Mary Lee's Corvette - The Ceol Castle, Birmingham - 3rd February 2004
Review by Jeremy Searle

It is perhaps unfortunate that virtually all reviews of Mary Lee's Corvette start with Mary Lee Cortes' voice.  But it's an amazing instrument and demands attention.  One of those seemingly effortless sounds, it fills the venue with plenty to spare. But it's not all about power, there's delicacy and sensitivity there too. Tonight is a stripped down performance, with Mary Lee on acoustic and Andy York(possibly) on jagged electric. The set majors on the current MLC album, “700 Miles”, one of last years better albums. 

It could be described as a relationship/failed relationship record (but then, what album couldn't?) and there are some fine pieces of bile spat out tonight - “(Give it to) The Needy” in particular is a wonderful take-your-kiss-and-shove-it song with a hooky chorus that belies the venom of the lyric. A cover of “You're gonna make me lonesome when you go”, from their celebrated “Blood on the Tracks” album, also makes an appearance midway through the set. Dylan songs have been covered and recovered so many times that the heart sags whenever you hear the opening chords of one, but MLC's frankly jaunty interpretation manages, against the odds, to find a new truth in the song. Tonight MLC are only the support act, but by the end of their 35 minutes of so the audience are with them to a man.  Mary Lee Kortes can pen a decent line, and has the voice and band to go on to bigger and better things, and will hopefully be back before long.