Bay Area Quartet Blame Sally to Debut New Album 4/29-30

The renowned Bay Area female quartet Blame Sally will premiere songs from their new album, Speeding Ticket And A Valentine, at a pair of shows at San Francisco's Great American Music Hall on April 29 and 30. The concerts celebrate Blame Sally's new long-term deal with the Berkeley-based label Ninth Street Opus--who will release the album on May 10--and also mark the first major events on the group's 2011 national tour. Dates are currently scheduled through the fall, with new shows still being added.

"Living Without You," the first single from Speeding Ticket And A Valentine, is available--beginning today--as a free download from the band's just-launched redesigned website www.blamesally.com (the track can also be purchased through iTunes). Other new content to be featured on the media-rich site includes a link to a video montage chronicling the making of the album, with previews of additional songs.

Comprising singer-songwriters Pam Delgado (percussion, vocals), Renee Harcourt (guitar, bass, vocals), Jeri Jones (guitar, bass, vocals), and Monica Pasqual (piano, accordion, vocals), Blame Sally originally formed in 2000. Each member left solo artistry for the new partnership at an age--they were all in their late 30s and 40s--when the opposite career transition is the norm.

Blame Sally, however, is impossible to corral with conventional wisdom, and has soared on the collective strengths of its members--with instrumental chops and emotive lyrical sensibilities as powerful as their blissful four-part harmonies. The San Francisco Chronicle has written, "Their lush, lovely melodies draw from folk and rock traditions, but they really distinguish themselves through their unusual storytelling. The San Diego Troubadour noted, "One of the finest American bands in the country...like a folk-based U2."

Speeding Ticket And A Valentine, produced by the band, is Blame Sally's fifth album, and the second on Ninth Street Opus (also label home to artists including Carrie Rodriguez and Sarah Lee Guthrie & Johnny Irion). In addition to the single "Living Without You," highlights include the opening track "Bird In Hand," "Countdown," "Take Me There," and "Mona Lisa Smile." The album follows up 2009's Night Of 1,000 Stars and the acclaimed 2007 release Severland, about which allmusic.com wrote, "To put it in Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young terms, Severland is their Deja Vu."

Following the Great American Music Hall concerts (for which special hotel packages are available for fans through the News section of the band's website), Blame Sally's tour travels north up the west coast and then on to dates in the mid-west, mid-south and south. East coast dates will be announced shortly. A Los Angeles area date on April 23--will coincide with a book-signing for Sarah Brokaw's new title Fortytude, spotlighting women in their 40s and beyond making positive changes in life--Blame Sally's Monica Pasqual and Renee Harcourt are featured.

"Don't blame us if you're the last on your block to check out Blame Sally," wrote Performing Songwriter magazine. 2011 offers ample opportunities to do just that, and experience the music of this innovative Bay Area band.

For more information: www.blamesally.com

 

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