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Mountain City Girls: The McGarrigle Family Album
The first book and definitive family memoir from Anna and Jane McGarrigle, sisters to Kate McGarrigle and aunts of Rufus and Martha Wainwright. This book is truly a classic in the making. The McGarrigles are known around the world for their touching, insightful songs about love, loss and family. But where and how does a family so rich in musical luminaries take root? In Mountain City Girls, Anna and Jane recount their childhood in Montreal and the Laurentian Mountains, and go further back to their ancestors' early days in Canada, and their parents' courtship and marriage. A vivid snapshot of coming-of-age in the 1950s, the book recounts the sisters' school days and rebellious teenage antics, and their beginnings as musicians. It takes us through the vibrant folk music circuit of the 1960s in Montreal and New York City, and the burgeoning social movements of San Francisco, and ultimately leads to the formation of the folk music duo Kate and Anna McGarrigle, revealing the genesis behind some of their beloved songs and following their early days recording and performing. The book also reads as a tribute to Kate, who passed away in 2010, with insights into her character and creative development. Inspiringly, it speaks to the important (sometimes lifesaving) role of sisters, and is a deeply moving testament to the profound importance of family. Charming and witty, interspersed with lyrics and photos, this book captures the McGarrigles' lives, idiosyncratic upbringing, and literary and musical influences. No one can tell the story of the McGarrigles better than Anna and Jane, or in such an inimitable, intimate way.
- GenresMusicMemoirNonfiction
475 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 10, 2015
8 people are currently reading
141 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
September 29, 2019
Like their music, it’s not what you’d think. The McGarrigles’ family and childhood are what the book is primarily about. The early home reminiscences and stories are the best part, especially if you weren’t brought up Catholic in northern Quebec in the 1950s. As the book gets more grown-up, it gets more normal, and a little duller. The songs of Kate and Anna (and Loudon Wainwright, if you want another view) tell the grown-up stories with more passion and detail. So—worth reading—but only if you also promise to listen to Kate and Anna McGarrigle and Dancer With Bruised Knees.
November 10, 2015
I was lucky enough to win a pre-released copy of Mountain City Girls through Goodreads.
When I entered for a copy of this book my knowledge about the McGarrigle clan was limited. Truthfully, most of what I knew was in their relation to the Wainwrights.
I found this book to be informative, well paced, and it struck a great balance between the funny and poignant. I am left wanting to know more about the McGarrigle sisters and plan on familiarizing myself with their music in the near future.
The McGarrigle family seems to have led one of those mythical artist lives full of quirky family, mythological histories, and a good dose of locale changes. Being able to follow the paths of these different individuals as they have roamed across North America pursuing their music, at times haphazardly, through the voices of Anna and Jane was most enjoyable.
Having the two sisters tell their stories gave the book a variety and allowed the reader to develop a sense of them as sisters but also as unique voices. One started to imagine what Kate would of said about certain situations; the three of them were a unit and her missing piece was tangible at times.
I recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about Canada's folk music history, enjoys a good family saga, and who enjoys learning the ins and outs of a less than ordinary family.
When I entered for a copy of this book my knowledge about the McGarrigle clan was limited. Truthfully, most of what I knew was in their relation to the Wainwrights.
I found this book to be informative, well paced, and it struck a great balance between the funny and poignant. I am left wanting to know more about the McGarrigle sisters and plan on familiarizing myself with their music in the near future.
The McGarrigle family seems to have led one of those mythical artist lives full of quirky family, mythological histories, and a good dose of locale changes. Being able to follow the paths of these different individuals as they have roamed across North America pursuing their music, at times haphazardly, through the voices of Anna and Jane was most enjoyable.
Having the two sisters tell their stories gave the book a variety and allowed the reader to develop a sense of them as sisters but also as unique voices. One started to imagine what Kate would of said about certain situations; the three of them were a unit and her missing piece was tangible at times.
I recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about Canada's folk music history, enjoys a good family saga, and who enjoys learning the ins and outs of a less than ordinary family.
May 31, 2019
I have very little knowledge on the Canadian folk music history or industry, so I wasn't sure how much I would glean from this memoir, but I quite enjoyed most of it. There are 3 McGarrigle sisters, 2 of whom perform, and they are managed by the oldest. I was pleasantly surprised, though, that most of the book didn't focus on the music industry, but rather gave an engrossing history of growing up Anglo in rural Quebec--Saint Sauveur. I loved reading about growing up in the 1950s and 60s and the sisters' interests, schooling, first work experiences, their start in music, and family history. In fact, about 2/3 into the book, when the music scene really started to take over was where I lost some interest, being unfamiliar with the songs, lyrics, and musicians. A fun historical read though!
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August 8, 2019I’ve decided not to finish this book. I really enjoy how the book is written and I think the stories are interested. However, because I don’t know the family or the music I’m not feeling attached to the stories.
