Sara Groves
She is quite simply my favorite singer ever. I was introduced to her by my favorite youth minister ever, Donna Shook, when we were on a bus trip to somewhere. I had the blessed privilege of being the CD changer, and Donna had brought one of Sara's CDs on the trip. I'm pretty sure I was instantly hooked. She plays the piano and is often accompanied by other instruments, but I just love hearing her play the piano. More than the music, though, are the lyrics. I feel like Sara and I have gone through similar stages in life, and her words are so very meaningful to me. She is so transparent, and all of her songs are very personal. I have been to every one of her NC concerts except to one in Raleigh when my baby was 3 weeks old, and I have somewhat regretted not going! When I go to Sara's concerts, the best part is that she tells the story of the song before she sings it, so you know the experience that birthed it. She has such a way with words, and her songs will be played/sung at my funeral, as they were at my wedding reception! I have enjoyed all of her CDs, but if I had to recommend a few for newbies, these are the must-haves.
This is her 2nd album and it's very raw and personal.
It's good for getting through a difficult time.
This one has a lot of social justice themes, and many of the songs are inspired by her work with the International Justice Mission, "a human rights agency that brings rescue to victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression."
This is her newest album, and it is oh-so thought-provoking and mature.
This one is very sing-songy and pretty to me. It's mostly piano music and her voice, and I love it.
If you have not heard Sara's music, I hope that you will give it a try. You can purchase it from her at http://www.artistmediadirect.com/store/ (where you can get 3 CDs for $25 or 4 for $30!) or from Amazon. I don't think you'll be disappointed!
* All of the images are courtesy of www.amazon.com.
