Biography
Born and raised on her family's dairy farm in Sicamous, British Columbia, Canadian alt-country singer/songwriter Carolyn Mark received piano instruction from her father, an accomplished violinist. She first emerged in 1991 as part of the all-girl rock combo the Vinaigrettes, a group based in Victoria, B.C., that maintained an intense touring schedule across Canada and the western U.S. throughout the next seven years. Following the band's 1998 dissolution, she joined forces with fellow insurgent country diva Neko Case to form the Corn Sisters duo, whose 2000 debut The Other Women documented a live performance in Seattle.
Mark simultaneously pursued solo work, supported by guitarist Tolan McNeil and drummer Garth Johnson—her real-life housemates, who performed under the professional name the Room-Mates—and, after signing with the Mint label, returned to the road. Her 2000 solo debut Party Girl collected eleven songs recorded in locations spanning Canada, with at least one track originating from each province.
A long-standing fascination with the classic Robert Altman film Nashville prompted the 2002 release of an all-star tribute to the movie's soundtrack that featured contributions from Case, Kelly Hogan, Carl Newman of the New Pornographers, and additional stalwarts of the Canadian indie scene. Her sophomore solo effort, the excellent Terrible Hostess, appeared that summer. For her fourth album, 2004's The Pros and Cons of Collaboration, Mark was joined by Kelly Hogan, Greg MacDonald of Pepper Sands, Diona Davies of Po' Girl, and Paul Rigby. Another collaborative project, Just Married: An Album of Duets, arrived in summer 2005 and presented her interpretations of songs ranging from David Bowie to Hank Williams.
Sessions for her more introspective 2007 follow-up Nothing Is Free took place at a community hall on British Columbia's Salt Spring Island. In 2009 she partnered with Toronto-based alt-country artist NQ Arbuckle on the album Let's Just Stay Here, which earned a 2010 Juno nomination for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year. Returning to solo work, she issued her eighth album Queen of Vancouver Island in 2012. Come! Back! Special!, released in 2016, marked her first project for the Fontana-distributed, artist-run indie Roaring Girl Records.
Mark simultaneously pursued solo work, supported by guitarist Tolan McNeil and drummer Garth Johnson—her real-life housemates, who performed under the professional name the Room-Mates—and, after signing with the Mint label, returned to the road. Her 2000 solo debut Party Girl collected eleven songs recorded in locations spanning Canada, with at least one track originating from each province.
A long-standing fascination with the classic Robert Altman film Nashville prompted the 2002 release of an all-star tribute to the movie's soundtrack that featured contributions from Case, Kelly Hogan, Carl Newman of the New Pornographers, and additional stalwarts of the Canadian indie scene. Her sophomore solo effort, the excellent Terrible Hostess, appeared that summer. For her fourth album, 2004's The Pros and Cons of Collaboration, Mark was joined by Kelly Hogan, Greg MacDonald of Pepper Sands, Diona Davies of Po' Girl, and Paul Rigby. Another collaborative project, Just Married: An Album of Duets, arrived in summer 2005 and presented her interpretations of songs ranging from David Bowie to Hank Williams.
Sessions for her more introspective 2007 follow-up Nothing Is Free took place at a community hall on British Columbia's Salt Spring Island. In 2009 she partnered with Toronto-based alt-country artist NQ Arbuckle on the album Let's Just Stay Here, which earned a 2010 Juno nomination for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year. Returning to solo work, she issued her eighth album Queen of Vancouver Island in 2012. Come! Back! Special!, released in 2016, marked her first project for the Fontana-distributed, artist-run indie Roaring Girl Records.
Albums
