For Sage, who is also a poet, actor and visual artist as well as a longtime record label owner (she founded MPress Records in 1996), music has always been her primary form of self-expression. By the age of three she had taught herself to play the piano, and by her teens, she’d won the ASCAP Pop Songwriting Contest. Upon hearing Sage’s winning entry, legendary producer Tony Visconti (David Bowie, T. Rex) told her she was “extremely talented” and offered to produce her demo. While her parents pressed her to go to Stanford University instead, it was an encouraging moment that gave her the confidence to self-produce her first record, MORBID ROMANTIC.
On the milestone of her tenth album, Sage admits, “I started writing songs to make sense of being bullied in school. I never envisioned music taking me around the world, or that one day I’d play the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Being part of the indie community is humbling though…it keeps you grounded.” Sage, who has collaborated with Phil Ramone and shared stages with Judy Collins, Marc Cohn, The Animals, Shawn Colvin and Sarah McLachlan, has had a prolific career both as a musician and entrepreneur. This year Sage produced the fourth volume of MPress' annual charity compilation series, NEW ARRIVALS, benefiting homeless youth, while her label had its first Billboard charting and Grammy® nominated releases.
HAUNTED BY YOU was tracked with members of Sage’s touring band The Sequins: Quinn (drums), Dave Eggar (cello), Russ Johnson (trumpet), and also features guitarists James Mastro (Patti Smith), Mark Bosch (Ian Hunter) and Jack Petruzelli (Rufus Wainwright); bassists Todd Sickafoose (Ani DiFranco) and Mike Visceglia (Suzanne Vega); mandolin player David Immergluck (Counting Crows); and drummer Doug Yowell (Duncan Sheik). Singer-songwriters Dar Williams, Lucy Woodward, Katie Costello, Ryan Hommel and Seth Glier – as well as actor/director Joshua Leonard – also make guest appearances; John Shyloski (Johnny Winter) and Kevin Killen (Elvis Costello) engineered.
Unlike Sage’s previous albums, including 2009’s critically acclaimed DELANCEY STREET, much of HAUNTED BY YOU was composed on guitar. “I pushed myself to pick up guitar to write this record because I was scared of it and took that as a cue.” The title track, along with “Abby Would You Wait”, “Invisible Light”, “Hey Nah” and “Everything”, were all penned by Sage on a 1966 Martin acoustic inherited from an ex. “I gave myself a pass to try something brand new, and to make mistakes that would hopefully yield something more visceral.”
Sage wrote the dozen songs on the album after separating from her boyfriend of four years, whom she describes as “the kindest, most balanced person I’ve ever dated. He was much more traditional than me though…touring slowly took its toll." Alone, reflecting on her breakup, the 3-time Independent Music Award winner found herself suddenly prolific. “California”, “The Sequin Song” and “Confession” show a more vulnerable, raw side of the singer, reckoning with her newfound freedom, as well as inevitable loneliness.
“After my breakup I had an intense affair with someone I met overseas. I was swept off my feet…but it was an impossible situation.” Strained by long-distance, Sage eventually felt pressured to break off what had become a tumultuous wave of cross-continental phone calls and emails. “Soulstice”, featuring Counting Crows’ David Immergluck on mandolin, “captures that moment where I was as happy as I’ve ever been, even though it was fleeting.”
The concept of soul-mates reappears throughout the record. Sage wrote the Americana-inspired “Abby Would You Wait” about someone with whom she shared one long conversation after a gig, but with whom she “connected so strongly that I saw an entire future.” Likewise, the lush, acoustic guitar-based “Everything” celebrates the shameless joy of a new attraction, “when all you can see is shimmering possibility.”
“Invisible Light”, which both opens and closes the album in two very different musical arrangements (one featuring Dar Williams on guest vocals), is Sage’s favorite song on the record. “I wrote ‘Invisible Light’ while fantasizing about someone who just effortlessly ‘gets’ me and lets me in completely. I’m definitely ready to have my mind blown by that kind of love.”
Upcoming tour highlights include official showcases at SXSW (Austin, TX), Hotel Café (Los Angeles, CA), Joe’s Pub (New York, NY) and Lincoln Center’s ‘Meet The Artist’ series (New York, NY). In addition, Think Coffee will be presenting Sage’s first art show in a decade at their Bowery & Bleecker location, from May 6-June 3rd. HAUNTED BY YOU is due out in the U.S. in May 2012.
