Sarah Slean
Encyclopedia
Sarah Hope Slean is a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

, musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....

, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

, and occasional actress from Pickering, Ontario
Pickering, Ontario
Pickering is a city located in Southern Ontario, Canada immediately east of Toronto in Durham Region. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area, the largest metropolitan area in Canada.- Early Period :...

. She has released eleven albums to date (including EPs and live albums).

Major recordings

Slean recorded her first EP Universe (1997) at the age of nineteen. It was followed by Blue Parade
Blue Parade
Blue Parade is the first full length album by Canadian artist Sarah Slean.-Track listing:# "Playing Cards with Judas"# "Bonnie's Song"# "My Invitation"# "Before Your Time"# "Habit"# "Twin Moon"# "Awake Soon"# "High"# "Eliot"# "Blue Parade"...

in 1998. Night Bugs was her first major label album, co-produced by Slean and Hawksley Workman
Hawksley Workman
Ryan Corrigan , better known by the stage name Hawksley Workman, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter who has garnered critical acclaim for his blend of cabaret pop and glam rock. Workman has released eleven full length albums throughout his career...

, and released by WEA
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

 in Canada and Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It was heavily inspired by cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...

 music.

On 28 September 2004, Slean released her fourth album, Day One. Here Slean's piano takes a less important spot for the first time in her career. The focus is more on beats, rhythms and guitar, which is evident in the album's first single, "Lucky Me". The up-tempo title track "Day One", and "Mary", a song about Slean's grandmother, were released as the second and third singles.

In October 2006, Slean released a mostly-live album, Orphan Music
Orphan Music
Orphan Music is the first official live album by Canadian singer, songwriter, and pianist Sarah Slean, released on October 31, 2006Also contains six b-sides, of which two are also included in the live set....

, which consists of songs recorded live at Toronto's Harbourfront Theatre and the Vancouver East Cultural Centre. Other new tracks featuring Slean and the piano were recorded at DNA Recording Facility in Toronto and Kensaltown Studios in the UK.

On 13 December 2007, Slean's website underwent a massive overhaul in preparation for her newest studio album, entitled The Baroness
The Baroness (album)
The Baroness is the fifth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist Sarah Slean, released on March 11, 2008.-Track listing:# "Hopeful Hearts" – 3:32# "Get Home" – 3:42# "Euphoria" – 3:13# "Goodnight Trouble" – 4:38...

. Visitors to the new site were invited to sign up for Slean's new mailing list, and in doing so would be able to download a demo version of her newest single, "Get Home". People who pre-ordered the new album from the new website's store also received a download to the non-album track "Parasol". The Baroness
The Baroness (album)
The Baroness is the fifth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist Sarah Slean, released on March 11, 2008.-Track listing:# "Hopeful Hearts" – 3:32# "Get Home" – 3:42# "Euphoria" – 3:13# "Goodnight Trouble" – 4:38...

was released on 11 March 2008. The iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....

 version of the album included two additional non-album tracks, "The Rose" and "The Lonely Side of the Moon." In September 2008, Slean announced her intention to release the non-album tracks from The Baroness as an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...

. Both Parasol and Modern Man have been confirmed by Slean in Question and Answer sessions in her official website. On 13 November 2008, the official Sarahslean.com newsletter announced the title for the EP to be The Baroness Redecorates
The Baroness Redecorates
The Baroness Redecorates is the second EP by Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist Sarah Slean, released on December 9, 2008. Slean confirmed the EP and two of its tracks on her official website in her journal during Question and Answer periods...

. A full tracklist was also provided.

Slean released her fifth studio album, a double album entitled Land & Sea
Land & Sea (album)
Land & Sea is the sixth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist Sarah Slean, released on September 27, 2011. It is a double album consisting of the more pop-oriented tunes of Land, and the mellow and orchestral songs of Sea....

, on 27 September 2011. As previously with Beauty Lives, a 100 special handcrafted editions were sold of the album. Land & Sea is also Slean's first record to be released on vinyl.

