Sara Bareilles' Wide Appeal Points to Long Career

With the usual generational gap between young and old music lovers, it is rare for a songwriter to appeal to both a grandfather and a bunch of teenage girls. You could conclude she has the kind of appeal that just might translate into a long and financially rewarding career.

As a 67-year-old grandfather of three, I first became aware of Sara Bareilles like virtually everyone else when she hit the charts with “Love Song,” as in “I’m Not Gonna Write You One.” As a writer of words, I just loved the unusual negative reversal of what you might have expected from a love song. Combine that with a terrific up-tempo melody and a beautiful voice and I loved the song instantly. When I bought the entire disc, Little Voice, I realized I had something special on my hands when I heard tunes like “Gravity,” and “One Sweet Love” and “Between the Lines” and “City,” all written by Bareilles.

The real surprise came in late February when my wife and I arrived in our new home, Austin, Texas, to discover that Bareilles and her band would be playing the upcoming rodeo of all things. I couldn’t see how a pop singer would work in among the animals, but I quickly snagged tickets in the front row. Since the stage ended up in the center of the arena, a whole bunch of people turned up in the front row all around the building.

We actually were seated right over the chutes through which the bucking broncos came bounding out in a valiant, always successful, attempt to throw their riders onto the ground. After the last cowboy had dusted himself off and the last steer had been wrestled to the turf, the lights dimmed and tractors pulled a stage out into the center of the old barn (actually the Travis County Exposition Center).

A pickup truck emerged from the chute below us with Sara and friends riding in the back, waving to the crowd and seemingly having a great time. I’m always a bit worried before I first hear a singer start to perform live, in person or on TV. Will they be as good as I think they will be or will they prove themselves merely a creation of the studio sound engineer’s skill? I needn’t have worried.

Article Author: Bill Church

Bill is a freelance writer and teacher who lives and works in Round Rock, Texas, near Austin. He is a veteran of three different journalistic careers--television news, public relations and teaching.

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