The Background
From the moment Black River first saw 25-year-old Sarah in a showcase, the label knew it had discovered someone special. Jimmy Nichols' experience as an A-list studio keyboardist (and Faith Hill's band leader) gave him a unique perspective on talent. But more importantly, signing with the label was like coming home for Sarah. "Black River seemed like family to me right away, and I'd never felt that before in Nashville," she explains. "Then when Jimmy and I went into the studio to start recording my album, it was almost magical. He has such an amazing ear, and I learned so much working with him. Jimmy pushed me to the next level as an artist, and showed me it's not how pretty you can sing, it's what you feel inside when you sing. And how you make other people feel when they listen to you. He truly brought out the best in each of the songs. The whole process was unbelievable for me." Sarah's debut CD, titled Every Monday Morning, comes from Sarah's regular rain-or-shine Monday morning writing sessions with Jeff Dayton, and each of the songs reflects a very personal side of her life.
The Review
You may not have heard Sarah Darling’s music, but you definitely recognize her. Anyone semi-familiar with the Big & Rich music video “Save A Horse, Ride A Cowboy” surely remember the mannequin that shares a back seat of a convertible Cadillac with Big Kenny that shocks everyone by coming “alive” at the end of the song. That mannequin was Sarah Darling. With her big blue eyes, she has won over several music video producers and been in several videos that have appeared across the CMT and GAC airwaves. It has given this artist a good insight into the country music business and made Darling fairly well-connected this early in her career. Darling will invariably be compared to Taylor Swift with her similar singing voice style and the fact that she’s a young female in Nashville doing her own songwriting. The fact that those songs often focuses on relationships only deepen that comparison. It’s not an unfair comparison, nor is it one with any real particular negative connotations. The music is a little more stripped down than some of the Swift orchestrations. The first single off the album, “Jack of Hearts” was written by Nashville songwriting stars Marc Beeson and Don Pfrimmer. It’s one of the more upbeat singles from the album. “Don’t Love Me,” written by Darling, is a smoky and bluesy tune that smolders with a funky groove that backs up a rock-solid vocal. My favorite tune off the album, however, is “Blue Guitar.” Utilizing an effective bass guitar, trailing steel guitar and stripped down percussion, this song tells about how an old guitar heals the wounds of broken loves. It recalls classic Opry torch ballads of yesterday while staying modern the entire time. My only complaint is that Every Monday Morning may not have an obvious hit single on it. And while that may be an unfortunate thing to say about an album (because there’s lots of highly ranked & critically successful albums that never have a hit), hearing additional songs from this talented artist may require some chart time for this little indie label. It’s a beautiful album that deserves some good karma and good publicity. It’s getting both from That Nashville Sound.
Sounds Like
A Cross Between Sarah McLachlan & Lee Ann Womack
Track Highlights (suggested iPod adds):
Jack of Hearts
Blue Guitar
I Never Do What I Should
Til’ The Truth Comes In
All You’ve Got
The Verdict:
Three & A Half Stars Out Of Five
From the moment Black River first saw 25-year-old Sarah in a showcase, the label knew it had discovered someone special. Jimmy Nichols' experience as an A-list studio keyboardist (and Faith Hill's band leader) gave him a unique perspective on talent. But more importantly, signing with the label was like coming home for Sarah. "Black River seemed like family to me right away, and I'd never felt that before in Nashville," she explains. "Then when Jimmy and I went into the studio to start recording my album, it was almost magical. He has such an amazing ear, and I learned so much working with him. Jimmy pushed me to the next level as an artist, and showed me it's not how pretty you can sing, it's what you feel inside when you sing. And how you make other people feel when they listen to you. He truly brought out the best in each of the songs. The whole process was unbelievable for me." Sarah's debut CD, titled Every Monday Morning, comes from Sarah's regular rain-or-shine Monday morning writing sessions with Jeff Dayton, and each of the songs reflects a very personal side of her life.
The Review
You may not have heard Sarah Darling’s music, but you definitely recognize her. Anyone semi-familiar with the Big & Rich music video “Save A Horse, Ride A Cowboy” surely remember the mannequin that shares a back seat of a convertible Cadillac with Big Kenny that shocks everyone by coming “alive” at the end of the song. That mannequin was Sarah Darling. With her big blue eyes, she has won over several music video producers and been in several videos that have appeared across the CMT and GAC airwaves. It has given this artist a good insight into the country music business and made Darling fairly well-connected this early in her career. Darling will invariably be compared to Taylor Swift with her similar singing voice style and the fact that she’s a young female in Nashville doing her own songwriting. The fact that those songs often focuses on relationships only deepen that comparison. It’s not an unfair comparison, nor is it one with any real particular negative connotations. The music is a little more stripped down than some of the Swift orchestrations. The first single off the album, “Jack of Hearts” was written by Nashville songwriting stars Marc Beeson and Don Pfrimmer. It’s one of the more upbeat singles from the album. “Don’t Love Me,” written by Darling, is a smoky and bluesy tune that smolders with a funky groove that backs up a rock-solid vocal. My favorite tune off the album, however, is “Blue Guitar.” Utilizing an effective bass guitar, trailing steel guitar and stripped down percussion, this song tells about how an old guitar heals the wounds of broken loves. It recalls classic Opry torch ballads of yesterday while staying modern the entire time. My only complaint is that Every Monday Morning may not have an obvious hit single on it. And while that may be an unfortunate thing to say about an album (because there’s lots of highly ranked & critically successful albums that never have a hit), hearing additional songs from this talented artist may require some chart time for this little indie label. It’s a beautiful album that deserves some good karma and good publicity. It’s getting both from That Nashville Sound.
Sounds Like
A Cross Between Sarah McLachlan & Lee Ann Womack
Track Highlights (suggested iPod adds):
Jack of Hearts
Blue Guitar
I Never Do What I Should
Til’ The Truth Comes In
All You’ve Got
The Verdict:
Three & A Half Stars Out Of Five
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