 |
| Picture courtesy of Mike Trotman of Empty Rooms |
Raised in Texas, schooled in Boston and no doubt now
utilising the musical facilities of Nashville, Sarah is using this tour to
promote her latest acclaimed and third album BUILD ME UP FROM BONES. Not unexpected,
a fair proportion of the album was reflected in her pair of roughly 45 minute
sets which simmered for a while before exploding into a concoction of acoustic revelry.
For this tour Sarah is joined by Nathaniel Smith on cello and Alex Hargreaves
on fiddle both playing fantastic supporting roles alongside the vocals, guitar,
banjo and mandolin playing of Sarah.
Although a budding young song writer in her own capacity,
Sarah is keen to expand on the works of others with a keen ear for a song which
will respond well to her style of musical delivery. Whether playing a scintillating
version of the Bela Fleck instrumental ‘Puddle
Dancer’ to interpreting the songs of Bob Dylan, Cat Stevens and Simon and
Garfunkel, there is a familiar stamp of Sarah Jarosz quality on each of them.
Dylan’s ‘Ring Them Bells’ proved
highly popular to this Oxford audience
but I thought this was shaded by her take on his ‘A Simple Twist of Fate’ which was one of the second set’s early
songs and played with a beautiful solo accompaniment from Nathanial on cello.
Before we leave the covers behind, it is worth commending
her version of The Decemberists’ ‘Shankhill
Butchers’ which was recorded on her 2009 debut album. The expected and
atmospheric audience participation was exclusive to two other songs of external origin with Martha Scanlon’s ‘Hallelujah’
and Tom Waites ‘Come on Up to the House’,
both being sung rigorously by many in an appropriate location. All these and a
fine balance of original material were beautifully delivered by Sarah, although
the vocals were slightly eclipsed by the fabulous musicianship of all three
performers.
This is Sarah’s second UK visit this year having been an
integral invited member of the Transatlantic Sessions in February. The original
song ‘Run Away’ was performed live in
their shows around the country and was also one of the standout numbers from
this evening’s concert. The new album is also packed with superb tunes and
three of the finest duly entertained an appreciative Oxford audience, namely ‘Mile on the Moon’, ‘Fuel the Fire’ and ‘Over the Edge’. Having enthusiastically reviewed
and enjoyed this release, there is nothing better than being present when it’s being
sung live and even more evocative, in a lovely church setting.
With an inextricable link between roots music and church
venues, the case for expanding their harmony is a strong one. St John’s the
Evangelist Church and Sarah Jarosz were a perfect match and both contributed to
a delightful evening of music composed straight from the heart and designed to
satisfy the ear.
