INTERVIEW WITH SINGER/SONGWRITER SABRA FAULK

"IT'S A FEVER"

By Judy Jennings

Copyright © 2015

Very few of Tucson’s talented musicians can lay claim to the term “home-grown” as thoroughly as Sabra Faulk.  These days the gal from Wilcox can most often be found in the band box at Gaslight Theater, but back in the ‘80’s, Faulk made a living as the first woman to play in a house band at the country-western bar, The Maverick.  Here, she comments over coffee on how the music scene in Tucson has changed--or not—over the years.

Did you just say that you and Bunny Kirby were the first two women ever to play at the Maverick?

         We weren’t the first, Tammy Wynette played there, but we were the first two women in a house band back then.  I was the first, as bass player with Gary Rust.  Then we moved on, and I went back with my own band for a while on Monday nights.

         Then Bunny and I got into the house band Desert Rain.  We were in that band for a couple of years, playing at The Maverick five nights a week.  I’ve made my living for many years as a bass player in Tucson, and played at all the different (country-western) clubs around. 

Then I went on to doing solo and duo stuff with Heather Hardy, because it was easier to make money on a smaller level.  Back when I started it was five and six-piece bands, but now duos and trios are a lot easier to get paid.

It’s been hard at times.  That’s when I had to go get the day jobs.  If you really work at it and market yourself properly, it’s easy to make a great living.  But you have to be on top of it all the time.  (The pay) has been the same for forty years.  I can go to a gig, and they’ll say the gig pays $50 a man, and they were paying $50 a man in 1982.

Why are you living this life?

It’s a fever.  It’s a fire.  I live my life this way because this is what I chose.  I just can’t not play.  If I’m playing my music with the right intention and there’s no ego involved, then it’s all about bringing joy to people.  There’s nothing better for me. 

I feel like my success can’t be measured in money or 401K’s, it’s measured in what I’ve been given and what I’ve given back.

What would you be doing right now if you weren’t a musician?

I’d probably be on a John Deere tractor, when I wasn’t building my chicken coops, taking care of my cows, or riding my horses.  I’ve always wanted to be a cowgirl.  Or a superhero with the power to stop war.

For more info, visit:  SabraFaulk.com