Tough Mary

The story behind

Tough Mary is one of those songs that sounds like blues but with an air of classic ballad, where the voice of Etta James unfolds over an arrangement that blends the intimate with the grandiose. It's not a track that draws attention for its length —just two minutes and twenty-five seconds— but for how the All Time quality of its sound manages to convey more than a simple lyric. There's something in the way the orchestra sways around her voice, as if the accompaniment knows when to make way and when to push her forward. It's not the kind of song you listen to in the background; it demands you stop and let it pass through you.