – No Depression “Battiata’s pipes and way with song construction are equally strong. She’s a real writer, so listen to the words. Think Emmylou or early Dolly … “ – George Pelecanos “It’s interesting to speculate where Battiata learned to write so well; as a journalist in the 1990s, she covered the war in Bosnia. Does writing about the terrors of war make one more prepared to write about the terrors of love and loss? Surely aplomb is necessary in making either subject palatable for the reader – or the listener. On Cul-de-sac Cowgirl, it’s clear that Battiata has the mind, the voice and the band to make the songs go down easy. (For fans of the Cowboy Junkies, the Jayhawks, Victoria Williams.) – Benjamin Johnston, highbias.com |