A Thing So Real by Sandy Cash

Sandy Cash has a very special gift, that more than a singer, she is an excellent storyteller." - Bob McKenzie, Soundbytes) and the United States ("... a recording well worth seeking out. The world is certainly a far happier and funnier place with Sandy Cash in it." - Roberta Schwartz, FAME Music Reviews).

Exact Change also caught the attention of some of contemporary folk music's leading lights, including Christine Lavin, who featured Cash's music on her website, pointing out Cash's "...impeccable taste, a gorgeous voice [and] an ear for clever lyrics."

A Thing So Real takes on a variety of subjects - the tug of war between independence and intimacy, the joy and chaos of parenthood, and the modern culture of consumerism. Cash's talent for comedy shines through in "The Survival of the Fittest" - an exploration of how Darwinian evolution may help women survive damaging notions about female body image - and "The Madlibs Song" - in which a vacationing psychologist leaves her patient with a fill-in-the-blanks therapy session, with hilarious results.

Two songs on the album relate directly to political events - current and historical. "The Children's Brigade" describes the cynical use of children in war, and the society-wide forces that come together to teach children to hate. "I wrote 'The Children's Brigade' three years ago, at the beginning of the current violence in Israel," says Cash. "Unfortunately, the message of the song is as timely as ever."

"Giorgio Perlasca" is based on a true story of an Italian Christian who saved thousands of Jews during World War II. To avoid being drafted into a labor camp Perlasca went into hiding, seeking refuge with Angel Sanz-Briz, a Spanish diplomat known for issuing protective passes to Budapest's persecuted Jews. In the waning days of the war, Sanz-Briz fled the country and Perlasca boldly assumed the role of Spanish "ambassador," continuing Sanz-Briz's work and saving approximately 3,500 Hungarian Jews. Cash learned of this dramatic story while working as a translator for Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Memorial Authority in Jerusalem. "Writing this song allowed me to share a very dramatic story with my home audiences in Israel," says Cash. "By recording it, I hope to bring it to the world."

A native of Detroit who has been living in Israel for 18 years, Cash has performed with the New Israeli Opera and the Kameri Theater, Tel Aviv.

Track list:

1. This Love is Only for You

2. Strangers with One Heart

3. The Ghost

4. The Boy Next Door

5. The Madlibs Song

6. Survival of the Fittest

7. Beyond These Walls

8. Giorgio Perlasca

9. The Real Thing

10. The Children's Brigade

11. Into the Light (co-written with Mitch Clyman)

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