Mark Wilson’s “Carry Me On” Hits Hard With Highway Reality Check

Mark Wilson nearly bought it on Highway 95, and thank God he didn’t because we got one hell of a song out of it.

The Phoenix rocker’s new track “Carry Me On“ comes straight from a moment that would have most people pulling over and calling their mothers. Wilson was riding his bike back from LA, dead tired and fighting to keep his eyes open, when he drifted off the road and hit those rumble strips that probably saved his life. Instead of just shaking it off and getting some coffee, Wilson did what any good songwriter does – he turned his brush with death into music.

“Carry Me On” is the lead track off Wilson’s new EP “Into The Realm,” and it’s got that raw, lived-in quality you don’t hear much anymore. This isn’t some kid singing about heartbreak he read about on the internet. Wilson’s been around the block. He started out like most musicians do, picking up his dad’s guitar and figuring out which end makes the noise. Pretty soon he was playing clubs around Phoenix, doing the whole struggling artist thing.

But Wilson caught a break that most musicians only dream about. After some party gig, he hooked up with a manager who got him touring colleges with – get this – trained lion cubs sitting on his amps. More importantly, he ended up working with Hal Blaine, the drummer from The Wrecking Crew who played on everything from “Good Vibrations” to half the hits you grew up hearing on the radio. When a guy like Blaine signs on to your project, you know you’re doing something right.

Wilson’s previous stuff has already gotten some decent press. Tracks like “Dreams Of Nirvana” and “My Heart Belongs to You” from his “Under The Influence” album caught the attention of music writers who know good songwriting when they hear it.

But “Carry Me On“ feels different. Maybe it’s because Wilson literally stared death in the face and lived to tell about it, but there’s something urgent about this song that cuts through all the noise. The lyrics walk you through that whole nightmare scenario – cruising around a mountain, seeing flashing lights, pulling over to find a wreck that looks eerily familiar. Then Wilson starts asking the big questions: Have I been a good man? Have I followed my dreams? Who’s going to carry on my work when I’m gone?

It sounds heavy, and it is, but Wilson doesn’t get all preachy about it. He just tells the story straight and lets you figure out what it means. The whole thing turns out to be a dream – or was it? – and he wakes up back on his bike, shaken but alive.

Right now, when everybody’s racing around staring at their phones and missing their own lives, Wilson’s message hits differently. “Slow down, enjoy your life’s journey,” he says, and coming from a guy who almost became roadkill, you tend to listen. We’re all moving too fast, missing too much, forgetting to pay attention to what matters. Wilson’s song is like those rumble strips – a wake-up call before you crash.

The guy’s sound sits somewhere between classic rock and singer-songwriter territory, with enough edge to keep you interested and enough heart to make you care. The full “Into The Realm” EP promises four more tracks including “Just Like You Just Like Me,” “Waistland,” “Blodness of a Lion,” and “Dreams of Nirvana Reprise.” If they’re anything like the lead single, Wilson’s got something special cooking.

“Carry Me On“ isn’t just another song about life and death – it’s a reminder from someone who almost lost everything that maybe we should all pump the brakes and remember why we’re here in the first place.