Sarah Borges

{{short description|American singer-songwriter}}

{{Infobox musical artist|

| name = Sarah Borges

| background = solo_singer

| origin = Taunton, Massachusetts, United States

| genre = Alternative Country

| years_active = 2004–Present

| label = Sugar Hill Records, Lonesome Day Records

| image = Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles at Cafe Fantastique.jpg

| caption = Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles at Cafe Fantastique in Worcester, Massachusetts, 2007

| image_size = 220

| current_members =

| website = {{url|sarahborges.com}}

}}

Sarah Borges is a rock and roll musician based in the Boston area. She was signed to Sugar Hill Records. Her music has been described as "walking that fine line between punk and country".{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p582646|pure_url=yes}}|title=Ambersmusic ((( Sarah Borges > Overview )))|last=True|first=Chris|work=Allmusic|accessdate=2009-01-31}} Her wide variety of influences are often noted. They range from Dolly Parton, Mahalia Jackson, X, Sid Vicious, and Merle Haggard to bubblegum pop. Borges grew up in Taunton, Massachusetts south of Boston, in the third generation of a Portuguese (hence the hard "g" in her name) family. She was interested in musical theater as a youth and majored in it while a student at Emerson College in downtown Boston.{{cite web|url=https://www.today.com/popculture/sarah-borges-leaves-impression-wbna9354462|title=Sarah Borges leaves an impression|last=Morris|first=Chris|date=September 15, 2005|work=Today|accessdate=2009-01-31}}{{cite web|url=http://www.sj-r.com/entertainment/x1621258001/Sarah-Borges-brings-roots-rock-to-Bedrock-66-Live|title=Sarah Borges brings roots rock to Bedrock 66 Live!|last=Mackey|first=Brian|date=January 22, 2009|work=The State Journal-Register|accessdate=2009-01-31}} Borges was married to guitarist Lyle Brewer, who is from the Boston area. Circa 2010-2013, Borges gave birth to a son.{{Citation needed|date=August 2021}}

Borges has long called her band The Broken Singles, with the only other constant member being Binky, the bassist and her longtime friend.{{cite web |publisher=Sarah Borges |date=2018 |title=Sarah Borges |url=https://sarahborges.com/bio |accessdate=2021-08-28}} Over the years, various lead guitarists and drummers have performed with the band.{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}

On the strength of a performance at the South by Southwest Festival in 2004, Borges earned a record deal with Houston's Blue Corn Records. Her first record, 2005's Silver City earned praise for showcasing "an unusual knack for mixing alternative rock with country".{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12423586|title=Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles: Country Rocks|last=Dye|first=David|publisher=NPR.org|accessdate=2009-01-31}} Allmusic compared Borges to Maria McKee of Lone Justice, and admired how her songs "balance some fierce guitar licks with heartfelt twang".{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r730452|pure_url=yes}}|title=allmusic ((( Silver City > Overview )))|last=Berick |first=Michael |work=Allmusic|accessdate=2009-01-31}} After extensive touring nationally and opening for noted acts including Dave Alvin, Sarah Borges and The Broken Singles

were signed by Sugar Hill Records. The title of her 2007 release Diamonds in the Dark is a line from the song Come Back to Me, by one of her favorite bands, X.{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=94564434|title=Sarah Borges On Mountain Stage|publisher=npr.org|accessdate=2009-01-31}} The album features a cover of the song and many original songs in addition to Tom Waits and Greg Cartwright covers. Allmusic commended the album saying it is "grittily brilliant" with songs that are "brilliantly rollicking".{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r1068359|pure_url=yes}}|title=allmusic ((( Diamonds in the Dark > Overview )))|last=Anderson|first=Rick|work=Allmusic|accessdate=2009-01-31}}

A third album, The Stars Are Out was released in March 2009. Borges commented that the album features more of a straightforward rock 'n roll sound

than her earlier work. The album has five covers of artists ranging from Smokey Robinson to The Lemonheads. Allmusic describes the album as being "material grounded in Americana even as it morphs from folk to rock and even soul" and calls it a "short but sweet collection".{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r1488455|pure_url=yes}}|title=allmusic ((( The Stars Are Out > Overview )))|last=Horowitz|first=Hal|work=allmusic|accessdate=2009-04-11}} After its release, Borges and the Broken Singles received a nomination for Best Emerging Artist at the Americana Music Association festival in Nashville.Bonfiglio, Jeremy D. (January 14, 2010). "[https://www.newspapers.com/image/441424429 Borges to Record Fan-and-band-funded DVD at The Livery]". The Herald-Palladium (Saint Joseph, Michigan). p. D1.

Borges released Radio Sweetheart in 2014 on Lonesome Day Records, which was recorded at Napoleon Complex in Somerville, Massachusetts and Woolly Mammoth Sound in Waltham, Massachusetts."[https://www.allmusic.com/album/radio-sweetheart-mw0002668600 Radio Sweetheart - Sarah Borges]". allmusic. Retrieved February 22, 2020. Borges released a follow-up EP in 2016, Good & Dirty, which was produced by Eric "Roscoe" Ambel.from an interview on [https://americanamusicshow.com/episode294 Americana Music Show #294], published April 5, 2016. Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles released Love's Middle Name in 2018{{cite web| publisher=Elmore Magazine| author=Lindblad, Peter| title=Sarah Borges & The Broken Singles: Love's Middle Name| date=October 10, 2018| url=https://www.elmoremagazine.com/2018/10/reviews/albums/sarah-borges-the-broken-singles| accessdate=2021-08-28}} and they went on tour in 2021.