I can only apologise for taking so long to write a blog.
I hope the Summer treated you all well and that Autumn/nearly Winter isnt too depressing.
Fantastic news about Obamas Victory. A change is surely gonna come!
We had great concerts in Italy in July, thanks to all those that came.
In September Dominic and I went to Canada and played several festivals to wonderful audiences. Juanita and Katherine in New Brunswick looked after us particularly well. Dominic even took myself and his gorgeous North American fans out for supper in Montreal on our day off, which was lovely for us all. Hello Girls it was lovely to meet you all!
Dominic and I also played Milan at end of Sept and had sell out shows. Thanks all of you for buying the new CD. 'Migratory Birds' out now. Italy in particular has given it good shelf space and its next to Yael Naim on the racking system, which is ok by me.
Migratory Birds has at long last been released and I gather Q review in this month, lest hope its a good one.
A German guitar magazine have included 'Sugar in My Bowl' in their cover issue.
We finished mixing the new album 'Where it Hurts' in early September ( with the wonderful Phill Brown) and are in negotiations for licenses for the album for an April 2009 release. Thanks particularly to Enrico Melozzi for his fantastic string arrangements which were recorded in Rome.
At different periods in the year I went to Rome to record an album with Enrico Melozzi and the cello orchestra with Dominic Miller guesting on nylon string guitar.This album will be ready for release Summertime next year and hopefully we'll get lots of bookings as its such an amazing project and is Classical Contemporary.
In Oct I sang with Soup Songs in Frankfurt along with Cristina Donna and Annie Whiehead and the wonderful band that makes up that project. This time Robert Wyatt came too and it made it such a special experience.
Been thinking a lot of my lovely Canadian friend Erella who has had so many operations and is continually brave and is a friend of Roberts from many many years ago. Get well soon Erella.
A few weeks ago I took part in a benefit to raise money for the recovery from serious back surgery for Carol Grimes the wonderful English Rock/Blues/Jazz singer. The line-up was wonderful and it gave me a chance to duet with the amazing Ian Shaw once again. We raised just under £2000 thanks to all who came. Carol I hope you are back walking and singing very soon.
Lots of concerts coming up in UK and Italy and Austria and Morocco and Germany.
Hope to see you at one of them.
In the meantime check out the website on www.sarahjanemorris.com
Love for now
Sarah jane xx

Sorry its been an eternity since I last wrote a blog. Been very busy touring and off again tomorrow.
New website is just launched and I'd love you to visit and sign up for mailing list and see if you like it.
Some technical hitches on it so all will be right very soon.

Migratory Birds the new Cd with Marc Ribot is back from printers next week and will be sold on tour next week in Italy ahead of release in September. New album 'Where It Hurts' will be mixed beginning of September by Phil Brown and has Dominic Miller, Tony Remy, Martyn Barker, Henry Thomas, Alastair Gavin and Ralph Carney playing with cellos and strings arranged by Enrico Melozzi in Rome. It will hopefully be relased in Jan 2009.
Just finishing recording an album with 14 cellos and Dominic Miller guesting of contemporary classical. This will hopefully be released next Spring.

