Three Merry Widows formed in St. Louis, MO in 1988. After a number of lineup changes, the band settled into a groove with Alice Spencer (lead vocals), Sean Garcia (guitar/vocals), Brian Simpson (guitar), Charles Shipman (bass), and Matt Albert (drums). The music of Three Merry Widows is best described as psychedelic folk-rock, drawing influences from 60’s rock bands such as Janis Joplin, Cream, The Beatles, and English folk-rock pioneers Fairport Convention.
By 1989, Three Merry Widows developed a loyal and passionate following within the St. Louis music scene. Later that year, they decided to bring their distinctive blend of psychedelic folk-rock to Boston where they could tour the New England college circuit and get in front of record labels in New York City.
In 1990, they signed with Indie label TVT Records and recorded their first and only release, entitled Which Dreamed It?, at the renowned Ardent Studios in Memphis with Grammy Award winning producer Peter Henderson, who worked with many legends of music including Paul McCartney and Supertramp.
The album was released in April of 1991, and the band toured for the better part of the following year, sharing the stage with national acts such as Nirvana, Soul Asylum, School of Fish, Ziggy Marley, Trip Shakespeare, Firehose, and The Connells. Their first single, Black Halo, broke the Top 10 on the College Music Journal charts. The Widows received top honors in seven categories in the Riverfront Times Best of St. Louis polls, including Best Rock & Roll Band, Alternative Band, Local Band, and Best Club Concert, Original Music, Recording, and Female Vocalist.
After hitting a creative impasse with their record label, Three Merry Widows disbanded and the band members went their separate ways while continuing to pursue music in other projects.
Now, after a 20-year hiatus, the band has recorded a new album, called I Was the Moon, and was released in 2019. In the spring of 2021, Three Merry Widows remastered and released their debut album, Which Dreamed It?, to mark the albums 30th anniversary. Veteran St. Louis musician Danny Hommes joined the band on drums in 2015 to complete the band’s line-up.
Photographer: Patrick Lanham
“Three Merry Widows strike a nice balance of energies on this sophomore effort, placing acoustic ballads, like “Jar” and “Billy She Said,” in between livelier folk rockers like “All Through the Day,” a fiddle song that gives Buckley some room to run, while “Walks on the Water” develops from a simple banjo part to a full-blown rocker. ”
“Lyrical and folky, the Three Merry Widows’ debut embraces a rock age long gone by, not settling for established pop formulas but instead blazing through an hour’s worth of rhythmically and loosely concerted pop melodies.…the Widows go deep without going off the deep end.”
“Alice and her amazing voice front a band that has pasted together a bewitching collage of sound and texture.”
“Trance inducing…3 Merry Widows come close to redefining the word ’likeable’.”
“Which Dreamed It? is one of the best debut albums of the year...and the most wonderful part of Three Merry Widows’ sound is that it sounds like no one else.”
“You know there’s something in the air when humility becomes rock & roll virtue...it’s not just any band that can take seemingly acid-drenched lyrics and carry them off convincingly.”
Riverfront Times Best of St. Louis, 1991
“Best Rock & Roll Band”
“Best Alternative Band”
“Best Local Band”
“Best Club Concert”
“Best Original Music”
“Best Recording”
“Best Female Vocalist”