Description
Sparkle is the major label debut album by the American singer and songwriter Sarah Jahn, released on Warner Alliance in 1997, a CCM imprint of Warner Bros. Records, a Time Warner Company. The album was recorded July to September 1996 by Susan Rogers at Sixteen Avenue Sound Studios in Nashville, Tennessee; with Glenn Rosenstein producing for Worlds End (America). Additional engineering by Adam Hatley, Glenn Rosenstein, and Gina The Dog. Additional recording at The Castle Recording Studios in Franklin and at Sound Emporium in Nashville, Tennessee. Mixed September 1996 by Rick Will assisted by Robert “Void” Caprio at Secret Sound in Franklin.
Let’s begin by quoting something from a Greenville College newspaper from 1994 reviewing a Sarah Jahn gig. “Many voices can make us laugh. There are those that will break us to tears. However, I’ve found that there are few voices that can go straight to the soul and move us from the inside out. As the very deep, soothing and melodic voice of Sarah Jahn began, a very real and powerful effect that can only come from God fell over the crowd.” The possessor of that awe-inspiring voice subsequently entered, and won, a search-for-a-star contest organised by the American CCM industry and as the pervious winners were Jars of Clay she was, understandably, immediately snapped up by the CCM record companies. To be fair to Warner Bros they didn’t rush out an album but instead spent time allowing her to craft stunning songs from personal experience – «Chronic» based on her mother’s serious illness; «Brand New Name» written with Jars Of Clay’s Charlie Lowell and the guitar-driven «Drinking Water» (“I thought of the simplest thing we could do – have a glass of water and trying to see what God wants from us even then.”) The production on ‘Sparkle’ is by Glenn Rosenstein (Ziggy Marley, U2, Talking Heads) and Susan Rogers (Prince, David Byrne) and is quite simply breathtaking. Another truly awesome debut album… they keep coming! [Tony Cummings, Cross Rhythms, October 1997]
In her remarkable major-label debut, 23-year-old Sarah Jahn proves that contemporary Christian music isn’t irrelevant to listeners who find more raw truth in albums by general market singers like Jewel and Alanis than they do in releases from their religious counterparts.
Brimming over with flashes of lyrical brilliance and moments of pure musical beauty, ‘Sparkle’ showcases an exciting singer/songwriter whose musky, melodic voice swoops and swirls around notes the same way her meandering, metaphysical lyrics navigate complex theological truths. You’ll look in vain for clichés here.
Introspective without being moody or maudlin, Jahn finds a shimmering silver lining in the darkest nights of the soul, real hope in the midst of life’s interminable insecurities and failures. An alumni of the T-Bone Burnett school of lyric writing, Jahn spends less time preaching about the Light than she does illuminating the rich mysteries of existence. Wise beyond her years, Jahn shows that knowing the Answer isn’t the end of questions, just a new beginning. Or as she sings on «Paradox», “If I close the door on doubt/ I find that the light can never grow/ Help me see.”
Like her friends and mentors in Jars of Clay, Jahn is also an alumni of Greenville College and was named “Best New Artist” in the Gospel Music Association’s 1995 Spotlight New Artist Contest.
She co-wrote seven of the album’s 10 songs, which range from slow and somber to jubilantly up-tempo. On «Brand New Name», written with Jars’ keyboardist Charlie Lowell, Jahn sounds like a breathy Sarah McLachlan, moaning lyrics of spiritual yearning over a backdrop of layered electronic effects. On the brisk and exultant «Drinking Water», one can hear traces of Ashley Cleveland. «Face» begins as folk – with Jahn’s soaring voice playing off a driving acoustic guitar – but quickly evolves into a more complicated song, thanks to the keyboard wizardry of Jeremy Bose, one of a handful of Greenville young bucks who give the album much of its edgy, elegant energy. Other more than capable assistance comes from producer Glenn Rosenstein, known for his work with such acts as Ziggy Marley, Brent Bourgeois, Talking Heads and Michelle Shocked.
God only knows if Jahn will follow Jars of Clay’s stratospheric footsteps into general market acceptance and sales, but there’s nothing in this stunning release to hold her back. [Steve Rabey, CCM, May 1997]
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/sparkle/98386752)
CD tracklist:
01. Brand New Name – 4:11
02. Drinking Water – 2:28
03. Crucible – 4:15
04. Face – 2:56
05. Love Learn Happy – 3:28
06. Paradox – 3:55
07. Chronic – 4:20
08. Lullaby – 4:24
09. I Found The Time – 5:13
10. Home – 2:18
Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and CD by Warner Alliance.
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