Hope you are having a good Summer.
Speak soon
Yours in music
Sarah Jane Morris

www.sarahjanemorris.com

Hello folks, sorry its taken so long to do a blog.
Its nearly Spring and things are looking up!
I have been so lucky with concerts and working with wonderful musicians this last while and this is the first month where I am not chock a block full and can take time to write anything.
Martyn and I have been writing a new albums worth of material, some songs about heartbreak and others about social issues from Refugees, to Burma, to Kenny Richey ( just freed from 21 years on death row). I wrote three or fours songs with Dominic Miller in Rome and we now have about 15 songs ready to go.
The band this last while has been Dominic Miller, Tony Remy, Alastair Gavin, Martyn Barker and Henry Thomas and every now and again Dominic and I have done duo concerts which are particularly pleasurable.
We have been to Italy many times, Sardinia for New years Eve, Sicily, Berlin and we have lots of concerts lined for UK, Italy and Canada with the promise of concerts in Austria again soon.
The Cd with Marc Ribot called 'Migratory Birds' is in the hands of Todd Hedgpeth in San Francisco who is doing the artwork and my brother Rod has provided the photographs ( in colour this time) so the design is along the lines of the first Cd I recorded with Marc called 'August'. The guests on this album are the wonderful Bonfire Madigan on cello, Sandy Dillon on pedal organ and David Coulter on musical saw and extra ears with co-producer credit and Ralph Carney providing all the horns on 'If You Want Me To Stay'. The songs covered on this one are from Bob Dylan, Velvet Underground, Sly and The Family Stone, Rickie Lee Jones, Dolly Parton, Janis Ian, Damien Rice and many more including the title track which I co-wrote with Kevin Armstrong ( who is currently away with Sinaed O Conner and hopefully back later in the year to play with us again). Hopefully this Cd will get a Summer release.
In April I play the part of Mere Ubu in UBU with David Thomas as Per Ubu with the band Pere Ubu at Queen Elizabeth Hall on 24th and 25th.

We are back at Ronnie Scotts after many years on 12th/13th/14th June and the line-up is Dominic Miller/Tony Remy/Martyn Barker and Henry Thomas. We will be performing mainly new songs and hopefully filming one night for a future DVD.
In May I record a Cd with 14 cellos in Rome and it will hopefully turn into a tour with Dominic Miller as guest later in the year when the Cd gets a release.

I hope to find time to catch up with you again soon.
Love Sarah Jane x

So sorry its taken forever to do a new blog. Its been a busy period and I've been doing regular writing with Martyn Barker and Dominic Miller ready for the next album. I release 'Migratory Birds' the 2nd album with Marc Ribot in March and hope to have the next album ready for later in the year if all goes according to plan.
My friend Kathryn Williams (who is New York based songwriter) has written many Xmas songs which Alastair Gavin and I recorded and produced earlier this year. It has turned into a 7 track Cd called 'Angels at Christmas' and is released through my label Fallen Angel Records and is available on my website shop and as downloads. Mornington Lockett, Henry Thomas and Roy Dodds all play on these recordings along with Alastair and myself and its the perfect stocking filler for Christmas.
Hope to see you at concerts over December, January and February. We will be in Italy, UK, Slovenia, Germany, Sicily and hopefully Austria.
Hope life is good with you all and speak again soon.
Yours in music
Sarah Jane xxxx

Hello folks,
I'm back from a Canadian trip and two legs of an Italian tour and tired but happy with how it all went.
Vancouver was fantastic and thanks to Michael Charland and Trevor we ate well and played at Rhime in the city, before doing four shows at Vancouver Folk Festival on Jericho Beach. I played Vancouver with Calum and Neill Maccoll and it was the first time we played together since 2003. Both brothers are a joy to play with and to listen to. As well as being amazing guitarists they both have glorious singing voices which makes the most wonderful musical safety net for me. The highlight of Vancouver musiclaly for all three of us was Hawksley Workman from Tornoto and Martyn Joseph from Wales. Both unique and both very moving. The Be Good Tanyas were brilliant as per usual, but due to many other acts preceding them had to cut their set short for curfew purposes which must have been very frustrating as it was also being recorded for radio.
I had a day to recover from jetlag then onto Italy to play with Henry Thomas and Martyn Barker, my trustworthy drums and bass team, with Dominic Miller and Tony Remy( both taking a break from Sting and Annie Lennox) on guitars and voice. What a pleasure it was to play with them all and not only was everyone a superb musician but a joy to get to know. At my age its very important to like who you are working with as you spend so much time together and become a family. I am very lucky with my various musical families. I will be doing more work with both Dominic and Tony plus of curse Henry and Martyn in Sept, Oct, Nov and Dec in various parts of the world so keeping checking into the dates page as we add them. Kevin is currently touring with Sianed O Conner and Neill busy with David Gray and Kathryn Williams, with whom he has co written an album. Neill with be joining us from time to time over the next few months.
Martyn and I have been writing again and were trying a few new tunes out on the Italian tour to good response. We are continuing to write and will visit Dominic in October at his new abode in France to write some more tunes for the next album.
David my husband has been busy all year as MD for Damon Albarns opera 'Monkey' which premiered at Manchester International Festival to great reviews and it travels to Chatalet in Paris in Sept and Oct and is currently negotiating bookings for London and other major world cities for next year and the following year so if you get the chance to go, do, it is amazing!
I hope all is well with you and speak again soon.
Love Sarah Jane x

