Like her musical idol Elvis Costello, she's tirelessly engaged with the craft of songwriting and the complexity of composition, and counts Buddy Holly, The Beatles, David Bowie, John Lee Hooker and Shakespeare among her biggest inspirations.
Sage, who received a degree in Drama from Stanford University also studied at The Actors Studio M.F.A. Program. She also performed with the New York City Ballet during her teens. Over the course of her career, she has increasingly built a loyal and varied fanbase, affirming her point of view that music is the one great uniter.
Chandelier
A self-produced eighth album released in 2008, Chandelier was recorded by longtime collaborator John Shyloski, mixed by Grammy Winner Kevin Killen and contains 13 tracks of mixed musical styles from classical to folk to pop. Sage also did the album art work.
The album covers a wide spectrum of different emotions, most of which center on the brittleness of love and the sorrow of broken relationships, as well as the randomness of human connection as in the song Invincible.
From the song Chandelier, from which the album gets its title, she writes: "But maybe I'd be relieved to find out / that grieving is what love's about." The one notable exception to some of these sad reflections of love and loss is the wedding song Wishbone.
Vertigo
The song Vertigo is a frantic and almost desperate plea for distance from a conniving adulterer, a situation based on her own real life experience. "Every time I hold your hand/feels like I'm drowning/every time I let go/I feel vertigo."
My Word
My Word, a song composed in Sage's early 20's, is a folk-pop compostion which features violinist Cyndi Lauper and guitarist Dar Williams. The song was written while she was studying at The Shakespeare Lab at the New York Public Theater. "This time it's gonna be different/I'm gonna start telling you the truth/I'll give you my word as... my word as.../I am an actor/She is the audience/She is the audience... she is the audience..."
Wishbone
Wishbone was a song written and recorded for a fan who approached Sage after one of her concerts in San Francisco. The aspiring singer asked her to write a song for her commitment ceremony, and it ended up on the Chandelier album. "When I was a queen/in another life/Remember when I fell to my knees/And asked you to be my wife."
Most recently, in February of 2009, Rachel Sage has been named a winner in Billboard's Dance Category of the 16th annual Billboard World Song Contest.
Chandelier is now available everywhere music is sold.
 |
