Kate McGarrigle

OBITUARY: Kate McGarrigle. Singer. Born Quebec, February 6, 1946. Died Montreal, January 18. Aged 63.

rest in peace, and thank you for the blessings your life brought to the world.

WITH her older sister Anna, Kate McGarrigle made some of the most beguiling folk-pop records of the past 40 years. Combining a rich seam of traditional folk influences with poignant and poetic contemporary songwriting, the sisters created a uniquely warm sound, characterised by exquisite two-part harmonies.

Their voices ranged from the sweet and yearning to the haunting and plaintive, and their records exuded an intimate quality that made the listener feel they had intruded on a relaxed Sunday afternoon session around the piano in the McGarrigle family parlour.

Both sisters were gifted songwriters, and when Linda Ronstadt scored a hit with a cover of Heart Like a Wheel from their debut album, it seemed mainstream commercial success was theirs for the taking. But the duo were determined to pursue their own path and paid little attention to the demands of a pop career. They never imitated other popular artists or tagged on to musical fashions; indeed, they seemed oblivious to them. Instead of touring they preferred to stay at home and quietly bring up their families well away from the spotlight.

Despite avoiding the glare of celebrity in her private life, Kate McGarrigle helped to found a musical dynasty: her two children, Rufus Wainwright and Martha Wainwright, became stars in their own right.

In later years the McGarrigle sisters' recordings became more sporadic, and after 1982 they released only five more albums. Yet each in its quiet way was a gem, not least the charming The McGarrigle Hour (1998), on which the sisters, their offspring, and friends sang favourite songs by the likes of Stephen Foster and Irving Berlin.

Full Article in the Australian

One of my favorite songs, which I sang in church related to text being salt of the earth is NaCl


NaCl (SODIUM CHLORIDE)
Kate McGarrigle, Garden Court Music ASCAP

Just a little atom of chlorine
Valence minus one
Swimming through the sea, digging the scene
Just having fun
She's not worried about the shape or size
Of her outside shell
It's fun to ionize
Just a little atom of Cl
With an unfilled shell

But somewhere in that sea lurks
Handsome Sodium
With enough electrons on his outside shell
Plus that extra one
Somewhere in this deep blue sea
There's a negative
For my extra energy
Somewhere in this foam
My positive will find a home

Then unsuspecting Chlorine
Felt a magnetic pull
She looked down and her outside
Shell was full
Sodium cried "what a gas be my bride and
I'll change your name from Chlorine to Chloride"

Now the sea evaporates to make the clouds
For the rain and snow
Leaving her chemical compounds in the absence
Of H2O
But the crystals that wash upon the shore
Are happy ones
So if you never thought before
Think of the love that you eat
When you salt your meat


You can listen to the song at:

http://new.music.yahoo.com/kate-anna-mcgarrigle/tracks/nacl-sodium-chloride--1462577 or by clicking on the title above in the heading.