Sarah Slean with the Blue Spruce Quartet and John SouthworthSaturday, December 16, 2006Enwave Theatre, Harbourfront Centre

As she appeared on stage, Sarahí¢â‚¬â„¢s stunning and fiery red dress echoed the warmth of her personality. She opened with a pleasant cover of the Carsí¢â‚¬â„¢ song Drive, for which she sang solo while playing the piano. She laughed as she admitted to the audience that her mother didní¢â‚¬â„¢t want her to wear the dress, considering it was the one she wore on television for an awards show. She also shed her shoes and got into the showí¢â‚¬ ¦

I had not been too familiar with Sarah Slean, but once I saw her in concert, I got to know her quite well. Sheí¢â‚¬â„¢s a definite crowd pleaser. Sarah, who was born in Pickering, has the warmth and charm of a country girl, but also conveys passion in her performing.

Like Sarah, John Southworth, who opened for her, has a humorous personality, which is reflected in his lyrics more than with his communication to the audience. The lyrics to his songs are dream-like and sentimental. His vocal style is reminiscent of Bob Dylaní¢â‚¬â„¢s, but with a more melancholy character to it. His sentimentality revealed itself in such lyrics as í¢â‚¬Å“walking in feather fieldsí¢â‚¬ ¦pillows of the world are made for heavy dreams and tears.í¢â‚¬  Perhaps there was a slight darkness to some of his material, but his music was entrancing and rather dreamy. Some lyrics were downright comical, as expressed in í¢â‚¬Å“pineapple shoes.í¢â‚¬ 

The energy picked up when Sarahí¢â‚¬â„¢s string quartet, í¢â‚¬Å“Blue Spruce Quartetí¢â‚¬  accompanied her, as she played her piano for her French Cabaret-feeling piece, called í¢â‚¬Å“Foolish.í¢â‚¬  Following this, her story about being at the giving and receiving end of infidelity brought the listener closer to her personal life.

Her voice, somewhat reminiscent of Kate Bushí¢â‚¬â„¢s, has a resonance, unlike that of any vocalist I had ever heard. Also, the intimacy of the Enwave Theatre at Harbourfront Centre brought me closer to her words and music, and allowed me to better experience the passion in her singing. She kept up the cabaret theme with other tunes as well, such as Pilgrim and Virginia. There is very dramatic quality to her performance, as revealed in the lyrics to Pilgrim: í¢â‚¬Å“A little blood and vomit on the car seat, í¢â‚¬ ¨and the tooth is sitting in my lap. Brother if youí¢â‚¬â„¢re hungry but not wounded, then ití¢â‚¬â„¢s time to stop and check the map.í¢â‚¬  I could imagine her music being part of a much bigger musical theatre production, with costumed performers and an elaborate set. She added a fantasy feel by talking about a chord she playedí¢â‚¬”she called it the í¢â‚¬Å“good witchí¢â‚¬  chord.

Overall, the concert was a moving experience. John Southworth was a perfect match as an opener, with his sentimental lyrics and dreaminess. Sarah Slean conveyed affection and energy at the same time. Her solo singing with her string quartet was especially lovely. Her swaying to the music added life to her performance.

But Sarah has other talents to offerí¢â‚¬ ¦she was nominated for Juno Awards, and for a Gemini Award for her role in the film noir musical Black Widow, which toured film festivals before being aired on CBC last January (2006). She provides lyrics and samples of her paintings (previously exhibited at SPIN Gallery in Toronto) on her website (www.sarahslean.com). Soon the site will also have samples of her poetry from her book Ravens. She has also contributed to Redux, a Pink Floyd tribute CD, for which she sings Us and Them, as well as Comfortably Numb. She made her first album at 19 years of age and creates all the artwork that goes along with her recordings. Sarah also composes the strings and horns and contributes toward the production of each of her CDs. She has toured Canada, the United States, France and Germany.

I doní¢â‚¬â„¢t know why it took so long for me to discover her, but I do plan to experience more of her multiple talents, charm and passion.