Sarah Ragsdale

“This Kiss” is the new music video from Sarah Ragsdale. And Huff Post has it first! “This Kiss” is from Sarah’s forthcoming album Whimsical Romance, slated to drop in October. Proceeds from the first three weeks of the release of the audio track “This Kiss” will be donated to the Animal Legal Defense Fund.

Stylistically, Sarah’s music blends pop, jazz, blues and folk influences into a sound that Sarah refers to as “Ragstime.” She developed her unique sound while performing live in Europe, Asia, Africa and America. Her music is defined by catchy, piano-driven melodies that vary from highly visceral to quaintly old-school.

“This Kiss” starts off with a tinny, antiquated sounding piano, followed by Sarah’s clear, strong voice. The groove evokes a funky, jazz beat set in a contemporary pop matrix. The melody rides on the jazzy piano and flows brightly with a relentless ebullience that gets your hips to twitching and your toe tapping. Soft, yet crisp background vocals that sound a bit old-school add oomph and depth to the tune. And even though the background vocals emanate an archaic flavor, there’s a modern zest and tang to them that makes them work. In fact, anything else would seem out of place. Instead of the usual guitar or piano solo that, frankly, would imbue the song with mundane mediocrity, Sarah skips it and replaces it with a great brass solo that glimmers with sonic colors.

The primary ingredient to “This Kiss” is Sarah’s delightful voice, a potent instrument of expression, full of a vigorous coloration and persuasive enthusiasm that’s remarkably contagious. Listening to her simply makes you feel happy and optimistic about life, probably because of the declarative projection of her inner gusto through her voice.

The lyrics to “This Kiss” reflect the buoyancy, intimacy and importance of something as simple as a kiss. “Your kiss is on my list / You’re so incredible edible / I want a love like this / If you want to know what I’m looking for / It’s in your kiss.” As Sarah sings the lyrics, the song takes on a charming, flamboyant grace so extraordinary that it seems to have a vitality of its own.The video is stylish, but avoids assuming any hint of becoming artificially stylized. Shot in the city of Baltimore, the video exudes a retro sense that’s captivating. Dressed in polka dots, wearing a ponytail, Sarah capers through a variety of city scenes jotting down notes on a pad of paper. She kisses a puppy, rides a bicycle and plays keyboards on the sidewalk, all the while singing blissfully about the power of love and this kiss.

“This Kiss” has it going on! It’s a fun song about the tantalizing sovereignty of a kiss. The melody is memorable and infectious, the lyrics are easy to sing along with and Sarah’s voice exhibits bright, clear sonic tones that are wonderfully spellbinding. - The Huffington Post

Sarah Ragsdale first caught my attention back in August when I told you about her single/video for “This Kiss,” which embraces wholesome, happy-go-lucky sounds so desperately needed in these dark times.
Now, Ragsdale is back with another fun, watchable music video for the bouncy “Next Time.” Its uptempo melody belies its lyrics of heartbreak, which the video illustrates in a comical, manic way. Ragsdale brings a dude back to her place after a date and seemingly decides to “slip into something more comfortable.” Her date is excited, but when she emerges in a wedding dress – not so much. Cut to clips of her chasing him through the city interspersed with a disheveled Ragsdale in the wedding dress singing along, tracks of mascara down her cheeks.

The inner feminist in me wants to be salty about the cliche “woman-trying-to-catch-and/or-trick-a-man-into-marriage” trope, but being the “woman of a certain age” that I am, I get it. Some women put the pressures to settle down on themselves; others feel them from external sources. Regardless, they’re there, albeit not all the time for some of us.

Also, this tune is just way too infectious not to bop along and love the cute video. Like “This Kiss” before it, it’s a nice few minutes of escape into a colorful, musical world. And be sure to stay tuned for the last few seconds for a special appearance from Ragsdale’s favorite co-star. - PopDose

Sarah Ragsdale is an indie pop singer, pianist, songwriter, and composer from New Jersey who has captured her stories through pop, jazz, and folk influences. She has toured and performed live in America, Europe, Asia, and Africa making appearances on major international television networks such as BBC World, Univision, France24, and Radio France Internationale.

With all the success she’s had so far, Sarah will be releasing her new album Whimsical Romance this fall! Sarah talked about the album saying, “Life is like one big romance. This collection of songs is about that romantic story called life, and the ups and downs that come along with it.”
The first visual from Whimsical Romance is the music video for “This Kiss.” The video was filmed around the city of Baltimore while Sarah, dressed in polka dots and with her hair tied up in a ponytail, skips around the city, writing lyrics in her notebook. “This Kiss” is a playful, fun video that music fans of all ages are sure to love.

You can pre-order Sarah’s new album Whimsical Romance (available Oct 6, 2017) at www.sarahragsdale.com to hear her musical stories that have been written at various stages throughout her life, fancifully interpreting the ups and downs of love and romance.

Sarah will also be performing multiple shows around the Northeast this fall, including an album release party for Whimsical Romance on October 7 at the Cabaret at Germano’s in Baltimore! - Celeb Mix