Other music work

In 2006, she contributed two covers ("Us and Them" and "Comfortably Numb") to Pink Floyd Redux, a modern 12-track tribute to Pink Floyd.

Another notable cover in Slean's repertoire is her down-tempo rendition of Our Lady Peace
Our Lady Peace
Our Lady Peace is a Canadian alternative rock band that formed in Toronto, Ontario in 1992. Headed by lead vocalist Raine Maida since its formation, the band additionally consists of Jeremy Taggart on percussion, Duncan Coutts on bass, and Steve Mazur as lead guitarist...

's guitar-driven song "Julia". Our Lady Peace has performed Slean's "piano" version of their song in their own concerts. Vocalist Raine Maida
Raine Maida
Raine Maida , is a Canadian musician best known as being the lead vocalist and primary songwriter of the alternative rock band Our Lady Peace. He has come to be known for his unique countertenor nasal falsetto singing voice, as well as his cryptic and poetry-influenced song lyrics...

 explained the origins of the piano version: "We’re gonna do a song from our first record now, that was given to us on a cassette tape, a very different version, from a girl named Sarah Slean from Toronto..."

Slean was also featured on the Fox TV network as the pianist in Sunrise, the fictional town where bodies started piling up in Murder in Small Town X
Murder in Small Town X
Murder in Small Town X is an American reality television series created by George Verschoor, Robert Fisher, Jr., and Gordon Cassidy and was hosted by Sgt...

, a short-lived reality TV series.

In October 2008, Slean performed at the first annual Canwest Cabaret Festival in Toronto. Slean performed sets of her own music accompanied by bassist Joe Phillips and drummer Mark Mariash, and also contributed to multi-artist "songbook" performances of the songs of Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...

 and Kurt Weill
Kurt Weill
Kurt Julian Weill was a German-Jewish composer, active from the 1920s, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fruitful collaborations with Bertolt Brecht...

.

In March 2009, Slean took part in the Juno
Juno Award
The Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music...

 Songwriter's Circle in Vancouver, alongside fellow songwriters Jim Cuddy
Jim Cuddy
Jim Cuddy is a Canadian singer-songwriter primarily associated with the band Blue Rodeo. He has also recorded three solo albums with the Jim Cuddy Band, which features musicians Bazil Donovan, Colin Cripps, Joel Anderson, Anne Lindsay and Gavin Brown...

, Jacob Hoggard (of Hedley
Hedley (band)
Hedley is a Canadian pop rock band comprising lead singer Jacob Hoggard, Tommy Mac on bass, Dave Rosin on lead guitar and Chris Crippin on drums. The current band retains the original name of Hoggard's pre-Canadian Idol group, although the membership has changed. The band originated in Abbotsford,...

), Doc Walker
Doc Walker
Doc Walker is a country music group from Portage La Prairie, Manitoba, Canada. They have won Canadian Country Music Awards and had radio hits with the songs "I Am Ready" and "The Show is Free" from the 2003 album Everyone Aboard. In 2001 they released the album Curve...

, Buffy Saint-Marie, Vancouver upstart Ndidi Onukwulu
Ndidi Onukwulu
Ndidi Onukwulu is a Canadian singer originally from Burns Lake, British Columbia. Although her style is often classified as jazz and blues, Onukwulu combines several musical genres in her songs including surf music, electric blues, gospel, and country...

, and Hawksley Workman
Hawksley Workman
Ryan Corrigan , better known by the stage name Hawksley Workman, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter who has garnered critical acclaim for his blend of cabaret pop and glam rock. Workman has released eleven full length albums throughout his career...

, who hosted. She played two songs from The Baroness, "Notes from the Underground" and "Looking for Someone".

In 2009 she took part in an interactive documentary series called City Sonic
City Sonic
City Sonic is a documentary series about Toronto-based musicians and the places that influenced their music. The first five City Sonic films were previewed at Toronto's 2009 North by North East Music and Film Festival.-Films:...

