As I’ve mentioned many times before in this space, I’m really not a lyrics guy – at least when it comes to listening. But Robert Deeble, master songwriter that he is, always gets me to pay attention to his words. There are so many little moments and phrases in “Orphan Song” that prick up the ears and make you wonder: First, the title. One assumes it’s a song about orphans, right? Then the strange, repeated plea, “Pleasant don’t you leave me,” and the aurally satisfying and highly specific references to Cooper Creek Virginia. Then you learn (or, if you’re really smart, figure out) that this song is about the Carter Family, written in response to the graphic novel Don’t Forget This Song, by Frank M. Young and David Lasky, and it all comes together. It’s not referring to a song about orphans, but rather songs that are orphans, the songs A.P. (Alvin Pleasant) Carter spent countless days, weeks, years traveling the country in search of. This song is his wife’s desperate plea to keep him at home rather than rambling the land in his quixotic quest to collect songs from far and wide. (Come to think of it, this song might have some resonance for my wife.)
It’s all set to a smoothly loping backdrop of acoustic guitar and upright bass, the perfect setting for Robert’s rich, smoky baritone (I won’t call it a gravy baritone, since Mariaugh just coined that phrase, but I wish I had). Another understated triumph from our friend Robert.