Watch: The Lone Bellow Share “Fake Roses” Video with Emotional Story
The Lone Bellow’s fantastic sophomore effort, Then Came the Morning, entered our ears and hearts earlier this year, but the band has just now released the official video for the new single, “Fake Roses.” In addition to the video, the band has also shared the story behind the tune, which was recorded at Dreamland Studios with The National’s Aaron Dessner. The song is inspired by frontman Zach Williams’ mother-in-law Edna, who he has known since he first met Edna’s daughter (and his now-wife) Stacy when he was 15. Edna was also a catalyst for Williams during Stacy’s recovery following being thrown from a horse.
Here’s the full story from The Lone Bellow’s Zach Williams via the band’s Facebook page:
I met Edna the month I turned 15. I had met her daughter Stacy (now my wife) at summer camp a few years before that, and I finally struck up the nerve to come over one night for dinner. I remember walking up to Edna’s house and seeing a front yard that desperately needed to be mowed. I remember knowing that it was a sensitive subject. Edna was a single mom working as a nurse. Stacy and I quickly became close. Stacy saw me as a close friend and a person she could trust to talk too about all of her boyfriend issues… Yep.. I was that guy. This went on for several years. I learned how Edna became a single mom and how hard and beautiful it was. I also learned that she was a nurse who had to work day and night to pay her bills and that her sister, Fredna had a similar situation. Most of all I learned about her bravery…
Edna was with me in the hospital room when the doctor told me Stacy will probably never move anything from her neck down again. Edna stood firm in her belief that the doctor was wrong and that it was to soon to make that prediction. She was calm. She was my rock while I was living in that hospital learning how to take care of Stacy and the realities of our new life. I learned later on that she would go to the restroom to cry so that I didn’t see her. She protected me during my deepest despair.
10 years later I wrote “Fake Roses”. This is for you Edna, and every single mother who fights so hard for their kids. Thank you Virginia Madsen lending your talents to this project.
Watch the video below. For more on the Brooklyn folk rockers, read our recent feature on the band.