March 21, 2020
A book as brilliant as it's authors. What the McGarrigles had on stage, the two oldest sisters bring on into their book. It is warm and loving, funny and quirky, painful and angry - it is life, from start to finish. It is history and memory and the development of a person and a country.
In the end, the book is directed to the most devoted fans in their little 'family' of followers and the most clueless strangers all at once. They speak to you in their writing as though you're an old, familiar friend, but carefully explain every detail as though you stumbled onto the scene off the street. The smart idea of each chapter being both stand-alone and connected allow a long-term fan to start with whatever chapter seems most interesting, while a new reader can start at the beginning and work their way forward chronologically.
The beautiful photos reproduced on pages of plastic glossy paper equally lend themselves both groups. They put faces to recognizable if slightly obscure names among fans - Phillipe Tatartcheff, Caroline Holland (C.S Holland) and Audrey Bean, Peter Weldon and Roma Baran - while also photographically introducing the most crucial players both during the book and their lives thereafter. Their mother Gaby, their father Frank, big sister Jane, producer Joe Boyd and their combined six children Anna Catherine, Ian Vincent, Rufus, Martha, Sylvan and Lily are all featured.
There is no reason not to read this book, clean and simple. It has everything you can want and some more yet. It explains thing you never knew you were missing. It touches on the evolution of both Canada and the world, yet centers around this big, small loving family that are the McGarrigles and their friends. It is grounded and funny and sad and most of all filled with love and heart. Read it, savour it, process it. Start all over again when you're done and see what you missed.
In the end, the book is directed to the most devoted fans in their little 'family' of followers and the most clueless strangers all at once. They speak to you in their writing as though you're an old, familiar friend, but carefully explain every detail as though you stumbled onto the scene off the street. The smart idea of each chapter being both stand-alone and connected allow a long-term fan to start with whatever chapter seems most interesting, while a new reader can start at the beginning and work their way forward chronologically.
The beautiful photos reproduced on pages of plastic glossy paper equally lend themselves both groups. They put faces to recognizable if slightly obscure names among fans - Phillipe Tatartcheff, Caroline Holland (C.S Holland) and Audrey Bean, Peter Weldon and Roma Baran - while also photographically introducing the most crucial players both during the book and their lives thereafter. Their mother Gaby, their father Frank, big sister Jane, producer Joe Boyd and their combined six children Anna Catherine, Ian Vincent, Rufus, Martha, Sylvan and Lily are all featured.
There is no reason not to read this book, clean and simple. It has everything you can want and some more yet. It explains thing you never knew you were missing. It touches on the evolution of both Canada and the world, yet centers around this big, small loving family that are the McGarrigles and their friends. It is grounded and funny and sad and most of all filled with love and heart. Read it, savour it, process it. Start all over again when you're done and see what you missed.
February 22, 2016
I loved this book. For someone who lived through much of the time covered by the book, and who, on top of it all, was a 'folkie' for a time, it was great! I loved the description of Montreal in the 60's, and of the sisters' lives then and their lives in the various places they lived as young women - Boston, Saratoga Springs, Berkeley - all places with which I am familiar. In fact, I'm surprised I never saw them sing at the Club 47 in Cambridge back in those heady days. As well, the kinds of jobs the McGarrigles had when they started out 'working' were so reminiscent of the times - women doing secretarial work, but also a whole lot more that was unrecognized. My grandchildren, Zoe and Julian, were visiting while I read the book, and each day we would watch the NFB short, 'The Log Drivers' Waltz', sung by Kate and Anna. I still love their music.
September 15, 2019
Anna’s lyrics are way better than her prose, but she and Jane do write an interesting memoir of their lives and their sister Kate’s too short one. Just a bit better editing would have helped immensely.
January 13, 2017
Loved the story of the Mcgarrigle sisters but was sorry to find the story basically stopped in 1975. Would have liked to hear the story up to the present.
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February 4, 2016http://rabble.ca/books/reviews/2016/0...
Review by Jessica Rose
Critics have called Mountain City Girls, the first memoir by Canadian musicians Jane and Anna McGarrigle, a tribute to their younger sister Kate, who died of a rare form of cancer in 2010. However, the intimate and witty book is equally an ode to the trio's unconventional parents, Frank and Gaby, and the many other memorable ancestors who came before them.
For those unfamiliar, Anna and Kate McGarrigle formed an award-winning folk duo that inhabit an important space in Canadian music history. Their older sister Jane was integral to their success, managing their careers in the late 1970s to 1990s, a time in which she was a co-collaborator on and off the stage. A younger generation of Canadian music fans might know the McGarrigles as famous kin to Rufus and Martha Wainwright (Kate was their mother).
However, Mountain City Girls isn't a music memoir. Rather, it's an affectionate look at the sisters' upbringing in a one-and-a-half storey white board and batten cottage in the small Laurentian town of Saint Sauveur in the middle of the 20th century. It's a coming-of-age story that doesn't take readers beyond Kate and Anna's burgeoning career as folk musicians. In fact, it ends right where a biographer might begin, around 1975, shortly after Kate and Jane signed a record contract with Warner Brothers.
