A COVID-19 2020 recording experience... This was a joint recording effort by each band member. Molly recorded in her home, Blue Print Studio. Rick Hirsch recorded electric guitars in his Studio H2O. John Keuler recorded bass and BG vocals in his home and John Milham recorded drums in his Green Roof Studios in Laurel, MS.
Notes from Molly:
This song was written during the COVID-19 lockdown from various conversations with myself taking comfort in the simple fact that in all chaos and seeming defeat, we will all be okay. I don’t intend to discount the many untimely deaths and severe illnesses resulting from this horrible virus. They cannot be ignored as we try to come together to understand. Something to consider throughout all of the world's experience this year is even in death and illness, those of us living must find peace by turning the volume down, resting, protecting each other in distancing, and being with loved ones — even by phone. Perhaps as we reflect on 2020 with gratitude that we were forced to go deeper inside ourselves to meet head-on such impending doom as, suffering, loss, hunger, unemployment, show cancellations, quarantines, hurricanes, fires, anxiety, etc., we may possibly see ourselves in a new light.
One more thing... I'd like to give a big THANK YOU to all of the health care-workers who have worked so diligently throughout this time. We pay homage to YOU!
Peace & Love,
Molly
Artwork by Laney Milham
“Molly’s songwriting is beautiful, haunting, and deeply personal; she crafts her songs from her own personal experience of love, loss and redemption… you feel every note with hypnotizing clarity.” - Scott Bottrell of Fairhope Living Magazine February 2021 Issue
I am happy to announce that our album, Honey's Fury, made several top charts for end of the year ratings for 2019... listed in the order in which they came in.
1.) Americana Highway Magazine's top 100, where we were #16
2.) Viola Krouse's Top 37 Releases of 2019 for Making a Scene Magazine
3.) Warren Kurtz's Fabulous Albums & Songs for Goldmine Magazine's top 20.
4.) The Song, "Laura" was a top 20 song for Goldmine Magazine
5.) Van's 10 Most Essential Records of 2019
6.) Favorite Album of the Year! 2019 READERS' CHOICE AWARDS for The Southland Music Line
Thank you ALL for your support and to these journalists who took the time to listen to our music. It makes me happy that you were touched by the songs.
10 new songs to know by Alabama musicians
"With talented Alabama Shakes singer Brittany Howard releasing her first solo material, this summer is off to a hot start for fans of Alabama music.
In addition to proven stars from the state like Howard and songsmith Jason Isbell - who’s been touring with Father John Misty and recording with Sheryl Crow - making national news, promising local music continues to bubble up here.
Below are 10 recently released songs to know, by bands and solo acts based in or from Alabama.
'The Ocean' Molly Thomas & The Rare Birds
Fairhope combo summons mystical-Americana vibes reminiscent of that Grammy-winning “Raising Sand” album Robert Plant and Alison Krauss did back in 2008."
- AL.com
"The Alabama foursome hits hard, too. Backed by Rick Hirsch (guitar), John Milham (drums), and John Keuler (bass), Thomas shines throughout the twelve tracks that appear on Honey’s Fury. The Rare Birds showcase their gritty chemistry, and Thomas effortlessly welcomes you into her turbulent yet gleefully inspiring world. The band truly is a rare combination of talent that works like a steady, well-oiled machine that won’t take no for an answer."
- Music & Mojitos
"Perfectly timed is the fattened notes & interplay of instruments on “Calling My Name.” Ms. Thomas asserts herself & the band supports her well. If today’s rock & roll burns the coal slow this effort is doused with starter fluid. Fiery like The Avett Brothers & The Mumfords. All good."
- Americana Highways
"Honey’s Fury delivers polished Americana, refined and elegantly sophisticated, along with the scrumptious violin and voice of Molly Thomas."
"A round bass line and glittering guitar accents inject the harmonics with intimacy and emotional commitment, especially evident on the stellar guitar solo, full of searing shadow-like hues."
- Rawckus Magazine
"Molly Thomas & the Rare Birds are premiering their brand-new song 'Sharona,' and its accompanying music video, exclusively for readers of The Boot. Press play above to hear the mournful, contemplative tune.
