Ciao My Shining Star: The Songs Of Mark Mulcahy

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Review by Matthew Fritch

They could have been bigger than the Pixies. Were it not for record-label misfortune and the whims of the listening public, Miracle Legion might be as renowned — 20 years ago or today — as their late-'80s New England college-rock fellows. Led by singer/songwriter Mark Mulcahy, Miracle Legion possessed neither the serrated art damage of the Pixies nor the guitar anti-heroics of Dinosaur Jr; the New Haven, Conn., band instead traded in mysterioso jangle-pop that put it in league with R.E.M. and the Church. Even if the alternative nation never fully embraced Miracle Legion, Mulcahy's contemporaries have been consistently awed by his talents. The rediscovery of Miracle Legion begins in bittersweet fashion with Ciao My Shining Star: The Songs of Mark Mulcahy, a multi-artist covers album to benefit Mulcahy's twin daughters, left motherless in September 2008 when Melissa Mulcahy died unexpectedly. The proceeds will allow Mulcahy to continue his career in music — Miracle Legion has been on hiatus since 1996, but solo albums have followed, along with his Polaris project, responsible for the music on Nickelodeon show The Adventures Of Pete & Pete — while raising his young daughters.

The 21-track Ciao My Shining Star is frontloaded with bigger names: Thom Yorke, Michael Stipe, Frank Black and Dinosaur Jr. are at the top of the order, but it's more than star power that put them there. Each of these artists has some personal connection; in Yorke's case, he's practically modeled his vocal delivery on Mulcahy's, and leadoff track "It's All For The Best" is barely changed from its original form aside from the skittering beats and keyboards that make it a sonic cousin to Kid A's "Everything In Its Right Place." Frank Black has shared backing musicians with Mulcahy, and his take on "Bill Jocko" is so rightfully vicious that it trumps the Pixies' "Cactus." (Black has played the two songs back-to-back in concert.) But there's a fascinating psychology to various-artists tributes, in that familiar names such as the National, Ben Kweller and Juliana Hatfield turn in merely satisfying performances while the lesser-knowns often get to make indelible first impressions, as in the case of the JAMC-loving Butterflies Of Love or the fork-tongued English folkie Frank Turner. Can Ciao — possibly the best alt-rock tribute album since 1993's Victoria Williams benefit Sweet Relief — do no wrong? It would've been nice to hear 120 Minutes favorite "You're The One Lee." Even seemingly incongruent tracks such as Rocket From The Tombs' Tom Waits-ian take on "In Pursuit Of Your Happiness" reflect Mulcahy's own songwriting range. The album's closing trifecta is particularly strong, with performances by Mercury Rev, Elvis Perkins and Nickel Creek's Sean Watkins. It's difficult to identify a throughline for all of Mulcahy's work; it's heart-on-flannel-sleeve one track and paisley-patterned obscure the next. But with Watkins' rendition of "A World Away From This One," a song about falling in love — possibly written about wife Melissa — this tribute is tied together not only by what Mulcahy's lost, but also the songs we've gained.