Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, ‘Mother’ – Song Review

Coffee lovers will see the compilation 'Every Mother Counts' at their local Starbucks store starting next month. The collection, compiled by model Christy Turlington, includes songs from Coldplay, Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder, Dave Matthews Band and more. Los Angeles-based Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros have also contributed a track for the disc, which is appropriately entitled 'Mother.'

Sharpe's track doesn't have as much going on musically compared to their other songs like 'Home' and the Ford Fiesta anthem, 'Janglin,' which is a good thing. The simplicity of 'Mother' allows listeners to concentrate on vocalist Alex Ebert's poignant lyrics about taking his mother for granted. Simple percussion beats and haunting keys help maintain the melodic vibe throughout the song.

"'Mother' the song sprang from 'Mother' the poem, a poem I wrote about a year ago to my mother," Ebert told Spinner. "I wanted to explain to her that taking her for granted for so much of my life was less a function of my admitted selfishness and more a function of her unwavering love for me."

Ebert continued, "A simple piece of music, more a landscape for the poem to live in, would do. And keeping the poem entirely intact, without addition or subtraction, without chorus or bridge, would only do. And so I wrote and demo'd the song 'Mother,' and then nearly forgot about it (perhaps taking even the song for granted) until Christy asked us if we would contribute a song to 'Every Mother Counts.' As it stands it is one of my favorite pieces of ours, and I am very grateful that it has found a place to live and give in this album."

Listen to 'Mother' in its entirety here and tell us what you think below.

Every Mother Counts is an awareness and mobilization campaign to reduce the maternal mortality rate on a global scale. The organization was founded by Turlington, who is releasing the compilation of the same name for the second year in a row. The CD will be available at Starbucks stores May 1-29 to celebrate Mother's Day.