Marsha Swanson, Something Real | Track Review 🎵

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I played ‘Something Real‘ twice before I’d even looked at who was behind it, and my first scribbled note just says “why does this make me want to ring my mum”. Not very professional, but it’s true.

It’s Swanson’s first new music since ‘Near Life Experience’ and ‘Like an Angel’, and it’s also our first look at TroubleChutes, her project helping children make sense of what they’re feeling. She’s spent years doing this work with kids and families, in schools and therapy rooms, and you can hear that experience all over the song. It never lectures. It just sits with you, the way a good friend does when you’re having a rotten day.

She puts it better than I can: “Music can bypass language, allowing emotional truth to be felt, whilst words can help name those feelings.” I’ve read a lot of press quotes this year. That’s one of the few I’d actually stick on a fridge.

Nice surprise in the credits: Henry Thomas. Rockschool Henry Thomas! I hadn’t thought about that show in years and it made me grin. He had a hand in the track and he’s presenting the TV pilot too, which was filmed with pupils at St Mary’s Hampton in south west London. Stuart Epps handled extra production and mastering, and with Elton John and Led Zeppelin on his CV, it’s no wonder the whole thing sounds so warm and full.

The people who know this field are clearly moved by it. Susie Orbach says Swanson “brings emotional literacy to songs whilst warming our hearts”, and Brett Kahr goes further, saying the project “will save many broken souls”. After a week with this song, I get why they feel that strongly.

You can take a listen to ‘Something Real‘ by Marsha Swanson here. 

Four out of five – George James. 

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