Sarah Goodin describes herself as a full-time single parent to a "gorgeous, brilliant and hilarious 51/2-year-old" as well as a happy full-time English student at Western Washington University, and says she's only a musician in her spare time, "which falls into the time-slot between After-Bedtime and Never-During-Finals-Week."
Goodin will play original songs and a few covers at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 19, at the Swan Café at the Community Food Co-op's downtown store, 1220 N. Forest St., and at 7:30 and 10 p.m. Jan. 23 at the Redlight Wine Bar and Coffee Roasters, 1017 N. State St. She's also musical guest at the Chuckanut Radio Hour on Feb. 7.
Question: What kinds of music do you perform?
Answer: I play covers and originals on acoustic and electric guitar or piano, and never all at once. All my songs are a mix of originals, independent cover, old blues or old country. Mainly I try to play what has meaning lyrically and melodically, and hope that it does the same for others. My favorite cover to play right now is "Poor Boy, Minor Key" by M. Ward.
Q: How did you decide on music as a path?
A: For me, music was never really a path; it was more like a naturally occurring mechanism, like sneezing or arguing. I can't read a map or assemble IKEA furniture to save my life, but music has always come easily to me, especially melody and rhythm.
I owe a lot of my education to classical music radios stations and public school arts, notably through the guidance of Kay Hageman, my Sehome High School concert and chamber choir director. When I graduated from high school, I had a lot of doubt about making a career in music, and eventually gave up singing completely while searching for what to "do" with my life.
Of course, that's not what any talent or passion is about. Now I play music all the time, everywhere and whenever I can: not just because music is what I do the best, but because music makes the most sense to me and because music makes me make sense.
Q: Do you have a memorable gig?
A: On of my more remarkable performances was at the Blue Moon Tavern in Seattle. The crowd was the scariest group of individuals I'd ever laid eyes on. No one was paying attention to little blond bespectacled me, and with the noise level so incredible, no one would, so I hollered into the mike for everyone to "shut up."
Then I sang the saddest and beltiest blues I knew. By the end, I was the happiest limp dishrag in the world to have carved a little quiet space out of the hobos, drunks and hipsters, even if it only lasted all of three songs. I made several new friends that night, notably a man called "Angry Joey," who confided to me his deep love of Joni Mitchell's "Case of You." The moral of this story is that even though I'm always nervous before a show and always will be, I know I will never have to play a tougher crowd than the one I won over that night.
Q: How can people hear your music?
A: Shameless self-promotion: I have a YouTube page, published under SarahAGoodin. I also have a Facebook musician page under the name Sarah Goodin. All information about ongoing projects, upcoming gigs or how to buy my music is posted there, along with information about my new EP, coming out in the next couple months.
I'm recording my original songs with Spinner Production (aka Dave Brown and Brett Steelhammer), and it's been awesome. We once spent an entire session banging and clanging on found objects in the studio to find just the right percussive "thump" for one of my songs. Somehow, in all the playing, all my fussing, all their hard work, we've made the lyrics and tunes I've written on scraps of paper in the middle of the night come out of the speakers sounding like real songs. It's been an indescribably incredible experience. For access to all this, along with my upcoming video, all you have to do is "like" me on Facebook.
Q: What do enjoy in your spare time, as sparse as it is?
A: When I'm not playing superheroes, laying down the law, running errands, singing or writing papers (for school), I like to read terrible fiction, be outside and do crosswords at the Black Drop Coffee House. I also enjoy sleeping very much.
