Notes
Singer-songwriter Sara Thomsen's 2014 release, Somewhere to Begin, is a collection of tough and tender songs about taking action, naming grief, celebrating and honoring life's passages, and when all seems lost-beginning again. Sara Thomsen and Eric Swanson produced the CD which was recorded, mixed and mastered at Sacred Heart Studio in Duluth, MN. "The kind of music she's making is well-crafted, sung beautifully, and recorded immaculately, and she exudes competence and sincerity," states the Duluth News Tribune review. "Fans of Joan Baez and Peter, Paul and Mary might want to check this out." The title track, "Somewhere to Begin," is a cover of the late T.R. Ritchie song. "How can you sing in times like these?" the lyrics question, and answer in reply, "If changes are to come, there are things that must be done, and a song is somewhere to begin." The album includes the bluesy "Ballad of Molly Ivins," a tribute to the late Texas journalist; the country waltz "Between the Clotheslines," celebrating the right to dry clothes in the open air; the rocking "Precious Waters" penned in protest of a proposed copper mine in northern Minnesota; the Celtic "Shattered Gardens;" on the grief of losing someone to war. Thomsen based the song "Halabja" on a poem by Kurdish poet Hamid Qaladzaye, whom she met while leading a friendship singing delegation in Iraqi Kurdistan. The poem and song are about the chemical weapons attack on Halabja, an act of genocide that killed over 5,000 Kurds (March 16, 1988). You'll also find "Amber Stone," Thomsen's nostalgic ode to her Danish immigrant grandfather, and "Renaissance Woman," a rock and roll tribute to Thomsen's mother-in-law, co-written with Thomsen's partner Paula Pedersen. Thomsen composed "The Heartbeat Drum" as a lullaby "for all children, everywhere." "Oh Grandmother" is a plaintive call to the ancestors. While Thomsen delves into difficult topics, the music and lyrics combine to create an overall sense of hope, healing, possibility, and playfulness. "Y'all need to have more fun an celebration," she sings in her tribute "Ballad of Molly Ivins." "It's a long, hard road, don't you forget to have fun." Besides Thomsen on vocals and guitar, musicians include Ryan Frane on piano; Gene Koshinski on percussion; John Thorene on bass; Erin Aldridge on violin; Rachel Nelson on violin, Josh Aerie on cello; Dan Westerlund on percussion, Lance Rhicard on banjo and dobro; Paula Pedersen on vocals.
