Margaux And Margo: Opposite Planetary Poles

No Hemingway connection implied or intended. And, we'll not say much about Margaux. We'll scarcely say anything at all about Margot.

Margaux is a splendid wine producing region in France; The late Ms. Hemingway was reportedly so named on account of the role that wine may have played in her conception, thus explaining the exotic variation on a definitely upscale name.

Margots,in general, are uptown women, chic, smart, full of bons mots and expensive tastes. Margo is a somewhat less elegant version, sounds right, spelled wrong, maybe not quite ready to take the field with either Margot or Margaux, perhaps unwittingly carrying a hopeful mother's aspirations for the finer things.

Pay attention! Now comes Margo Price, in New York by way of Nashville, another overnight sensation ten years in the breaking and making. With a hometown of Aledo, Illinois, roughly halfway between Moline and Galesburg, her latest - and phenomenal - album, Midwest Farmer's Daughter makes eminent sense.

Margo is a throwback, a honky-tonk habitué, definitely not a moonshine gran diva. Her poignant stories are the real deal, not simply commercial twang or faux lost love laments. Her voice says she has known disappointment, heartbreak, distress, anger - and has found tequila to be a cure-all of miraculous powers to soothe and heal.

It's raw, it's real, and it's not for everyone. Certainly not for casual country listeners, certainly not for anyone seeking happy endings - but definitely a resonating beacon for anyone who has visited real life, and lived to tell the story.

For us in the supply chain - or anywhere - Margo provides learning. Failure can be as immediate as five minutes off; success most often takes time. Staying true to your own voice, your own authentic self, might not immediately attract friends for a moment, but you can live to see validation.

It is up to us, to each find and climb our own paths - and those paths are very seldom paved. They, no matter how rough or smooth, are not straight. They are plagued with twists and turn, with ups and downs, with excitement and enticement, with fear, terror, and rejoicing. We need to remember all this, and to recognize that an obstacle is not a wall, and to understand that the real path might not be the one we thought we saw, the one that first appeared, the one that we thought was our one true course.

Thanks, Margo.

Forget Tootsie's; I'll see you at the Booze Brothers Bar and Optional Grille. btw, SNL took the plunge with Margo as musical guest in mid-April - a welcome departure from the usual parade of no-hit wonder Manhattan club acts du jour and tired, used-to-was, megastars.