Sarah Borges: “Together Alone” (2022) CD Review

The new album from Sarah Borges, Together Alone, was put together remotely during the pandemic, just as its title suggests. Eric “Roscoe” Ambel, who plays several of the instruments on these tracks and co-wrote a couple of the songs, describes the process in the album’s liner notes. It’s wild how innovative musicians became during this time in order get their music out there, and how much was accomplished via phones and computers. While this album is not credited to Sarah Borges’ band The Broken Singles, Eric Ambel not only performed on the group’s last album, Love’s Middle Name, but also produced it. He produced this new album as well. And Broken Singles drummer Phil Cimino plays on a few tracks of this album. Also joining Sarah Borges on this album are Rob Arthur on organ and piano, Keith Voegele on bass and vocals, Keith Christopher on bass, Ryan Rogers on drums, John Perrin on drums, Keith Robinson on drums, and Diego Voglino on drums. This album features all original material, written or co-written by Sarah Borges.

Sarah Borges opens the album with “Wasting My Time,” a title that certainly speaks to our time when things were shut down. The song’s first line, however, is “Don’t tell me that I’m wasting my time.” This track features a solid, somewhat slow groove that matches the persistent ache that most of us have felt. “Been a while now since I’ve seen my friends/Don’t know when I’m going to see ‘em again/Without them around it’s harder to pretend/That I know where I’m going.” I’m sure those lines will ring true for a lot of folks. Rob Arthur plays organ, and Ryan Rogers is on drums on this track. That’s followed by “Lucky Day,” which has something of a punk vibe and energy as it begins. John Perrin plays drums on this one. A song for everyone who is still waiting for his or her lucky day.

“Wouldn’t Know You” has a great bar band sound. I know that restrictions have lifted in many places, but I just haven’t been ready yet to go drinking inside a bar. But the sound of this song is making me miss it even more. I can’t wait to dance to a song like this, a Sam Adams in my hand. Interesting, since this song is about trying to get a friend to pull back from heavy drinking and hard living, and Sarah Borges herself has been sober for several years. Yet, there it is, this song has that sound that makes me want to enjoy a beer. Go figure. “Last one leaving, and the first to stumble into a bar/If anyone needs you, they know for sure where you are.” There is some great energy to Sarah’s vocal delivery. This one was written by Eric Ambel, Sarah Borges, and Keith Voegele. Keith Christopher plays bass on it, while Keith Voegele provides some vocal work. Phil Cimino is on drums. Then “Something To Do” also mentions drinking, right in its first line: “Hiding out in the bathroom ‘cause I’ve had too much to drink.” It also mentions seeing a phone number on a wall, “For a good time call.” Do people still do that? The lyrics also refer to the Willie Nelson song in the line “Another bloody Mary morning of the week.” But the lines that really stand out for me are these: “Maybe that’d solve my problems/‘Cause I have more than a few/Maybe that’d make them more/But at least I’d have something to do.” Eric Ambel plays 12-string acoustic guitar, electric slide guitar, percussion, strings and Mellotron on this one. Keith Robinson is on drums.

“Rock And Roll Hour” has a totally fun vibe and groove. Rob Arthur delivers some wonderful stuff on both organ and clavinet. That’s followed by “She’s A Trucker,” a steady rocking number about getting a job as a trucker. I read earlier in the pandemic that there was a shortage of truckers, and that they were looking for new drivers. And I believe it, particularly as I was stuck in traffic the other day as a clearly inexperienced trucker spent close to ten minutes trying to back her rig into a lot, blocking all four lanes in both directions. This track features some good work on guitar. Then in “13th Floor,” Sarah Borges sings about taking the elevator to the thirteenth floor, tempting fate, even using a broken mirror. “When you’ve just been looking for an image of yourself/And the one that’s staring back is somebody else.” Keith Voegele is on bass, and John Perrin plays drums on this track.

“You Got Me On The Boat” is another solid rock song, this one written by Sarah Borges and Keith Voegele. It is about the Outlaw Country Cruise, which took place in February of 2020, just before the pandemic shut everything down. The lineup for that event included not only Sarah Borges, but groups like NRBQ, The Yayhoos and The Mavericks, all of whom are mentioned in the song. By the way, John Perrin, who plays drums on two of this album’s tracks, is the drummer for NRBQ. “And if I learned anything in those years/It’s when the music’s playing, it takes away life’s hurts and fears.” Yup, that’s what I’ve found as well, and that’s why music has been even more important the last few years. “You Got Me On The Boat” is followed by “Pretty Christine,” which has a vibrant country rock sound. Rob Arthur plays piano on this one. The album wraps up with its title track, “Together Alone,” which begins in a mellower place. Its opening line, “I know I ain’t seen you for a couple of years,” applies to basically everyone we know during the pandemic. It’s a song about distances between people, about memories and longings, and yet has a hopeful bent. I love her passionate vocal delivery. “And I just paid the rent with a dollar to spare/And all of the time I was thinking of you.”

CD Track List

1. Wasting My Time
2. Lucky Day
3. Wouldn’t Know You
4. Something To Do
5. Rock And Roll Hour
6. She’s A Trucker
7. 13th Floor
8. You Got Me On The Boat
9. Pretty Christine
10. Together Alone

Together Alone was released on February 18, 2022 through Blue Corn Music.