Read more here: http://rabble.ca/books/reviews/2016/0...
Review by Jessica Rose
Critics have called Mountain City Girls, the first memoir by Canadian musicians Jane and Anna McGarrigle, a tribute to their younger sister Kate, who died of a rare form of cancer in 2010. However, the intimate and witty book is equally an ode to the trio's unconventional parents, Frank and Gaby, and the many other memorable ancestors who came before them.
For those unfamiliar, Anna and Kate McGarrigle formed an award-winning folk duo that inhabit an important space in Canadian music history. Their older sister Jane was integral to their success, managing their careers in the late 1970s to 1990s, a time in which she was a co-collaborator on and off the stage. A younger generation of Canadian music fans might know the McGarrigles as famous kin to Rufus and Martha Wainwright (Kate was their mother).
However, Mountain City Girls isn't a music memoir. Rather, it's an affectionate look at the sisters' upbringing in a one-and-a-half storey white board and batten cottage in the small Laurentian town of Saint Sauveur in the middle of the 20th century. It's a coming-of-age story that doesn't take readers beyond Kate and Anna's burgeoning career as folk musicians. In fact, it ends right where a biographer might begin, around 1975, shortly after Kate and Jane signed a record contract with Warner Brothers.
Read more here: http://rabble.ca/books/reviews/2016/0...
January 11, 2018
I really, really wanted to love this book. I am a transplant to Montreal. Growing up Canadian and watching CBC I was familiar with the McGarrigle's without knowing their names (the Log Driver song) and as a folk music fan I am fascinated by the Wainwright/McGarrigle musical dynasty.
I enjoyed the stories but didn't find the writing compelling enough to finish. I borrowed this book twice from the library, so for 6 weeks total, but just didn't find it engrossing enough to finish.
For me this was not a "I can't put it down" read.
I haven't listened to a lot of McGarrigle music and maybe that's why the stories didn't capture my imagination the way I hoped.
I did like learning about Montreal and the Laurentians, specifically Saint Sauveur in the 60's & 70's. I love learning the history of places, especially places I've lived or visited and what to understand better.
I enjoyed the stories but didn't find the writing compelling enough to finish. I borrowed this book twice from the library, so for 6 weeks total, but just didn't find it engrossing enough to finish.
For me this was not a "I can't put it down" read.
I haven't listened to a lot of McGarrigle music and maybe that's why the stories didn't capture my imagination the way I hoped.
I did like learning about Montreal and the Laurentians, specifically Saint Sauveur in the 60's & 70's. I love learning the history of places, especially places I've lived or visited and what to understand better.
February 4, 2016
I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
This was a memoir detailing the life of the McGarrigle sister, Jane, Anna, and Kate. They are three sisters born in Quebec that have spent a good portion of their lives involved in music. Kate and Anna went on to record multiple albums together.
I liked this book. I had never heard of the McGarrigles until I had started reading. They have had such interesting lives, and may of their experiences have lead them to where they ended up in music. Being heavily influenced by their musician father, they went on to become great musicians in their own right.
This was a memoir detailing the life of the McGarrigle sister, Jane, Anna, and Kate. They are three sisters born in Quebec that have spent a good portion of their lives involved in music. Kate and Anna went on to record multiple albums together.
I liked this book. I had never heard of the McGarrigles until I had started reading. They have had such interesting lives, and may of their experiences have lead them to where they ended up in music. Being heavily influenced by their musician father, they went on to become great musicians in their own right.
October 15, 2016
This book was an interesting look into the family of the McGarrigle sisters. Some parts of it were more interesting to me than other parts, and I suspect that each reading will connect with different parts as well. I liked that Anna and Jane wrote with love and humour about their lives and family members. I particularly enjoyed the sections when they were children and when they shared stories about Kate.
December 3, 2015
This book was quite an experience to read. As someone who occasionally enjoys folk music (though mostly in the form of traditional folk music from my home province of NL), this book really helped me get curious about folk music from away. I think I'll be looking up the music of this family and I definitely recommend this book to those who enjoy folk music, Canadian stories, and takes about family.
*won on GoodReads First Reads*
*won on GoodReads First Reads*
December 7, 2015
I did not like the book. I had trouble getting into it so I did not finish it,
December 6, 2015
http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/1...
Not into Celtic music but found the references to life in rural Quebec interesting. Won this on Goodreads.
Not into Celtic music but found the references to life in rural Quebec interesting. Won this on Goodreads.
January 30, 2016
Not exactly a linear memoir; more like like a sitting-around-telling-stories one. But if you're a McGarrigles fan, it's a charming and fun read.
March 14, 2016
While I wish they had focused on the recordings, I still enjoyed this insightful look into this musical family. Wonderful read.
October 14, 2020
3.5* format biographique intéressant, début très intéressant
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews