JULY 13, 2026:
On June 5 of this year, our dear friend and one of my longest musical partners Sara Shansky Kaye passed away shortly after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. It was a shocking and devastating blow to all who knew and loved her. More than a month later, it still feels somewhat unreal, but writing about some of my memories has been helpful, and I wanted to share some of them.

I met Sara pretty early on after she moved to Austin from the West Coast. I had moved from New York in 2000, and by the time Sara arrived, I was already involved playing music with Neil Kaiser. Neil and I met at an open mic and soon learned that, not only had we both recently arrived from New York, but that we had attended the same, small state college at the same time. Anyway, Neil and I had started out playing acoustic, country and folk music, but by 2005 or so, Neil had a notion to start a band that was more punk in spirit. We also both loved the doo wop and soul music our fathers had taught us, and we loved the idea of trying to add female voices to the mix. Neil met Sara at a songwriter meet up. He invited me to the next one, where I met Sara. She was, from the jump, a confident and generous spirit. Unlike me, she showed no hint of embarrassment sharing her songs, and she seemed to sing as naturally as she breathed. 

That band became The Late Fees, and for three years or so, we played our dirty doo-wop punk around Austin anywhere they’d have us. Each of us took on a persona, although Neil says his “Zimmy T.” character was really more like his true id. Sara, known as Lefty Grooves, not only sang, but she helped arrange the backing vocals, teach parts to the revolving door of second background singers, including Elizabeth Taliaferro and Pamela Ryder, and contributed songs and sass to the mix. After a while, Neil decided to fold the group. I was coming into my own a bit as a songwriter, and the band sort of naturally morphed into my own group, Rich & the Obits. Even Neil came along, moving onto bass, which was his passion at the time. Joining us from the Fees was also drummer Dave Wylie and guitarist/bassist Hunt Wellborn. Added to the mix of the Obits were Lloyd Wright on keyboards, along with my wife Elizabeth Ivey and our friend Roz Mandola joining Sara on backing vocals. This new project would also go through some changes, beginning when Neil moved from Austin, when we added Alexei Sefchick on bass. Later, when Alex moved onto new projects, Lee Humphries joined us on bass. After Lloyd moved, Amy Blackard joined on violin and vocals. 

All the while, many of the same musicians in my band were playing behind Sara as the Titanic Dance Band. At one time or another, Neil, Hunt, Dave, Alex, Lee, Amy, Lloyd, and I were all part of this project, as were others including Pj Christie. Sara never liked keeping the same set, and she was always writing, so it was a constant learning process playing with her. Her writing just got better and better, and her commitment to the craft was always inspiring to me. Sara treated every gig with the same respect and professionalism, regardless of if it was a farmer’s market, a private party or wedding, or a club show, something that I try hard to emulate, with mixed success.

Even at times when none of us had an active band with a packed schedule, many of us would regularly get together to make music and laugh. A gathering of was never complete without singing and playing. Even after Sara and Adam had Miles and later Ruby, Sara would always make time for her friends, many of whom were and continue to be child free. Sara made the effort to make sure our connections remained, and we are all so grateful that she welcomed us into her family’s life. We have all been privileged to witness Miles and Ruby growing up and to be present for some important moments. 

Writing this now, it is still so hard to imagine that Sara will not be leading us in song again. However, I have also been reminded in this past month that Sara is never far from me whenever I am singing. So, that is how we will keep her with us, and that is how we will honor her. 

A group of her friends and musical cohorts will be gathering to celebrate Sara’s life and music on Saturday, October 17 at Batch Craft Beer & Kolaches in East Austin. We will sing her songs and others she loved, and we will try to put back into the world some of the love that she shared with us. More details to come.