7"
b/w Home Before Dark
The Sky Girl legacy is astonishing - is there a track from that hallowed compilation that hasn't since been reissued in its own right? Probably, but I don't suppose it's for lack of trying. Still, it's all for good reason, and Nora Guthrie is as deserving as any. And so, you'll likely already be well familiar with Guthrie's 'Home Before Dark', an ornate 60s-styled arrangement that fits broadly within the Hazlewood school of pop writing that's made memorable for Guthrie's innocence-on-the-edge-of-adulthood delivery, both a little nervous and wide-eyed at the wonder of the world. 'Emily's Illness' is less known for obvious reasons, but equally captivating. Written by Guthrie's then-18 year old boyfriend and inspired by the poems of Emily Dickinson, it dances along with a keening vulnerability, the story of a sensitive loner in search of understanding soundtracked by that same kind of heartstruck bedroom splendour of Brian Wilson at his most confessional - think 'In My Room' rendered with a female protagonist. The sound of the universal experience of the teenage view of the world, coloured with all its mystery and longing.