Calypso
Rachael Sage Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
just hearing you breathe.
And I don't know what's coming over me.
It's been years since you were this to me.
But I hate all these secrets inside our friendship.
and I wish I could fake this pretending not to want more.
And I'm sure it's a reckless kiss.
But I don't think I care,
so Calypso if you dare
drown me I'm not scared.
And it didn't help that you were so afraid.
And I guess it didn't help that I was so jaded.
And I know ever since I have been paying for all the many mistakes that I made.
But I hate all this waiting for sake of friendship.
And it's been so frustrating pretending not to want more.
I need more than this.
And I'm sure it's a poison bliss.
But I don't think I care,
so Calypso if you dare
drown me I'm not scared.
You laugh so easily and I'm shivering
just hearing you breathe.
And I don't know what's coming over me.
It's been years since you were this to me.
...Oh c'mon get over here.
Oh Calypso if you dare
drown me I'm not scared.
The lyrics to Rachael Sage's song Calypso explore the intensity of romantic feelings between two friends who have known each other for years. The singer is caught in a complex emotional state where she is torn between wanting to reveal her true feelings to her friend and fearing the impact it may have on their friendship. The singer describes her friend's laughter as being infectious and describes how it makes her shiver just to hear her breathe. She admits that it has been years since her friend has had this effect on her, indicating that she has had these feelings for her friend for a long time.
However, the singer is caught in a dilemma, as she does not want to jeopardize their friendship by revealing her true feelings. She hates the secrets that she is keeping from her friend and the fact that she has to pretend that she does not want more. She describes how frustrating it is to wait for the sake of the friendship and how she wants more than that. Despite knowing that her attraction to her friend may be reckless or poisonous, she is willing to take the risk, even if it means being drowned by Calypso.
The interwoven themes of fear, desire, and the complexities of human relationships make Calypso a poignant and moving song that many listeners can relate to. It shows how complex and intense human emotions can be, especially when they involve close relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
You laugh so easily and I'm shivering just hearing you breathe.
The singer is overwhelmed by the presence of the person they are addressing, and even mundane things like their breathing have an intense impact.
And I don't know what's coming over me.
The singer is struggling to understand their own feelings and reactions to the situation they are in.
It's been years since you were this to me.
The singer and the person they are addressing have a complicated history, and this interaction is different from previous ones.
But I hate all these secrets inside our friendship.
The artist is frustrated by the unspoken tension between them and the person they are addressing.
and I wish I could fake this pretending not to want more.
The artist wishes they didn't feel the way they do, and that they could just maintain a platonic relationship with the person they are addressing.
I need more than this.
The singer is unsatisfied with the current state of their relationship with the person they are addressing.
And I'm sure it's a reckless kiss.
The singer knows that taking things further with the person they are addressing is risky and potentially harmful.
But I don't think I care, so Calypso if you dare drown me I'm not scared.
Despite the risks, the artist is willing to pursue a romantic relationship with the person they are addressing.
And it didn't help that you were so afraid.
The person the artist is addressing is also struggling with their own fears and reservations about their relationship.
And I guess it didn't help that I was so jaded.
The artist's past experiences have left them with a cynical perspective on romance and relationships.
And I know ever since I have been paying for all the many mistakes that I made.
The singer recognizes that their own previous mistakes and misdeeds have impacted their current situation.
And I hate all this waiting for sake of friendship.
The artist is frustrated by the need to maintain a friendship when they want something more.
And it's been so frustrating pretending not to want more.
The singer is struggling to hide their true feelings for the person they are addressing.
And I'm sure it's a poison bliss.
The singer recognizes that pursuing a romantic relationship with the person they are addressing is likely to be harmful in some way.
But I don't think I care, so Calypso if you dare drown me I'm not scared.
Despite the risks, the singer is willing to pursue a romantic relationship with the person they are addressing.
...Oh c'mon get over here.
The artist is urging the person they are addressing to come closer.
Oh Calypso if you dare drown me I'm not scared.
The artist is willing to risk everything to pursue a romantic relationship with the person they are addressing.
Contributed by Isabelle F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.