by: Bruce Westbrook
Yes, there is life after Natalie Merchant.
Not that 10,000 Maniacs ever doubted it. But when Merchant left the group in 1993 to launch a solo career, some fans must have wondered if they could continue - even after selling more than 7 million records.
They have, and they're being heard again, thanks to More Than This, a Top 40 hit that's getting heavy airplay internationally, with Mary Ramsey as the group's new lead singer.
Like an earlier Maniacs hit, Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith's Because the Night, More Than This is a cover of an old song, in this case by Roxy Music.
"That comes from rehearsals, when we're having fun and say, 'Let's try one of our favorite songs,'" guitarist John Lombardo said during the Maniacs' recent Houston visit.
"We've messed around with a million covers, but all we really think about if we record them is B-sides."
More Than This was different.
"As soon as we started playing it, we felt, 'Wow, this sounds like a Maniac thing,'" Lombardo said. "Just having a woman sing it (instead of Roxy Music's Bryan Ferry) gave a whole different vibe."
Mellow vibes have long been a hallmark of this group from rural New York, as also shown in the original songs on their new album, Love Among the Ruins (named after a poem by Robert Burns, not the 1975 film the poem inspired).
Near the end of the disc's production, More Than This arose on the same session as Rainy Day, new tune that probably will be the second single.
More Than This originally was considered as the B-side to Rainy Day, with that song as the first single. But Geffen Records "was really excited about it," Lombardo said.
"Choosing singles is a collaborative decision between the band and the label," said keyboardist Dennis Drew. "Certainly they have more expertise in the radio business than we do."
Radio promotions are bringing 10,000 Maniacs to Houston twice in two months.
They first played a July 24 Private Performance show for KHMX (96.5 FM). On Aug. 15 they return for a Private Sessions show for KRBE (104.1 FM) at the Art Institute of Houston.
Such shows are small, held for ticket winners via on-air promotions.
But the Maniacs also have played to massive crowds at a Chicago festival, and between Houston dates they've performed two major concerts in Brazil.
"We've been called the Supertramp of Brazil," guitarist Robert Buck said with a laugh. "Figure that out. Years ago we heard we were the Fleetwood Mac of Portugal. I'm still laughing at that."
"We're the Menudo of Iceland," quipped Drew. "We're the Los Angeles Dodgers of New Zealand."
The band does have an international name. More Than This is getting airplay from France to Singapore. That has helped spark this far-ranging tour for vastly different venues.
"We jokingly call this our guerrilla tour, because we have to adapt to a lot of different situations," Lombardo said.
He was an original member of the band - along with Merchant, Drew, bassist Steven Gustafson and drummer Jerome Augustyniak - before quitting in 1986. Soon after, Lombardo formed a duo with Ramsey. [webmaster's note: that depends on your definition of 'soon'. John didn't meet Mary until 1989]
Yet they were also ad-hoc Maniacs, contributing to tours and recordings. Ramsey sang backing vocals and also played viola and violin, as she still does.
"We were always pretty close," Lombardo said.
Then Merchant announced she was leaving the Maniacs.
For her farewell show in 1993, Lombardo and Ramsey opened. After the concert, Gustafson told them they should join the band.
"And I said, 'Let's start tomorrow,'" Lombardo remembers.
Actually, the group needed some time off "after going seriously for 12 years straight," Drew said.
That grind is what led to Merchant's departure, though it was a reasoned move, announced far in advance and with no animosity. Merchant made no claim to the band's name.
Lombardo feels it helped that Merchant "came out with a record and established herself as a solo artist first. If we'd been first, people would have bought it and said, 'Where's Natalie?'"
"She and I have corresponded," Ramsey said of her predecessor. "She's really supportive of what we're doing, and it's a mutual thing - very warm."
So is the new album, a gentle, tuneful disc about perseverance and optimism, with most songs penned by Ramsey and Lombardo.
"It's a hippie thing," said Lombardo, noting the band recorded its new disc in Woodstock, N.Y. "We don't distance ourselves from that socially aware, '60s hippie ethic. We try to be part of the solution, not the problem."
Drew believes too much of pop music "is about adolescent narcissism. It's saying nothing matters. It's wearing spandex and shouting about yourself and your problems.
"Our philosophy is quite different. We have faith in human beings, and we love and believe in each other. That's where the power is."
"The only way to make the world a better place is love," said Drew. "The sense of community and family that we've found in each other has given us the faith to continue."
With a new lead singer, the Maniacs aren't concerned about a shift in identity.
"The people who liked the band in the first place still like the band," Lombardo said. "When David Crosby left the Byrds, fans didn't get mad at the Byrds or him. We're still making music that's in the same ballpark."
If anything, the Maniacs feel they're "holding down the fort" for what they call "meaningful music," along with soul mates such as Merchant, John Prine or Suzanne Vega.
"We appreciate having this forum, this opportunity," Lombardo said. "When the music is credible, it's not hard to connect."