By Laura Glick
"You get more exotic the further you travel."
Carolyn Mark followed her own advice, gathered a few boys, jumped in a van, and hit the highway, traveling across Canada to record her latest album, Party Girl.
"I wanted to record with different people," the Victoria resident shares.
Each track was laid down in a different city with various engineers tweaking and perfecting the song. The result is an eclectic collection of country-dipped, nostalgic melodies, each offering a new twist on Mark’s formula.
Wrapping her slightly raspy voice around sliding twang riffs, Mark perfectly transports herself onto the floor of a ’50s recording studio. Exuding down-home charm and girl-next-door magic, Mark steals your heart and ears. You just want to get to know the girl with the raucous cackle.
Perfectly suiting the image of a slumber party aficionado, Mark is willing to divulge her secrets.
"I think Alejandro Escovedo is somewhat of a hypnotist, he’s pretty dreamy. I don’t have a crush on him or anything," she begins. "I used to have a thing for Jerry Jerry, cause he’s such a showbiz guy. I have not seen him for a while, he could have quit all that showbiz stuff. Oh, from Vancouver, Rich Hope, he’s pretty foxy."
Her drooling intensifies when the topic jumps to actors.
"My big crush is Pee Wee Herman," she says laughing. "He’s so funny. I’ve seen Big Top Pee Wee about a few hundred times."
Escovedo and Herman make quite the odd fantasy, but it gets more interesting.
"Steve Martin," she whispers dreamily. "[He’s] personality foxy. My mom’s looking on the internet so I can send him a CD. I haven’t had a celebrity crush in quite a while. [There’s] Johnny Depp and I saw Rupert Everett in some movie on the plane and I was like, ‘He’s cute,’ and a week later I open People and he’s walking down a street with Madonna and I’m like, ‘I hate it when Madonna steals the guys I like!’"
Okay, Martin, Herman, Escovedo, Everett and Depp. Interesting mix of hunks. Which one would she choose to stow away with on a secluded island?
"If I could live with the character Pee Wee Herman," she admits. "I always get nervous with this desert island question, ’cause I think I’m gonna pick the wrong thing and live to regret it."
What would Mark snack on at her fabulous slumber party?
"Spinach dip in the bread itself, celery with cream cheese up the middle, deviled eggs."
Don’t forget the breath mints, and the pajamas.
"I have a lot of negligees and slips," she says laughing. She also has more sensible night attire with a pair of second-hand typical father style pajamas.
Always in the mood for a good time, Mark’s humour and giggles weave their way into her music, resulting in a sincere and enjoyable mix of country and pop.
To experience Mark live, check out the Night Gallery on April 21 and the Ship and Anchor on the afternoon of the 22.
Tell her Steve Martin says "Hi."