Despite partially sharing its name with the Knack's 1979 hit, 'Sharona' was actually inspired by a woman Thomas met. 'She'd fled from the dregs of New Orleans after [Hurricane] Katrina to Nashville, where I was living at the time," Thomas tells The Boot. "She had an immense impact on me, and all I wanted to do was take her home with me, hug her and help her get better.'
- The Boot
Molly Thomas is unfiltered ‘south.’ She is the feel and the sound of the southern United States. In an America where food chains, homogenized broadcasting and department stores oppress the uniqueness of any time and place, Molly manages to sound untouched
and singular in her expression. She's vulnerable and stubborn while she honors the themes of loneliness, literature and that ethereal humidity that comes with the southern perspective.
"The Alabama foursome hits hard, too. Backed by Rick Hirsch (guitar), John Milham (drums), and John Keuler (bass), Thomas shines throughout the twelve tracks that appear on Honey’s Fury. The Rare Birds showcase their gritty chemistry, and Thomas effortlessly welcomes you into her turbulent yet gleefully inspiring world. The band truly is a rare combination of talent that works like a steady, well-oiled machine that won’t take no for an answer." - Music & Mojitos
MOLLY THOMAS With her new release, Honey’s Fury, Molly Thomas has seamlessly woven 12 songs into a powerful album. Thomas effortlessly transforms the depth, range, and complexity of her existence into enlightening learning experiences that are touching and inspirational to her listeners. “Molly Thomas sings what my guts can’t find the words to say. She offers us the freedom to sit back and listen while she explores heartache on our behalf. I feel lucky I found her music.” - Jason Segel (actor) Born in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, Thomas has made her home in Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee, a hive for songwriters and artists whose emotive storytelling and beautifully gritty swampy swagger personify the region. As a side-person, Thomas has recorded and toured internationally, including late night performances on David Letterman and Jay Leno’s Tonight Show with folk icon Todd Snider. Her violin, string arrangements and vocals have been featured on recordings and live performances with Guster, Matthew Ryan and Will Hoge amongst others, and her reputation as a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and collaborator speaks for itself. Throughout her career, Thomas has released three critically acclaimed records as a solo artist and her music has appeared in films.
RICK HIRSCH Musician/composer and BMI songwriter, Rick Hirsch's roots are imbedded in the antebellum South, Georgia and Alabama to be specific. It was there, on the Gulf Coast, that he grew up in the land of Drivin' Miss Daisy and down the path from Forrest Gump, as a yung'un always falling asleep at night with guitar in hand. After graduating from the U. of Alabama with his degree in Biology/Chemistry, he did the obvious and began to play guitar professionally around the South. And quite soon in 1969, he helped found the Seventies rock and roll band eventually known as WET WILLIE, a group on the Capricorn label sharing the roster with several other bands including the Allman Brothers (the original ones). Wet Willie enjoyed some nice successes during the band's tenure on Capricorn, eg. a Billboard Magazine top 5 hit, Keep On Smilin' and a dozen or so albums. By 1976 though, "thrill turned to chill", or was at least put on the back burner, and Rick had an opportunity to record and tour with Cher and Gregg Allman, who were preparing to do their duo album, Allman and Woman. He did so and subsequently moved to Los Angeles in 1977, where he resides today. He has worked with numerous acts as a guitarist and is a published songwriter, having had his songs and music performed and recorded by various artists as well as being featured in film and television. Today, he perseveres in the capricious world of music.
"The Alabama foursome hits hard, too. Backed by Rick Hirsch (guitar), John Milham (drums), and John Keuler (bass), Thomas shines throughout the twelve tracks that appear on Honey’s Fury. The Rare Birds showcase their gritty chemistry, and Thomas effortlessly welcomes you into her turbulent yet gleefully inspiring world. The band truly is a rare combination of talent that works like a steady, well-oiled machine that won’t take no for an answer." - Music & Mojitos
OSO at Bear Point Harbor, 5749 Bay La Launch Ave, Orange Beach, AL 36561
"The Alabama foursome hits hard, too. Backed by Rick Hirsch (guitar), John Milham (drums), and John Keuler (bass), Thomas shines throughout the twelve tracks that appear on Honey’s Fury. The Rare Birds showcase their gritty chemistry, and Thomas effortlessly welcomes you into her turbulent yet gleefully inspiring world. The band truly is a rare combination of talent that works like a steady, well-oiled machine that won’t take no for an answer." - Music & Mojitos