. The series, which featured 20 Toronto artists, had her talk about performing at the Rivoli
The Rivoli
The Rivoli is a bar, restaurant and performance space, established in 1982, on Queen Street West in Toronto, Ontario. The club originally earned a reputation as one of Canada's hippest music clubs, and many major Canadian comedy and musical performers have played on its stage, including The Kids in...

 while attending the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...

.

On 18 April 2011, Slean chose a song called "New Pair of Eyes" from Land, to be included on the compilation album Songs of Love for Japan. She described the song as an "ode to the shocking wonder of existence". Songs of Love for Japan was available for only 3 days, with all proceeds going toward relief efforts in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan on 11 March 2011.

Personal Life

Slean attended Dunbarton High School
Dunbarton High School
Dunbarton High School is located in Pickering, Ontario and is part of the Durham District School Board. The school has students in grades 9-12 and offers a wide range of academic and extracurricular activities. Their mascot is the Spartan. It has also obtained the use of a former public school to...

 in Pickering. She initially studied music at York University
York University
York University is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, Ontario's second-largest graduate school, and Canada's leading interdisciplinary university....

. She then completed a degree in music and philosophy at the University of Toronto.

In 2008, Slean and fellow singer-songwriter Royal Wood
Royal Wood
Royal Wood is a Canadian pop music singer-songwriter/ producer, based in Toronto, Ontario. His classic pop style has drawn comparisons to Hawksley Workman, Ron Sexsmith, Randy Newman and Rufus Wainwright.-Early life:...

 got engaged while in Paris. The pair married in 2009.

Studio albums

Title Album details Notes
Blue Parade
Blue Parade
Blue Parade is the first full length album by Canadian artist Sarah Slean.-Track listing:# "Playing Cards with Judas"# "Bonnie's Song"# "My Invitation"# "Before Your Time"# "Habit"# "Twin Moon"# "Awake Soon"# "High"# "Eliot"# "Blue Parade"...

  • Released: 17 August 1998
  • Label: (None)
Independent release
Night Bugs
Night Bugs
- Track listing :# "Eliot" - 4:22# "Weight" - 3:16# "Duncan" - 4:08# "St. Francis" - 4:12# "Drastic Measures" - 5:42# "Book Smart, Street Stupid" - 4:49# "Dark Room" - 2:27# "Sweet Ones" - 3:13# "Me, I'm A Thief" - 6:09# "My Invitation" - 3:34...

  • Released: 19 March 2002
  • Label: WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

  • First major label release
    Day One
  • Released: 28 September 2004
  • Label: WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

  • The Baroness
    The Baroness (album)
    The Baroness is the fifth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist Sarah Slean, released on March 11, 2008.-Track listing:# "Hopeful Hearts" – 3:32# "Get Home" – 3:42# "Euphoria" – 3:13# "Goodnight Trouble" – 4:38...

  • Released: 11 March 2008
  • Label: WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

  • Black Flowers
  • Released: 1 June 2009
  • Label: PID Productions
  • Collaboration with the
    Art of Time Ensemble
    Land & Sea
    Land & Sea (album)
    Land & Sea is the sixth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist Sarah Slean, released on September 27, 2011. It is a double album consisting of the more pop-oriented tunes of Land, and the mellow and orchestral songs of Sea....

  • Released: 27 September 2011
  • Label: Pheromone Recordings
    Pheromone Recordings
    Pheromone Recordings is a Canadian independent record label, launched by Kim Cooke in 2008.In addition to artists releasing new music, the label has also issued a greatest hits compilation by Skydiggers and a 20th anniversary edition of The Lowest of the Low's classic 1991 album Shakespeare My...


  • EPs and live albums

    Release Date Title Details Label
    1997 (Cassette)
    1998 (CD)
    Universe independent release
    17 July 2001 Sarah Slean EP
    Sarah Slean EP
    Sarah Slean is an EP by Sarah Slean, featuring three new tracks and four from her back catalogue.-Track listing:# "Eliot" - 4:24# "Book Smart, Street Stupid" - 4:47...

    WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

    31 October 2006 Orphan Music
    Orphan Music
    Orphan Music is the first official live album by Canadian singer, songwriter, and pianist Sarah Slean, released on October 31, 2006Also contains six b-sides, of which two are also included in the live set....

    Live album with newly recorded studio versions, B-sides, and remixes WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

    9 December 2008 The Baroness Redecorates
    The Baroness Redecorates
    The Baroness Redecorates is the second EP by Canadian singer-songwriter and pianist Sarah Slean, released on December 9, 2008. Slean confirmed the EP and two of its tracks on her official website in her journal during Question and Answer periods...

    B-sides EP consisting of tracks cut from The Baroness. WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

    December 2010 Beauty Lives - The B-Sides Collection of newly recorded old and new tracks. WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...


    Singles

    Release Date Title Details Label
    6 July 2004 "Lucky Me" WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

    16 November 2004 "When Another Midnight" features hip-hop artist K-OS
    K-os
    Kevin Brereton , better known by his stage name k-os , is a Canadian rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer...

    WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...

    9 August 2005 "Mary" Improbable Pop Radio Mix, not the Day One version WEA
    Warner Music Group
    Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...

     / Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records
    Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...


    Radio releases

    • "Sweet Ones" (2002)
    • "Weight" (2002)
    • "Duncan" (2003)
    • "Lucky Me" (2004)
    • "Day One"(2005)
    • "Mary" (2005)
    • "Somebody's Arms" (2005)
    • "Get Home" (2008)
    • "Set It Free" (2011)

    Music videos

    • "Weight" (1998)
    • "High" (2000)
    • "Sweet Ones" (2002)
    • "Lucky Me" (2004)
    • "Day One"(2005)
    • "Mary" (2005)
    • "Get Home" (2008)
    • "The Rose" (2010)
    • "Set It Free" (2011)

    Filmography

    • Black Widow (2005)

    In late 2004, she filmed Black Widow with Canadian director David Mortin, a film noir musical based on the Evelyn Dick
    Evelyn Dick
    The murder trials of Evelyn Dick remain the most sensationalized events in Canadian crime history.Dick was born in Beamsville, Ontario. She was arrested for murder after local children in Hamilton, Ontario found the torso of her missing estranged husband, John Dick...

     murder case. It premiered in September 2005 on the film festival circuit and on CBC Television
    CBC Television
    CBC Television is a Canadian television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster.Although the CBC is supported by public funding, the television network supplements this funding with commercial advertising revenue, in contrast to CBC Radio which are...

     in January 2006.
    • Tales of the Baroness
      Tales of the Baroness
      Tales of the Baroness, a three-part animated short film. Musician Sarah Slean teamed up with video director Nelson Chan of Mary, Day One in this series...

      (2007)

    In 2006, Slean teamed up with video director Nelson Chan ("Mary", "Day One") to create a three-part short film titled Tales of the Baroness. The first segment aired on 11 May 2007 on Bravo!.
    • "Last Flowers" (2009)

    In 2009 Sarah was in another short film by CJ Wallis, now viewable on VIMEO.

    Synopis: Writing obituaries for a local newspaper to keep the wolf from the door, coupled with the complete avoidance of his own mother’s death – universally rejected novelist Harvey Harris (Joseph May) is feeling more distanced than ever from the world and those who surround him.

    An attempt to ease his guilt leads Harvey to sneaking into the very funerals he writes about, where a chance meeting of a strong-willed woman named Mona Miller (Sarah Slean) will force Harvey to confront his greatest fears about loss and rejection and how to find a way to connect through the most severe forms of disconnection

    Written & Directed by: CJ Wallis, Produced by: Elli Weisbaum, DP: Robert Walsh, Original Score: Kevin James Maher
    Starring: Joseph May, Sarah Slean, Troy De Lottinville & Rikki Gagne
    Featuring Music By: Elliott Smith, Sigur Ros & The Vince Guaraldi Trio

    External links

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