Rachael Sage

All Music Guide:

Rachael Sage is a talented pianist, singer, and songwriter. Her music has been given many labels, from rock to pop to folk, and her style has been called ethnically tinged, lush, emotionally insightful, and even quirky. However the critics describe Sage and her music, they usually add positive comments. Rachael Sage was born in Port Chester, New York, and began playing the piano when she was only about four years old. Around that same time, she also discovered the pleasure of creating her own tunes, all from listening to songs she liked on the radio. By the time she was five, she was putting words to her tunes. She got her first taste of performing before real audiences by appearing in talent contests and at school assemblies. An expressive artist in any form, Sage enjoyed years of ballet training at the School of American Ballet. She also took drama classes and, later, voice lessons. By the time she was in college, she was performing in clubs and coffeehouses. Each show increased her fan base, and an opening spot on a tour with Ani DiFranco gave Sage the chance to perform in Europe.

In 1996 Sage released her debut album, Morbid Romantic. It was followed two years later by an impressive sophomore offering, Smashing the Serene. In 2001 she finished a third album, Painting of a Painting. Some of the tracks from these recordings are "Pictures They Took," "Ode to a Sailor," "Language of Flowers," "Air We Share," "Guardians," and "Cyanide and Cinnamon." Sage tours often, and has won many awards and contests, including the ASCAP Pop Songwriting Contest. In between performing and recording, she has held numerous day jobs to help pay the bills, including working as an extra in movies, as a jingle writer, and as a graphic designer. When on-stage, she usually has a supportive acoustic lineup with her, including percussionists Rob Curto and Steve Jagoda. Sage released her fourth album, Illusion's Carnival, on her own MPress Records label in 2002, followed by Public Record in 2003, Ballads & Burlesque in 2004, The Blistering Sun in 2006, and Chandelier in 2008. Delancey Street appeared in 2010, and Haunted by You in 2012.

Wikipedia:

Rachael Sage is an American singer-songwriter and producer.

She has shared stages with Sarah McLachlan, Judy Collins, Marc Cohn, The Animals and Ani DiFranco, and was named one of the Top 100 Independent Artists Of The Past 15 Years by Performing Songwriter magazine. Her performances combine musicianship with between-song banter, what The New York Times recently dubbed Sage's "inner Fanny Brice".

She was born in Port Chester, NY and studied drama and ballet, before switching to music. She has released nine albums, as of May 2010, on her own label, MPress Records, and regularly tours both North America and Europe. Her 10th album, Haunted by You, is expected in early 2012.

Sage is a self-taught pianist, influenced by her parents' Doo-Wop and Beatles records, as well as Broadway cast albums, creating early demos on a 4-track recording system she received as a Bat Mitzvah present. During Junior High school, Sage gained admission to the School of American Ballet. Sage attended Stanford University, earning a degree in Drama. Later, she was in the Actors Studio MFA program. Her performance in their New York Talent Search won Sage a place on the Village Stage of the 1997 Lilith Fair. The word theatrical has been used to describe Sage's sound. Legendary pop producer Phil Ramone said of working with Sage that he was reminded of collaborating with Bob Dylan, and that "She has a very unusual way of treating a pop song. I admire her editorial and musical ability when it comes to crafting a tune."

Most recently, Sage's "Brave Mistake" was nominated for Best Story Song at The 10th Annual Independent Music Awards, and Sage herself took home OUTstanding Producer for her song "Hope's Outpost" at The 7th Annual OUTMusic Awards.