Sorry its been so long that I have written anything.
Its another beautiful Spring Day and life is good!
Its Easter school holidays so today is first day Otis and I are being truly lazy and not doing anything in particular, its wonderful and much needed.
In Jan and Feb I recorded an album of Xmas songs written my by dear friend Katherine Williams in New York, I'll keep you posted when it is due for release.
I had the good fortune to do another concert with the Italian Gospel choir 'Golden Guys' in Brescia in March and it was a wonderful experience once again. This time my lovely brother Jamie came out with me and was touched to see how warm and loving the Italian audiences are to me. The concert was in a very large and beautiful Catholic Church and the sort of contradication I enjoy to then sing gospel, with a white Italian choir, odd indeed, but magical. Michele, our new Italian friend took us everywhere and we ate and drank well and enjoyed a fabulous weekend. WE ahve been asked to do another concert in June, Aug and possibly in Iceland later in the year, so watch this space.
I have been asking various singer songwriters to write me songs and they are stratign to come in. I have also been discussing covering songs from 2 songwriters I met through Myspace and hopefully they will be included on my next Italian stint at beginning of May with my Jazz Quartet. I haven't been singing Jazz for a long time and felt it was long overdue so have put together a SUPER GROUP of some of the Uks best to do three dates at Blue Note in Milan on 4th,5th,6th May and Innesbruk Jazz Festival in Austria on 17th May. I'm sure more dates will follow. The line-up is the amazing Mornington Lockett on saxes, Alastair Gavin on piano, Henry Thomas on bass and Roy Dodds on drums.
We'd love to see those of you that live in London come down and support us at the new venue in Piccadilly called The Piggalle Club on 16th May. Its usual band line-up of Martyn, Henry, Kevin and Neill and worth a listen as they are the best and hopefully we'll be airing some new songs.
Neill (possibly Calum) and myself are off to Vancouver Folk Festival for 13th,14th,15th July and will do an instore at HMV and another club in the city. Our friends Dugg Simpson ( who organises the festival) and Michael ( a friend since our last folk festival there in 2003) have organised all this and we are eternally grateful.
With the full band we play Rome, Como, Cremona and Montelcino in July and I get to play with Annie Whitehead and Cristina Dona in Italy again for the music of Robert Wyatt on June 25th.
I'll try and write more frequently and keep you all up to date, buit in meantime hope you enjoy this beautiful Spring and that is lifts your spirits.
Yours in music
Sarah Jane xxxxx

Hello folks, just a quickie to let you know that we are playing at the Pavillion Theatre in Worthing on Saturday night and as we have no history with the town the tickets are not running off the shelf. If anyone thinks they can make it I can get half price tickets.
Just let me know.
Yours in music
SJM x

How many of you turned off your lights at 6.55 tonight to save energy and to make a point? Many messages were going back and forth about it on the internet, so I hope a lot of you got the message and took part.
I've been helping to organise a new International Womens Arts Festival up in the lake district for the month of May. Its been a slow burner as I initially tried to put this (or something similar ) on at Union Chapel in Islington a few years ago, but luckily found some like minded spirits up at Brewery Arsy Centre in Kendal who were able to get the funding and take it all further.
On the music front we have Patti Smith, Marrianne Faithful, Peggy Seeger. Thea Gilmore, Kathryn Williams, Rachel Van Zanten with Angie Palmer, Betty Lavette, The Karen Dalton Tribute night, possibly Mary Coughlan and Mary Margaret O Hara and many many more. The festival starts on 4th May and finishes on 24th and we hope you will travel to it. Trains go from Euston ( its the Glasgow train) to Oxenholme.The Lakes are splendid and there is far more to see in the arts other than listen to this great music. Its looking like we may have Jo Brand ( a friend and wonderful comic) and many soap stars as well as great female artists and film makers and actresses. Its definately worth a trip. I'll post more details about this as they go to press.
My next London concert is Toynbe Hall as part of the Spitz Literary festival. The nearest tube is Aldgate East and its a new theatre buily within a beautiful old Magistrates court.
Take care and have a happy FEB.
My boy will be 12 on Saturday and I can't believe how quickly the time has gone!
Yours in music
Sarah Jane xxxxx

