The new Blame Sally album Speeding Ticket And A Valentine is at radio now and will hit stores on May 2, but in addition to hearing the band you can read about them as well. Sarah Brokaw’s (daughter of Tom) new book Fortytude: Making the Next Decades the Best Years of Your Life — through the 40s, 50s, and Beyond includes a look at Blame Sally members Renee Harcourt and Monica Pasqual. USA Today recently posted an excerpt of the book. Here’s a portion:
At age 37, Renee moved from LA to the Bay Area. She entered a singer/songwriter contest and won. It made her think that perhaps she should start pursuing a music career seriously. At the same time, however, she felt panicked at the idea. “I thought, ‘At age 39, no one will take me seriously!'” Renee said, “Truly, if you’re over 20 in the music business, the record labels just aren’t interested—you’re done, you’re all washed up.” That’s when she met Monica.
Monica had studied classical piano since the time she was a kid, but health issues interfered with her ability to perform professionally until much later in life. When she was in her 30s, a friend started pushing her to get on stage. They signed up for an open mic competition in Mill Valley together. Only the friend got sick and didn’t show, so Monica had to sing on stage for the first time ever. “After that night, I started to take voice lessons, and I found that I loved singing!” Monica said. “Suddenly, I was like, ‘This is what I want to do with my life.'”
Read the entire excerpt of the book here.
