An ode to love as a gamble worth taking, Nashville duo The Prickly Pair’s “Winsome Lose Some Game” is a tender country-tinged duet of intimacy, risk, and devotion, blending heartfelt harmonies with beautifully timeless storytelling.
“Winsome Lose Some Game” – The Prickly Pair
Some loves don’t need polishing to shine. They’re raw, messy, honest – full of the cracks and quirks that make them real.
“Winsome Lose Some Game” lives in that truth: A playful, heartfelt embrace of devotion in all its imperfection, where love endures not despite our flaws, but because of them. With warm harmonies and an aching sweetness, The Prickly Pair invite us into a space that feels both timeless and personal. It’s the kind of song you might catch spilling softly out of a back porch at dusk, or echoing like a secret between two lovers. It’s tender, vulnerable, and utterly disarming: An ode to love as a gamble worth taking.
My rose-colored glasses
Fell down to the floor
Now I’ve seen the real you
I don’t need illusion any more
Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering “Winsome Lose Some Game,” the lead single and opening track off The Prickly Pair’s upcoming self-titled EP, out October 24, 2025. The East Nashville duo of Irene Greene and Mason Summit describe their sound as “Angsty Americana,” blending classic country traditions with an eclectic mix of influences from Fiona Apple to Gram Parsons, Patsy Cline to Brian Wilson. Produced by Summit, the EP showcases their ability to turn human stories – both real and imagined – into vibrant, emotionally resonant songcraft.
I got a peek behind your curtain
And I’m certain
You’re still the one I’m searching for
So don’t try to change
Even the tattoo of their name
Oh, love is a winsome lose some game
The “Winsome Lose Some Game” music video captures the intimacy of the song itself: Two voices intertwined in harmony, dressed to the nines yet standing simply side by side. Mason cradles a guitar, Irene’s voice rises to meet his, and together they glow under warm yellow light against ornate wallpaper. It could be a living room, it could be a lounge – either way, it feels like home. That’s the beauty of The Prickly Pair: Their music isn’t about spectacle, but connection. It’s about letting us glimpse the private world between two people in love.
“I think this song is about loving and accepting a person for who they are,” Irene Greene tells Atwood Magazine. “Sometimes it’s a toss-up, but when you find the right person, you’ll love them wholeheartedly, in spite of their flaws. It’s a playful song you’d sing to serenade a lover.”
Mason Summit adds, “After opening for Jeff Plankenhorn at McCabe’s last year, we asked him to play lead on this one. I added the ‘clip-clop’ percussion to give it a Western feel, inspired by Judee Sill.” That Western gallop underpins the track, grounding its tender message in a rhythm that feels like it’s moving steadily forward, flaws and all.
Lyrics like “I got a peek behind your curtain / And I’m certain you’re still the one I’m searching for” cut to the heart of devotion, acknowledging both vulnerability and acceptance. Later, when they sing “I want you lock, stock, and barrel / At my peril / I hold my breath and take the plunge,” the risk of love becomes its own reward. The chorus – “Love is a winsome lose some game” – rings like a mantra, playful but poignant, wise in its simplicity.
Don’t kid a kidder
My heart ain’t a blank check
You’re thumbin’ the scale
The devil’s breathing down your neck
I want you lock, stock, and barrel
At my peril
I hold my breath and take the plunge
I know I’ve been framed
But I’ll take you all the same
Oh, love is a winsome lose some game
Oh well, now, love is a winsome lose some game
Love is a winsome lose some game
As the opening track of The Prickly Pair, “Winsome Lose Some Game” sets the stage for an EP full of leaps – in love, in risk, in art. It’s a record that spans from outlaw ballads to personal confessionals, but it begins here, with Greene and Summit choosing one another again and again, flaws and all. It’s the sound of two voices in harmony, daring to take the plunge together.
The Prickly Pair’s self-titled debut EP is out October 24, 2025. For now, let “Winsome Lose Some Game” be your invitation into their world – a winsome, wholehearted embrace of love’s gamble, and a reminder that the best stories are never perfect, but always and forever true.
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“Winsome Lose Some Game” – The Prickly Pair
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© Libby Danforth
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