It was lovely to be back performing to a Vortex audience, which is unlike any other audience . The new Vortex is still like performing in ones front room and it still suits us. For those of your unfamiliar to the idea of the Vortex, its a listening music venue holding about 100 people maximum in the heart of Dalston. Its run by absolute music enthusiasts and it has been at the new location for a few years but for many,many years its was on Stoke Newington Church St. Its worth checking out and a lovely intimate place to hear music. There is also a fab Sardinian restaurant/cafe downstairs that does amazing pizza and good price, so you can make an evening of it.
We hope to return to the Vortex about September time and maybe it will become a regular part of our year again after far too long!
Thank you so much to those of you that travelled so far. We had people in from Canada, Italy, Denmark. Somone mentioned trying to get us to Moscow, so lets hope that happens.
Thankyou to all those that came and welcomed us back to the Vortex on Friday and Saturday and see you all again soon.
Yours in music
Sarah Jane xxxx

Hello there,
Sorry this is the 1st entry for ages.
It snowed yesterday and it was wonderful to see the look of awe on my 11 year olds face when he opened his blind to the sheer white blanket that lay before him, covering cars and drives and rooftops. For a minute he got excited thinking this might mean a day off school (and an exam day at that), but no, it was all under control and would soon melt.
Been writing lots, dealing with many topics from illegal immigration, planet damaging to prostitutes and their crack habits. Sorry all a bit heavy, lest see if they properly turn into songs.
We are doing two concerts at the new Vortex on Friday and Saturday and really looking forward to that. The old Vortex in Stoke Newington was a wonderful venue run by Dave Mossman and over the years I sang there hundreds of times and went on to do amny benefits to try and keep it open, move it to The Ocean and then move it to Dalston. This will be my 1st time at the new venue, even though they have been there for three years. On Friday I am there with the wonderul Alastair Gavin on piano. Alastair and I have a long musical history together and co-wrote many songs together in the 80s and early 90s. Alastair produced several tracks on my 1st album for Jive records. At the moment Alastair juggles concerts, Musical Director and conducter for Mamma Mia in West End. We hope to record an album of voice, piano and strings this year so hopefully that will come to fruition before too long.
On Saturday I am performing with the ever wonderful Henry Thomas on bass, Neil MacColll on guitars and voice ( busy producing many artists), Kevin Armstrong on guitars and voice ( doing the music for Celebrity Pop Idol or something like that plus producing Keziah Jones next Cd) and Martyn Barker on drums, cajon and acoustic guitar ( Martyn is busy recording with many artists including a new album with Billy Bragg in March).
I'd like to say a big thankyou to John Fordham of The Guardian for his kind words this last Saturday. Nice to know that I'm still out there.
I have two more tracks to mix for the new Cd with Marc Ribot and it will have artwork by my brother Rod in the vein of 'August' and will hopefully get launched at Montreal jazz festival early July with a concert with Marc and Neill Maccoll and maybe Eric Mingus on bass and duets.
Went to the lakes on Saturday to play at wonderful Brewery Arts Centre and had a fab time. Thanks to Mike Chadwick for hospitality and a great audience who really showed us appreciation.
In January Alastair, Henry, Roy and Mornington ( yes the amazing Mr Lockett on sax) and I went into the lovely intimate solar powered studio at Premises in Hackney ( been rehearsing there as long as I can remember) to record 7 Xmas songs written by my dear friend Kathryn Williams in New York. We will go back in Feb to record another 5 or 6 and you never know there might be a CD of origianl Xmas songs for Xmas release this next year. Stranger things have happened!
Hope life is treating you all well.
Till next time
Yours in music
Sarah Jane Morris